June 22: When moving to MS four years ago, certain individuals in CA said to me, “Ewww, why would you move there?” And during my move back to CA, certain folks in the South said, “Ewww, why would you move there?” I often encourage my patients to refrain from black and white thinking—seeing people or situations in all or nothing terms. What I’ve learned is that there are good people in red states AND blue states. You just have to be open enough to find them.
The duplex where I’ll be living wasn’t ready today. Will have to wait another week, which means another hotel for now. It’s a Sheraton with a nice courtyard filled with agapanthus. The dogs will be disappointed tomorrow when they don’t get waffles—no “free” breakfast here…lol.
Diversity is one of the things I missed most about California. At Starbucks, there were different offerings on the menu, such as Dubai chocolate bites and strawberry matcha bread. My typical latte order was a dollar more, and gas is over $5.00. There are costs and benefits of every choice we make.
June 21: Saw this sycamore tree today and thought of my maternal grandmother who lived in Mississippi. She and my grandfather used to have a beautiful one in their yard in Tupelo, along with purple irises. Whenever I see either, I think of them. Over 2.000 miles in the past 12 days. Was happy to see the hills of California again.
June 20: We are all growing weary of cramped quarters and life on I-40. Relieved my original plan of a two-month road trip fell through—a good reminder that life works out even when we initially think it’s not. Yesterday was Juneteenth, which I’m glad is a national holiday now. Longing for moments in history when such things were considered priorities.
This photo doesn’t do it justice (trying to take a photo of a mountain range is like trying to photograph the moon….impossible!). Beautiful mountains in Arizona. Reminded me of “purple mountain majesties.”
Drove back through Holbrook today and had the most amazing onion rings at an A&W located inside of a gas station. Bought a little piece of petrified wood for $2.00.
June 19: Last night, we spent the night at a cabin in Navajo County, AZ. It was out in the middle of nowhere, but we saw the most beautiful sunset in the desert on the way there—blue and pink in one direction, orange and purple (and raining) in the other. On the way, we drove through Holbrook and saw this dinosaur.
Smoke salmon tartine with egg salad on brown bread, then a lobster salad. So yummy…too bad we were in a rush.
Went to my favorite restaurant in the world today: The Compound in Santa Fe. Have so many fond memories of going there as a kid with my parents. Beautiful space designed by Alexander Girard. My dad, also an architect, always loved his work.
June 18: With another human in the car today, it was a tight fit!
Amazing restaurant I was introduced to last year when I was in Santa Fe, NM: Geronimo. Beautiful food, beautiful space. Our dinner was fantastic—crab dumplings, endive and smoked duck salad, elk tenderloin, and miso sea bass. Yum!
Since I had no experience whatsoever driving a trailer and have had my share of snafus along the way, a friend of mine stepped in to drive the rest of the way—tackling the hills leading into California. The first of many friends on the West Coast! Frances was happy to see a familiar face.
Glad I got to have sopapillas before I left the state. Sadly, they weren’t served with honey. But still delicious!
Came across this beautiful petrified wood. Learned that as the wood cells slowly rot away, the minerals copy the original shape, cell structure, and rings of the wood, turning the entire piece into a sedimentary rock. Wish my mom could have seen these. She loved rocks.
June 17: It’s been challenging to work while on the road. Today I was looking for a quiet place to talk to my patients and found this old cemetery. Very quiet…lol.
Did you know that if you take a photo of a plant or flower and then put it into Gemini AI and say, “What is this?”, it will tell you. No need for plant identifier apps! I learned this is a nasturtium, a common edible flower.
Went to a famous spot called El Pinto in Albuquerque tonight for dinner, which was also disappointing…lol. No worries! I will have amazing food tomorrow in Santa Fe.
June 16: The coolest thing happened this morning while we were on our walk—we saw a hot air balloon! I didn’t have my phone with me, so I used AI to recreate the moment.
Had dinner at the local casino in Albuquerque with a friend/former coworker. Saw this beauty on the way back to my hotel…most beautiful skies I’ve ever seen are in New Mexico!
Wanted a pair of moccasins for years, but felt like they were out of my budget. Finally got a pair today!
June 15: As seen at Clines Corner, known as “a legendary travel center and gift shop in central New Mexico, along the historic Route 66” and I40. Thrilled to be out of a humid climate—pretty soon, I won’t have to take allergy medicine every day (huge win!).
Ended up in Tucumcari, NM tonight. Very sad, tragic, and poverty-stricken place—making it hard not to think of the cultural decimation and genocide. In this literal and metaphorical desert, only restaurants open were fast food. Sigh.
Left Oklahoma City to travel to Amarillo, TX, but I couldn’t find a hotel with a vacancy on the first floor for Frank. Who knew Amarillo was so popular?! Tried Vega, TX instead, but when I walked into the room we booked…I was like…that’s it, we gotta go (another sketchy place!).
June 14: Pisa, Italy has the Leaning Tower, and Oklahoma has this.
June 13: Experienced my first (and hopefully last) trailer snafu today. Went around a tight corner of a building and got stuck! Two guys from the sushi restaurant in Oklahoma City had to come outside and help me. It’s times like these when I really appreciate men…lol.
I’ve learned so much about Frank this year as we’ve left our home in the woods. Added to the list of his fears: laminate flooring, stairs, elevators, tiled floors, metal walkways. This wuss is the same guy who kills live squirrels with his bare teeth!
