To Whom It May Concern

Back To My Blog

Okay folks, I have spent the last 3 months hanging out at Belly's Blog (This Mink), trying to keep things updated, letting everyone know what she is up to. Now that she is back however, I'm going to be really hammering away on my blog again. The first thing I'll tell you all is about my trip, from Omaha, Nebraska to Parris Island, South Carolina.

Preparations

Getting ready for a trip of this particular length (around 3000 miles) is quite an undertaking. First off I spent a long time trying to save up enough money to insure I'd have enough to handle everything, from the hotel room to gas money, you know, the usual stuff. I changed the oil/filter and the air filter, checked the air pressure in all the tires, checked the transmission fluid, added in some Mopar ATF+4 fluid into the power steering reservoir (YIKES, 8 FREAKING DOLLARS A QUART???).

I also spent about 2 hours cleaning the truck from top to bottom. The trailer hitch ball looked a little rusty so I spray painted it yellow and added a smiley face and a camo kevlar helmet, he would be my rear security on the trip. I borrowed a United States atlas and a large igloo cooler from my parents. In the cooler I put 2 bags of ice, (5) bottles of Pepsi, (6) bottles of grape juice, (5) sandwiches (each with turkey, ham, pastrami, miracle whip, mustard, and a slice of American cheese all on Rotella's Italian bread), and a big ziplock bag filled with carrots and cauliflower. My plan was to avoid eating fast food or convenience store food on my trip down, and also to stop only every 300 miles or so (when I needed to fuel up).

The night before the trip I got everything packed up. Unfortunately, I was unable to talk to Belly for more than 30 seconds on her Liberty Sunday, so I didn't really get a chance to finalize anything I would be bringing along that she needed, nor did I get a chance to set up any plans for what she might want to do while I was there. I did not really care though, all I cared about was making my way down there to see my baby again. I spent about a half hour going over the atlas and mapping out my route. As you will see, it wasn't enough time.

I set the clock for 4:40 a.m. then went to bed around 10 p.m.