Happy Covid Christmas and a Healthy New Year!

What a strange and bizarre time we have been living in 2020. As my husband joked, “Whoever thought we could enter a bank with a mask on and not get shot?” A pandemic, isolation from our friends and family, social distancing, many working and teaching from home, ordering food and supplies online, which has become the norm. I long for the day I can face the world without a mask in a crowd, to hug and kiss without fear, and to hop on a plane to visit my family out of state.

Most of my friends and family have practiced their smiling faces, chins up, and all that positive stuff until they are blue in the face. It has been a weary nine months of trying to hold it together. It has been sad not to visit friends/family with the virus, sick in the hospital with no visitors; others have died of natural causes with no funerals; friends tragically lost family members due to mental health issues and a general blanket of fear smothered us all.

The upside for many included mastering Telehealth appointments, Zoom and FaceTime, as older and younger generations bridged the distance with social connections. Text messages, family Facebook threads, and just checking in became a regular occurrence, perhaps due to the fact we did not take any life for granted anymore. I cannot ever remember being able to say, we are all in the same boat with something this dramatic that could affect anyone, regardless of religion, color, ethnicity, political persuasion, or age.

Thankfully, none of my family or friends have lost their lives due to Covid, but many have been sick. With hospitals overflowing, no one wants to be in for any medical surprises, but three of my family members had to have emergency surgeries or procedures. The overwhelming dedication of those on the frontline will never be forgotten, and we all know many. Thankfully, the future looks bright with the arrival of the vaccine.

I am thankful for many things this year. Summer in Michigan and winter in Florida allowed me to enjoy biking, walking, and pool aerobics outside in great weather. An outdoor deck in Florida and a screened porch and boat in Michigan allowed me to enjoy outdoor dining and boating. Golf was safe to play, because it was outdoors, so our Michigan course enjoyed the best season in years.

Living in nightwear or leggings was not frowned upon. I saved on makeup, clothing, and dining out because I stayed in. I straightened my teeth, grew my hair, took care of my skin, and exercised more. I read more books, watched more movies and my house was never more cleaned or organized. I also subscribed to some instant meal deliveries, which were cheaper than dining out! Guilt-free living!

Gas was cheap, but most did not travel. My newly-retired husband and I were fortunate to take a month trip in our car in September when kids returned to school (online and in-house.) We were impressed with the safety protocols instituted in hotels and dined outdoors in great weather while visiting the National Parks across our great country. (To the left is ex-camper and legendary Sue Purdue Tanner, who we enjoyed lunch with us on our trip through Montana.)

Many of my friends and family were not able to stay home but worked all through these trying times. They all deserve a round of applause. My heart goes out to many of my friends and family who lost jobs, closed businesses, and had to stay home with no childcare relief to teach their children, with no breaks.

2020 was like a war, where we all hid from the enemy, hoping the enemy did not find us. I hope that all who read this have more positives than negatives from this “war”; that 2021 brings health and happiness to each of your families and that we all come out stronger, smarter, and love our friends and family more than ever. Camping is fun, but not from our houses!

 

DAY TWENTY-TWO: ROADTRIPPING USA

There is not much I can say today, since the landscape, (aside from hills along the way), were pretty boring. I had major carcolepsy, which means I fell asleep for two hours, which is a first on this trip. We ate two tailgate meals along the way, but our dinner tonight made up for it all. We left Little Rock and hot-footed it to Birmingham, Alabama.

Our hotel, which was built in 1925, was unusual and beautiful, but we were disappointed that the restaurant was closed, so we took a hike to “Helen” for dinner and we were not disappointed. Great dinner menu and ambiance. We are at the end of our travels. Bill is ready. I am never ready. I could travel forever.

 

DAY TWENTY-ONE: ROADTRIPPING USA

The roads between Oklahoma City and Little Rock, Arkansas were less than stellar, but we were delighted with hills and valleys as we entered Arkansas. and our stop at a mini-mart for our “lunchables’ revealed accents that were not distinguishable, but entertaining, as I tried to decipher their words. (But, I digress.) We arrived in Little Rock with one stop in mind. The Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site.

We parked by the most beautiful school we have ever seen, which was the site of forced desegregation in 1957. This was the height of the civil rights movement. We visited the National Historic Site and were impressed, once again, with the amazing exhibits depicting the events of the struggles of equality and justice of the nine who stood alone against mobs. This site was worth the drive and was as sobering as the Oklahoma bombing site.

We checked into Baker House in the Argenta Arts District of Little Rock, which was built in 1898 in the Queen Anne Victorian style, and is listed on the National Historic Register of Historic Places. We settled in before our walk about the district, enjoying a drink at FlyAway Brewing outdoors with fancy cars driving by blaring their loud music.

The meal was more than delightful at Ristorante Capeo, where the hubby delved into elk and I remained true to my Italian tastebuds with Veal Piccata, a good Barolo wine, and the finale of my favorite–Tiramisu. Off to dreamland, until we arrive in Birmingham tomorrow, where we expect the sun gods will continue to shine on our month of adventures,

DAY TWENTY: ROADTRIPPING USA

By this time, my readers are probably as sick of my travels as we used to be sitting through other families’ slide shows, but we are almost at the end of our journey. We left the adorable Santa Fe Motel and Inn, which we highly recommend, and had a long drive to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. There was not much to see out of the window, except flat plains, miles of wind turbines, and cotton fields in full white bloom. As we approached Oklahoma, the earth turned red and the mounds and terrain became more interesting. And, of course, the sun was shining!

