It IS starting to matter

I've always been one of those folks that didn't let gas prices bother me - and in fact - I'll try to stay that way. It being one of the many things in life that I have absolutely no control over. I do however, have SOME control over how much I need to use. A recent trip to NC has proven how much it all adds up.

I remember back in the 80's calculating how much it would cost in gasoline to go to California from NC. It was in the neighborhood of $100. I just drove from Daytona Beach to Winston-Salem, NC and then to Kitty Hawk and back to Daytona. The total gas cost was $323.64. That's a chunk of money for gas for that trip. My car is not by any means a Prius, but it's not a Hummer either. The Element gets around 21 mpg on the freeway.

I suspect a lot of people are having to look seriously at their driving plans for the foreseeable future.

The past week

Wednesday morning, Jan and I drove up to Winston-Salem because my grandmother was on her death bed. She was not expected to live past the previous Sunday or Monday actually and we figured we'd get the call that she'd passed on as we drove northward. We arrived at the hospital and the old gal was still hanging in there. She was moved to Hospice on Thursday morning and passed away at 6:13pm on Thursday evening with her family at her bedside (and me just outside the doorway - but that's a whole 'nuther story). Nellie Cockerham (or Meme -as well all knew her) was 92 years old and lived a very good life and will be missed by everyone who knew her.

On Sunday, I drove to the Outer Banks to give a speech inducting John Harris in the Rogallo Hall of Fame and after spending monday on the Outer Banks hanging with my good buddy Steve and catching up with other folks, I drove home yesterday.

Today, I'm trying to recover from a pulled deltoid muscle. I woke up on last Saturday morning with what I thought was a 'crick' in my neck and it got worse as the day went on until now it hurts to try and sleep. I think it's getting better slowly.

I turned 100,000 miles on the Element today. It's the most miles I've ever put on one car (I bought it new in 2003). I usually don't keep cars this long - but I still really like the Element and would buy another one tomorrow.

GeoCaching Hazards

I went geocaching friday morning before going to work and almost stepped on this guy (copperhead). I blew off a couple of 'woodsy' caches after that.

Emmy News

Today I just found out that our crew won an emmy for the Remote Broadcast that we did with Fox and ESPN last year. That means that everyone on the crew will be eligible for an emmy statue - just like you see on TV. Not a bad resume item huh?