The road trip is over, and my friend and I are back in our respective places. As I reflect on the adventure, I can truly say it was a time of discovery and relaxation, anxiety and disappointment, decisions and promises. The time flew by in a jiffy and the real reason for the road trip altogether is to relocate which is now here. Moving is never easy. Though I do not claim to have lived a nomadic life, 20 years is by far the most time I have spent in one place, and looking back at all the moves I have made in my life, I can say it has not gotten any easier. I will be leaving friends, neighbors, my church family, and all that’s familiar to me for unknown and uncharted territory. Let’s face it, the road trip is superficial and does not give me the truest picture of what my life will be like there.
In my time of discovery and relaxation (hopefully the photos will speak volumes of our experiences) I realize, as in the other 49 states, there are a myriad of things to do and interesting sites to see. The Atlanta skyscape is truly beautiful at night. The roads are wide and smooth. But, of the many things I found interesting while visiting the Atlanta Metro Area and other counties in Southern Georgia was the absence of crowds. I mean crowds and traffic like what I am used to in New York City. At one point in the middle of the day, in the heart of midtown on Peachtree Street, I asked the question, “where are the people?” The cheeky reply was, “they are all working.” I chuckled at the response but realized that this was the norm, whether uptown, downtown or midtown, there just weren’t crowds anywhere. View the video clip above, it tells the story more succinctly.
Nowhere did I encounter a crowd or have to wait in long lines. Everything was accessible and our travels via MARTA was easy. There were times we rode some stages of the trolley route alone. We took advantage of the free parking in the city where available. Even though we were in rush hour traffic a few times, I came away with the thought that it’s all relative. In my opinion, rush hour traffic on the I-75 or I-85 is a breeze to traffic on the Belt Parkway or I-678 where the possibility of road rage is extremely high. No doubt in the future also, I too will be saying like fellow Georgians, “rush hour traffic is horrific.”
We tried our best to fit sightseeing in between apartment hunting and job search. Our entertainment besides visiting memorials and festivals included, a Cirque Du Soleil show – Volta, attended Stone Mountain Highland Games and Scottish “Outlander” Festival, Alice’s Wonderland at the Atlanta Botanical Garden, tours of CNN and The World of Coke, respectively, crashed a surprise birthday party and spent a day with a distant relative.
My time of anxiety and disappointment surrounded my job search and housing prospects. Interviewing can be a daunting task. Especially, if the work applied for is not your forte. To make a long story short, that job opportunity I mentioned in a previous post, slipped away, but I managed to purchase a new dress 😊 because of it. The stress surrounding housing all had to do with appeal, availability and affordability.
Our time of decisions and promises were more about ourselves and how we were going to face life in the future. My girlfriend and I spent much of our time catching up on all the things that brought us together throughout the years. Even though we have not always been in contact, we have always remained in each other’s thoughts. We have similar likes and dislikes, can finish each other’s sentences, laugh at each other’s jokes, and on and on. We committed to changing our lifestyle, our looks (we ate good food and came back a little heavier 😂), for her too a new address. We promised to support and pray for the success of the other, to stay in touch, and to be there when we need each other the most. We both decided that it was high time to take charge of our lives and step out in faith, following God’s plan wherever it may lead us.
Community Peeps, the hardest thing for me to do now is pack. Whether going away for leisure or relocating to a new house. I hate to pack. I am inundated with boxes, bins and everything is a jumbled mess. Conversely, I look forward to being in my new digs in two weeks. So, this is me giving you an early heads up. My postings may be scarce until I am moved in and settled, unless something interesting or inspiring comes up to write about. As always, I encourage you to share your comments with me in the box below.
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