2129 Miles: Coal Trains, Sunflowers, Buttes, and Miles of Miles of Texas

The end of the summer spirit has arrived. The youngest child has returned to college so the nest is empty again.

Said child and I drove 2129 miles from Oviedo, Florida to Golden, Colorado. We had impromptu stops in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Colleyville, Texas to see old friends.

These visits put my life in perspective. The friendships I have been fortunate enough to have have been wonderful gifts. I miss my friends and am so grateful N.W. is a patient son and was willing to indulge my whims to drop by the homes of these great people. The welcomes and smiles were invaluable. Thank you Liz, Laura, and Patty for this.

The time N.W. and I spent driving, reading, listening to Garrison Keillor, listening to music (my intensive lesson in new music, I gained some new favorites) and plotting our next food stop was a lot of fun.

There were laughs along the way: Buc-ees, Kevin Greene in a song, the La Quinta in Amarillo, squeezing the sign in to the backseat of the car, and the hurricane that didn't.

There was so much great food in Baton Rouge at Acme Oyster Bar, beignets in the morning, the Flying Biscuit breakfast in Gainesville, Au Petit Paris in Houston, breakfast in a roadside diner in New Mexico and finally Pei Wei and Jimmy Johns in Golden. We decided to pass on the camo caramel popcorn at Buc-ees between Houston and Dallas.