Florida Again

It was summer camp time again so Daughter and I made another road trip to Florida. This year we had an extra passenger both ways. One friend flew here the week before and we took her home. Another friend came home with us and flew back. So the car was pretty full both times. The car was extra full on the way home because we had managed to squeeze in four antique chairs and two boxes of china for Engaged Couple.

Soon after we set off, I decided we'd play the "License Plate" game along the way. I started out playing on my own, as the two girls watched movies in the back seat. But after about six different state license plates, I had to enlist the help of Daughter to keep track of them on her iPhone. I was trying to keep track of them geographically in my head. Eventually, we were all scanning license plates of passing cars as we drove through the five states. The best road for spotting different ones was on I-75 (where we saw Alaska and Hawaii - and cheered/screamed) - due to all those tourists heading to Disney and the beaches. By the time we got home we had seen 46 states - we lacked Idaho, Wyoming, South Dakota and Rhode Island. We also saw several extras: District of Columbia, Newfoundland-Labrador, British Columbia, Ontario, Saskatchewan, Puerto Rico, Chihuahua-Mexico, and Nuevo Leon-Mexico. 

I  listened to four audiobooks along the way. Unlike listening to music, audiobooks seem to keep me awake better and also seem to make the miles go by faster. Unfortunately, the titles of audiobooks are limited, especially at thrift stores and secondhand bookstores where I shop.

I drove 2950 miles in 12 days. Needless to say, I was happy to be home.

This is the longest part of the drive. Also the most monotonous.

We passed this Tesla transporter. "I'm good with brands." - Friend says.

Sadly, only one afternoon was spent at our favorite beach spot.

I'm sure this sailboat passed just for me to take this photo.

 We didn't need the newspaper to tell us Tampa was very hot.

Afternoon thunderstorms created spectacular cloud formations.

Two of the four antique chairs we managed to take home with us.

All the camp gear, bags, and chairs didn't leave much extra room.

I got so excited when I spotted this Arizona plate I had to take a photo.

Here's the beginning of the list, as we spotted them.

There was about 20 hours of listening time in my audiobooks.