We only had time for one museum and made reservations yesterday to see the Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum and Outdoor Symbolic Memorial. Listed by TripAdvisor as one of the top 25 museums, we were impressed by the scope and depth of the exhibits. Bill and I were teary-eyed through the entire museum. It was extremely difficult to see the destruction, lives lost senselessly, and the number of artifacts saved that depicted the horror of the bombing in 1995.

We walked around the Children’s Plaza, the Survivor Tree, the Reflecting Pool, and the fence with love letters, tokens, and photos hanging. The Field of Empty Chairs was heartwrenching in its quiet simplicity, with a chair for each life claimed. The small chairs for the children were especially sad to see.

We checked into our “bougie” Bradford House hotel near the city. (Priceline.com is great for deals!) The independent boutique hotel was originally luxury apartment homes built in 1912. Our room is in the newer section and is beautifully appointed, as is the restaurant, lounges and other rooms. The courtyard outside our room is perfect for Bill’s nightly scotch and cigar, as he watches sports.

Tonight we dined in the artsy restaurant at the hotel, savoring homemade Gazpacho, other delicious dishes, and broke loose with two desserts. We are headed east tomorrow to Little Rock, Arkansas to yet another city we have never seen.

DAY NINETEEN: ROADTRIPPING USA

Bill and I had a wonderful reservation only breakfast, seated in the outdoor alcove of the Inn. It meant we were alone for our start of the day, before heading to the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi in the center of Santa Fe. We had not been to mass since spring but thought this would be a great time to go. Upon our arrival, they asked if we had a reservation. (No, we did not.) “You are in luck! You two are the last walk-ins to be allowed in!” After submitting our names and phone number for contact tracing, spritzing on hand sanitizer, and agreeing to masks throughout service, we were seated in the distanced designated seat.

Since today was the feast day of St. Francis, and the namesake of the Basilica, Archbishop John Weston presided over the service. The orchestra and singing were astounding for a Sunday mass and we felt like we were at a performance. There were probably less than 100 attendees in this beautiful Cathedral, constructed in 1869 on the site of the original adobe church and founded in the same year as the city of Santa Fe in 1610. Once the sacrament was distributed, we had to leave the church and partake outside. We walked around the church park and saw an engraved tree with the Prayer of St. Francis adorning the trunk.

We walked around the beautiful shops in the square until our 11:30 reservation at the Georgia O’Keefe Museum, passing a  bronze statue outside the YMCA building with four children forming the letters. Only a few were allowed in at a time, and Bill and I enjoyed the exhibit immensely before our next reservation for lunch at the Plaza Cafe overlooking the square. It was another perfect weather day to sit outside and enjoy the music from the park and people watching.

This was a day of reservations only, and we are getting the hang of it, so we made reservations for the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum for tomorrow. We had thought about a drive to Taos, but our activities took too long and we have a long drive tomorrow to Oklahoma City, so we picked up our laundry and relaxed for the afternoon. I am impressed with the way New Mexico handles the COVID precautions, even in the restaurants. 

DAY EIGHTEEN: ROADTRIPPING USA

We lay our heads on our pillows in a Budget Motel last night. It was the type that was original to the old traveling road, with the cinder block walls, but it was clean and close to the Beaver Street Brewery, where we met our friend McKenzie Gatz, who just relocated from Chicago, after living in Florida her entire life. She was happy for a weekend date, as her beau Craig, a dashing medical helicopter pilot, was on duty. Rescued:) Her Mom has been a good friend of mine for over thirty-five years and it was great to take her out and enjoy a meal near the train yard. (It keeps up with the train motto of our trip, which has had trains in the proximity of us our entire adventures.)

Tonight is no exception to the train trail, as we have checked into the most adorable Santa Fe Motel and Inn, in the heart of the city, near the Railyard Arts District and the downtown Plaza. On our way into Santa Fe, we drove through Albuquerque, just to say we did, passing mounds, hills of stone, and desert covered in black lava rock. We passed more casinos than I can count, roadsides flanked by sagebrush and a beautiful lavender plants, and although it was sunny, the haze obscured our view of the tail end of the Rocky Mountains and the Sandia Range.

Today we walked into town to the Plaza to shake off the road-weariness and wandered into the many boutiques and shops that I fell in love with. I have heard about Santa Fe from many people and now I know why they fell in love. Bill indulged me in the two requests I have requested. I must visit the Georgia O’Keefe Museum, which closed early, and I want to stay a second night to experience the artistic ambiance of this amazing town. I secured a reservation at the museum for tomorrow since COVID has everything operating in a so differently these days.

The Santa Fe Motel and Inn, which is situated within walking distance of the Railyard Arts District and the Plaza, will be our playground tomorrow. Tonight we walked across the street to an exquisite farm to table restaurant, Radish& Rye, enjoying what independent farmers and artisan producers could bring to our table with four small plates, and two bourbon cocktails of exquisite flavor. How lucky are we that randomly our selections could land us in such a great spot?

This was a different travel day, but well worth the motel selection, which meant we did not eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches from our cooler, but gourmet cuisine. As I always say, we are so worth it.