Since I don’t like to eat fast food, I’ve basically been eating peanuts in the day while I’m driving, then having a nice dinner in the evening. Ate at a place called Cache…good but not great.
More stress. Our Airbnb in Little Rock, AR was in a super sketchy neighborhood. Over dinner, I decided to forfeit the money and check into a Hampton Inn on the other side of town. We’re all breathing easier now.
Today was stressful. As we drove through Memphis, TN, there was an intense thunderstorm, which frightened the dogs. I got a flash flood alert on my phone, and Frances started having a panic attack while I was driving. Finally we got to Arkansas, and the rain stopped.
June 12: The moment Frank realized that squirrels also live in the city (see squirrel in the distance…lol). He also rode in an elevator for the first time today…definitely NOT a fan.
Singer, Luc, of Waxed. Lordy…wish I were 30 years younger.
I’m a fan of graffiti and stickers. Love the messages in bathroom stalls. This one was great: Riots not Diets.
Really cool bowling alley/bar/restaurant/music venue in Nashville. Went to see an up and coming local punk band called Waxed. First saw them in Oxford a couple years ago at the Punk Flea Market. For dinner, ate what will probably be my last BLT in a long time…yum, with tater tots.
Decided to leave Mrs. Bates’ house and checked into the Germantown Inn: cute neighborhood in Nashville I’d never been in before. Seems like a cool area.
June 11: Will miss screened-in porches in the South, but will NOT miss all the bugs—especially ticks and mosquitoes. Can’t wait to get to the land of no humidity!
We’re staying at an Airbnb outside of town that reminds me of Mrs. Bates’ house. As long as she’s not in the basement, I guess we’ll survive until Friday. Then again, I’m thinking of checking out early tomorrow.
Other than their amazing food, another draw of this restaurant is their incredible collection of folk art paintings. They also have some great photographs on the second floor.
Included Nashville on the agenda to eat at Audrey (and go to a concert tomorrow) even though it makes no sense to drive East when I need to go West! Even though we want it to, life doesn’t always make sense.
Dinner at my favorite restaurant in Nashville tonight, Audrey. It’s my third time coming here, and it did not disappoint. I had the 8 course tasing menu…OMG, so good!
Frank was squooshed in the backseat today with Frances. She opted to have a slumber party with him instead of riding shotgun with Mama.
As my dad used to say, “Keep it simple.” This was my favorite one, done by a quilter named Latifah Saafir. Honestly, her quilts were like beautiful pieces of modern art.
The National Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY was also not like I imagined. I was hoping for antique quilts (my favorites are “crazy quilts”). Instead it was post-modern quilts, which were interesting and remarkable in their own right.
Got a mood ring at the Superman Museum, which reminded me of the one I had back in the 70s when I was a kid. Current mood: adventurous!
The Superman Museum was not quite like I had imagined…a little less museum, a little more gift shop meets the home of a hoarder of Superman memorabilia. But it was still fun, and I enjoyed it!
Metropolis was founded in 1839. In 1972, the Illinois State Legislature passed a resolution and DC Comics officially declared the town the "Hometown of Superman." This was a little antique mall where a band of old men gathered to play country music cover tunes, which I found charming.
June 10: Good morning, Paducah! The reason we came North first is because I wanted to go to the Superman Museum in Metropolis, IL. Paducah is only 20 minutes away. Learned that there’s also a Quilt Museum, which I’m going to check out. I got my love of quilts from my mother.
Arrived in Paducah, KY at dusk last night. The owner of the Airbnb was nice enough to make me dinner so I didn’t have to go out again and leave the dogs. There are still good people in this world!
What will probably be my last drive on MS backroads. But as Romeo Void says, “Never say never.” My life never turns out like I think it’s going to, which used to upset me. Now I enjoy the mystery. When I start being able to predict what my life is going to look like year after year, I make a change to mix it up!
Even though Frances spent the first seven years of her life in CA, she was reluctant to go today. In the morning, she resisted leaving her vet who recently saved her life. And when I put her in the car to start our trip, she jumped out and walked back to our Airbnb. I have assured her that some of her best friends are on the horizon.
June 9: Traded in my car for a pickup truck, loaded up like the Beverly Hillbillies. All we need is Granny sitting in the back! Pulling a 12-foot trailer, which is a first. My neighbor in Oxford was kind enough to give me a crash course in how to drive with one before we left.
One of our last nights in Oxford. Hung out by the pool with the dogs and a friend, listening to a musician I learned about while watching “The Punisher” TV show: The White Buffalo. I LOVE the song, “The Woods!”
The Nests Airbnb is one of my favorite places on Earth. It was where I lived for two months when I first moved to Oxford in 2022. And it was where I came back to four years later for my final month in Oxford…a perfect circle.
After Winter Storm Fern, I decided I just can’t do winters anymore (too stressful!). I put my beloved house in Oxford, MS up for sale in April and sold it in May. We couldn’t leave as scheduled because Frances got gravely ill, so we checked into an Airbnb up the road.
2026 is the year of the FIRE HORSE in the Chinese calendar, giving rise to fiery passion and the horse's independent, energetic, and adventurous nature. This photo album captures “Chapter 10” of my life, which began alongside the unfurling of dogwood leaves in spring.
Started my road trip cross country on June 9. The images that follow are the visual diary of my journey, along with my two dogs, from Mississippi to California.