Sweet Freedom

Journaling (behind photo):

So this is what it's like to have complete freedom.  Last October we planned, with Rob and Christy Eggers, to have a weekend away to go antiquing up in the Jackson area of California. After much deliberating over dates, places to stay, stores to shop at, and general itinerary, we decided to just "wing it", something none of us had ever done.  It was strange when people asked us where we were staying we had to say, "I don't know."  We knew the area  we wanted to go, but we decided we really didn't need that kind of structure.  How weird!  We stopped where we wanted we ate when we felt like it, we stayed as long or as short as we wanted.  At our first pit stop while waiting in line for the facilities we started looking at the dumb hats lining the wall of the gas station.  We decided we all needed a hat, a new identity for the trip.  So, that was that, we got new hats.  Later as we were flying down the highway we saw this old... I don't know... water wagon, in front of another gas station.  Laughingly we commented that we should stop and take a picture in front of it.  We weren't on any time frame.  Within moments we were standing in front of a broken down water wagon, camera set precariously on the hood of the car... and voila... this picture came to pass. How fun this all was, is this what it is like to be free of responsibility for a day or two.  Free from cooking and cleaning, free from work, from kids, free from church callings, from the phone ;and from almost all of our daily routines.  We stopped at a roadside chocolate shop, took pictures with strange statues (of course sporting our new hats). We ate Mexican food, we strolled in and out of antique and art stores, we drove up the road we drove back we went to a movie (opening night of Zorro) We chose a hotel, we registered, we then stayed up late watching the dumbest movie on the planet (Terminal) and eating Hershey's hot fudge.  In the morning we ate breakfast at... what was it?  The Waffle Barn? (I can't remember for sure)  We shopped more, we laughed, we scored good deals, we bought seemingly strange things, rusty wagon wheels, dented fire extinguishers and an LP record called "The Stripper and other songs for the whole family"  Say what?  We ate ice cream and took more photos.  We had a great time and possibly even convinced our husbands that an antiquing trip could be fun.  So much fun in fact, that we might do it again, especially after swallowing a big dose of freedom... sweet freedom.