7/6/96 - T+6 - The Morning After
The morning after began reasonable early. I was up at 8:30 and caught up on some
computer chores while the others gradually awoken. My hosts for the previous night were my
friends Pete and Susan DeMayo, and their son Bailey, the Wonder Dog.
Pete cooked a wonderful brunch that we
enjoyed out back under the shade trees. Those left over from the party to enjoy brunch
were myself, Pete and Susan, and Pete's cousin Jack and his wife. Sancho was nowhere to be
found. I think he may have gotten lucky at the party. He showed up later in the day, hung
over, his cloths ripped, a silly smile on his face, and no memory beyond awakening this
morning. The brunch was a wonderful way to enter normal life after such a party.
After clearing the dishes, the ladies
retired to the shade to enjoy ice tea and the afternoon while the men folk went to work on
the chores.
Jack and I attached the noisy attic fan and determined the problem and removed the
faulty parts. Completion was delayed due to lack of parts. While attempting to get a cold
drink, we discovered that our next repair job would be to fix the ice maker. Working
together, Jack and I made quick work of this annoyance. Pete and I then attacked the
barbecue to correct it's burner problem.
Jack applied his expert skills to fix the gates on the backyard and side yard fences. All
of our projects were successful and hopefully repaid our hosts for their wonderful
hospitality.
With my chores done, I repacked Rozinante
and loaded Sancho into the car. Sancho is still in a daze, he just sits there with that
silly grin on his face. All ready for the road it was time to say good bye.
I cried real tears as I drove away from Glen Cove. They were tears of loss and tears of
regret for all friends and opportunities that I was leaving in New York. I've never hurt
so bad in my live. As I headed for the Lower Bridge Crossing, I realized the emptiness
that Bobby Lee's army must have felt as they withdrew from Gettysburg, their dreams of
victory were over, and they were now traveling away from a defeat and into uncertainly. To
me, this creates a very empty feeling.
My special thanks go out to my dear sister Penny whom I love very much. She helped me
put a lot of this into perspective and to realize that sometimes we must give up the
things that we value in order to truly experience the possibilities. As the song says,
Freedom is another word for Nothing Left to Lose. The problem is the hurt that goes along
with the losing. Please keep me in mine these next couple of days, I don't think this
emptiness is over.
The drive over to Gettysburg was mostly quiet. There wasn't much talking, myself
wrapped up in my thoughts, and Sancho slept to avoid his hang over. A couple of memorable
events come up. I was 400 yards from the bridge out of New York, when a NYPD officer
writes me a ticket for no front license plate. Talk about tax collection, I'm unavoidably
crossing the bridge out of the state, I have a California driver's license, there are maps
all over the front seat, and the trunk is full of luggage, I still couldn't convince him
that I was leaving and never bringing that car back again. He just wanted the $45 for the
city's coffers. Fortunately it's an equipment violation of the city ordinance so there's
no license points.
The second event of the trip was actually quite pleasant. While traveling south on I
83, the city of Harrisburg started their fireworks display. Myself and about 50 other cars
stopped along the side of the interstate on the bridge to enjoy the display. It was
totally unexpected and quite wonderful.
Well, it's been a tough day here, tomorrow will have to be better. A lot of cool
adventures to make sure you tune in tomorrow night. Take care and be good to yourself.