Ray and I got up pretty early yesterday and started getting ready for our trip. I walked out to get the paper, letting Zoe out with me. It was nice not to have Cameron pulling on the leash. I felt freer, but also a little less secure. Not that I am ever nervous about walking in Kenney Ridge, just a little different feeling, like you never know what's around the corner. Who knows what Zoe was doing--I didn't see her again until I got back and she was waiting on the front porch.

We ate some breakfast, finished packing, and filled up the cooler from the freezer and refrigerator. Ray packed the car, took his shower, and we locked up the house. We were off by 9. We stopped a little after 11 in Milledgeville, at the Metropolis Cafe. I found it thanks to iPhone and Urban Spoon. It is a Greek and Indian restaurant that the Captain was a little leery of, but we had a really nice and reasonable meal there and enjoyed the service. A young man with an earring was quite talkative and proud of the place.

After that, there was a long drive, with a brief stop at McDonald's in Baxley. South Georgia ia really flat and not very interesting, although there are moments of beauty to be found, in falling-down houses and abandoned advertisements for Coke. As we crossed into Florida, there were sad cement-block motels and even a drive-through bar--at least, that is what it looked like as we went by. There were dark clouds and lightning and we thought we were in for a doozy of a thunderstorm, but only got a few drops on the windshield. We turned East and drove over the Intracoastal Waterway, always a thrill to see the marshes and birds and grasses. As we got close to Amelia Island, we began to see more signs of "civilization" or development: Target, Home Depot, drug stores and gas stations and fast food chain restaurants.

Although I have been to Amelia before, nothing stirred in my memory, except that it is similar to other islands along the southeast coast. We found the right road and started looking at the house numbers until we found the right one. It is quite old and more like a house than a beach cottage. A split level. There is wooden paneling and wood floors, with good size rooms and plenty of chairs. Upstairs, three bedrooms and two baths. Down from the main level, another living area and second TV, as well as access to the outdoor swimming pool and more seating, completely surrounded by screening. The Captain and Vanessa swam there, then we all went across to the beach. It was pretty warm and humid, but the ocean felt wonderful. Then back to the pool, which seemed too warm at that point. There is not much in the way of yard, since the pool takes up most of it. But in the corner, Ray found a lime tree, with many big, great-looking limes (unless they are green lemons).

If you go down another level, you find a semi-finished basement, with washer and dryer and charcoal grill--and 3 rollaway beds folded up. Clearly, this is a house that is sometimes full of families with children. It makes me miss mine, but it also makes me smile--and enjoy the calm.

We had brought some hamburger with us, frozen the night before and put in the cooler in the morning. It wasn't quite defrosted, but a couple minutes in the microwave and it was ready. That plus a salad, lots of wine and crackers, and fruit, and we had a pleasant supper that was enough for us. Early to bed for all of us, except Ray and I had to flip through all the channels and see bits of several things, that were all too enervating to watch before bed. The Matrix seemed silly to me now, once one of my favorite movies. I saw Will Smith being chased for a while, but once he found his wife murdered, I wasn't interested any more.

The queen-sized bed in our room was too hard for me and I moved into the empty third bedroom with my book for a while, but eventually had an okay night's sleep and got up at 6:30. The AC is already running, but a look at the ocean is nice.