Christmas Eve at Catherine Pratt’s house , just the two of us hanging out in her kitchen having wine, beer, salad, pizza and brownies and cream for dessert. It was good to be with a friend given that Cyrus and Julia are on the west coast working Christmas Day. Headed for home around ten. With my pre-trip anxiety getting the barter of me, I awoke at 1:45 and fitfully struggled to fall asleep again. 5:45 came early but I hit the floor knowing Brian Bergeron was picking me up at 6:40. He is a great kid, at nineteen he has it together. We made to TF Green traffic free. I checked in my two monster bags containing my bike and panniers. It is a site to see me wheeling all my gear through the terminal, taking up a good six feet. The looks I get are that of anazement; who is this bald grey haired guy dragging all this gear along. I have yet to meet anyone like me in all my trips. Young guys and girls,yes; a sixty-nine year old guy, never.
Trying to figure out how to schlep my gear twenty-three miles from the Jacksonville airport to my Airbnb in downtown had me guessing. Saving the day, my Airbnb host picked me up. I had agreed to help her out by switching rooms so she returned the favor, on top of permitting me to storing my luggage while I am on the road. As well, her other guest cooked up a killer dinner to thank me for helping him out by changing rooms. Bonfire in the backyard fire pit along with a few cold brews, real nice. Hit the sack around 10:30 and slept like I was dead.
Day two I assembled the bike and rode around the outskirts of Jacksonville getting the feel of Florida traffic and climate; it was encouraging to see plenty of bike lanes. Stopped for lunch along the way, All systems are go for the bike and now to chill out before I head for St Augustine tomorrow where I have a warmershowers biker host waiting for me.
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