From Kira to Beverly

In order to "boldy go," one must have the right vessel to do so.  This is where Beverly comes in.

One week before I met Riss, I purchased a 2005 Dodge Neon from Carmax.  At the time, it was exactly what I needed.  I needed something reliable that could get me around Columbia, something that wasn't falling apart like my 1992 Volvo, and something that could get me to my family who were just 2 1/2 hours away in Myrtle Beach.  I named the Neon "Kira" after the Bajoran first officer from the television show Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

A lot of memories were made for Riss and I with that car. That was the car that took us on our first road trip together, to the Bahamas.  It took us to many other road trips, such as Lake Lure, up to Virginia to see her family and, most importantly, it was the car that took us from Columbia to Louisville.  I'll never forget that day.  The weekend before, South Carolina had beaten the defending national champions, Alabama in football.  Someone in Five Points wrote the score of the game on my back windshield in lipstick and I kept it there as we drove up to Louisville.  This was also the car that got us all around Louisville and helped us explore our new surroundings. 

My favorite memory of Kira, however, was the night I took Riss to the parking lot of the Colonial Center basketball arena and let her drive for the first time.  She was so excited and got the hang of it pretty quickly!  After I took her home that night, she looked at her roommate and said "that's the guy I'm going to marry one day."

Kira was there in the first days of our relationship and was there as we began our new life in Louisville.  However, the mileage began building up and Kira began to break down. Just like the character in Deep Space Nine, Kira was not meant for long trips of exploration.  Road trips to Chicago, Virginia, Myrtle Beach (which was now 10 1/2 hours away), St. Louis and other places began to take it's toll.  The car developed a bad vibration, the motor struts gave out, the tires began giving out one by one, the cam sensor went out, the dashboard split and it was clear that we needed something new.

Riss and I did a lot of research and found that the most reliable car on the road was the Toyota Camry.  We wanted something that was durable and would last for a long, long time.  Unforunately, many Camrys were either out of our price range or had high mileage on them. No bank wanted to give us a loan because I owed more on the Neon than the value of the car itself.  It was a stressful month as we tried to get a loan.  Just when we had given up, we discovered a blue 2010 Toyota Camry with low mileage at Toyota of Louisville.  I called them up, told them our financial situation and our bad luck.  By the end of the day, they had worked with us and we walked away with the car we wanted at a pretty good deal.  We even got the color we wanted.

We named the Camry "Beverly" after Dr. Beverly Crusher from Star Trek: The Next Generation.  Dr. Crusher wore the blue doctor's outfit, was reliable and kept people safe. 

Beverly has come to represent more than just a new car to us.  She's the first major purchase Riss and I have done as husband and wife.  While Kira provided great memories, Beverly will last a long time and take us to places we have never been before.  It's a car that really fits who we are, and we can't wait until our first major road trip in it!

Turkey Day

Family, football and so much food that you just want to sleep all afternoon.  Oh yeah, and there's that whole giving thanks thing. :-D  Those are the things I love about Thanksgiving!

This past Thanksgiving, Riss and I made the 9-hour drive from Louisville to Front Royal, VA to visit her family.  The past couple of years her parents have come to visit us, but this year it was their turn to host.  Unfortunately for me, I was suffering from some bad allergies.  Never a good thing before a long drive or a vacation.

The trip to Front Royal by car from Louisville can be looked at in three parts: Three hours of nothing until you hit the KY/WV line, followed by four hours through West Virginia and two hours along Interstate 81 in VA.  While the first leg is boring and the third leg is scenic, the second leg is, well, interesting.  In many places, West Virginia looks like a land that time forgot. In many towns and cities, it looks as if nothing has been built since the 1960s while the toll roads are one of the few in the US that do not accept plastic.  Overall the drive is quite scenic, especially in the fall, but we've driven it so many times that the only thing we seem to really notice are the steep and windy roads between Charleston and Beckley.  Driving through, Riss and I often wonder what people do for fun in West Virginia.  Then we remember the answer to a trivia question asked one night at trivia:  What state has more strip clubs and adult stores per capita than any other US state?  You guessed it, West Virginia.

Once we got to Riss's parents, they greeted us inside, along with their dogs Chloe and Lucy, who is a new addition to the Slaughter family.  The next morning, the food was being finished and the family came over.

I have to admit, I was a little nervous at first.  Though Riss and I have been together for three years, we've only been married for just over a month.  Unlike most everyone there, I did not grow up in Front Royal, I prefer city life 100 times more than country life, I don't like to hunt, my politics tend to lean a little to the left, and I can't play golf to save my life.  What could we possibly talk about??  In real short time, that nervousness went away.  I felt like I was part of the family and was treated like part of the family.  They're all nice people who seem to understand how important family is.  Everyone got along and the food was great.  Afterwards, everyone sat in the living room and watched the Redskins beat up on the Dallas Cowboys.  That RGIII, he's pretty good.

Side note, Riss's Uncle Mike totally surprised me when he mentioned he read a Harry Turtledove book about lizard aliens that invade the earth during World War II.  I thought I was the only geek who read that book! 

Friday was a relaxing day spent mostly at the house as a cold front moved in.  Saturday, Riss and I and her parents went into town, grabbed some lunch.  That afternoon, Riss, myself and her dad (Kevin) went to visit her grandad.  I really enjoyed that afternoon.  The four of us just sat around and talked about all kinds of things.  Kevin and I tried to fix his printer, but instead broke the cartridges.  Riss kept trying to tell us how to do it, but when you get men tyring to put something together, they listen to no one from the outside...not even those pesky directions in the box!

Saturday night was a great way to end the weekend:  We ordered Melting Pot pizza and watched my beloved Gamecocks beat the stuffing out of the Clemson Tigers. 

Our long weekend with Riss's family was great.  So great, that we were both a little sad to head out on Sunday.  As we do every time we visit, we stopped by the cemetery where Riss's grandmother is buried to pay a visit on our way out of town. 

Besides the almost bumper to bumper traffic on 81, the drive back was actually quite smooth.   I was still feeling a little rough from my allergy issues during and after the drive home, but we made it in one piece.  I even got us home in time for me to watch The Walking Dead.  (I might have gone a few miles over the speed limit in a couple of places on the way back.) :-P  

Riss's dad, Kevin (left) and Uncle Rick prepare the turkey and ham.

Some of Riss's family on the couch about to watch the Redskins.