Have just returned home after an unplanned trip to LA, aka Lower Alabama, where we stayed with the sister-in-law and her husband, and ventured into Escambia County, Florida to help my son. Some things weren't as bad as we were lead to believe and other things were much worse. We "fixed" most things, set some other improvements in motion and are pretty much at a standstill otherwise. Sometimes you just have to wait for your cues to continue the play. I am deeply appreciative of Nana's work in this. She was able to maintain her composure and dealt with a number of people in a way that expedited much of the bureaucratic exercise we endured.

Among the changes noted is that Pensacola is not a pleasant place to visit, at least for me. Traffic is MUCH worse than 25 years ago. It seems there is a murder a day in that area. Definitely not small town as it seemed to be, to me, 25 years ago. Yes, I've visited in the meantime but I often didn't drive and seldom did drive much south of 9-mile road on my own. There ARE some wonderful people there, but, many now have that big city air of weariness. It seems to me that there is a general atmosphere of decay that you can see and smell.

We also were treated to a ride to Bay Minette, Daphne and Fair Hope, Alabama. What a pleasant difference from Florida. The day we went to Fair Hope children were swimming in Mobile Bay. We had wonderful weather for February, needless to say, and all too many good meals. Had dinner at Kravers (Daphne) and also at Dixie Catfish Shack (Atmore). Really excellent meals.

We were very pleased to find some old family photos and to get names to go with. We visited older family members and were pleased to find those still living in good condition and excellent spirits.