Long Lonesome Highway...First Days in VA

On Sunday February 15, loaded up the car with stuff I did not have in the big truck two weeks ago, and rolled toward Richmond, Va in the early morning hours. Photo is a shot of I-85 just inside the Virginia border. Beautiful weather and a good day for driving. Made good time, though noted a lot of police working the roads both in North Carolina and also many working the roads in Virginia as well. Lots of good places for them to hide just inside of Virginia.

Got to the apartment in the early afternoon and spent the day setting up. Had food to unpack, the computer to plug in, and a few other odds and ends. First trip without my wife (will be flying solo here over the next three years other than weekend and three day visits to NC) though the third I have made here (one trip to find the apartment, one to tour work, and this one. Monday I had an appointment after work for Comcast to put in cable internet. Guess what....on time, and was quick getting it done too. Not too bad...like to have seen Time Warner in NC match that one (have DSL there, cheaper, but no complaints on Virginia Comcast service.
Wednesday did some exploring of the Midlothian Turnpike (or highway...whatever). Interesting road with a great deal of variety. Went with a friend from work looking for a computer; we picked the bones of Circuit City at the store located at the Chesterfield Town Center, but found what he is looking for at Best Buy. We also toured the mall, showing the signs of the recession in the small crowd there, but a nice looking mall. Went by it with my wife Patty on my last visit, but it was not open then and we left early on a Sunday afternoon.
Enjoyed visiting the Village of Midlothian area, interesting place and again my second visit there, but was nice to not be driving (can see more stuff better) and second look always shows more. Think this will be a road with a lot to offer, just still at the "overview point".
Have been struck by the friendly people of Virginia, both at work and people I have met out have been both very nice and helpful. That has been the best part of the time here so far. I plan over the next three years to check out all that I can that this area offers, and frankly my first impressions are very good.
Will be going back to North Carolina Friday, but will return Sunday night. Found I will be working from 3pm-11pm. Had that shift some years ago, but in the current economy have to do what I have to do. Will be great to be back with Patty, my son Robby, and our two border collies. It is also possible that a motorcycle ride will happen this weekend as well; weather permitting. Writing this on a cold and wet Virginia late afternoon.

On to Richmond!

So, finishing up the last few days of the "relocation two weeks, and its been quite an adventure. Luckily, I moved stuff to Richmond into the apartment on January 31-Feb 1 with Patty. Rental truck from Budget (a 15 foot truck, very pleased with them) went well, and got all settled in. Patty and got all set up, and the truck turned in the same day, had my Neon to drive around in.

We spent much of the 1st exploring the Midlothian Turnpike (seen here in the first photo) and checking out the area. I feel that if I need it, will find it along that road. Not much that is not there either to eat or shop for, or even entertainment. A big eight lane road that goes on for miles and miles, will be the center of my world there for some time.
Got back to Concord on Feb 1, worked a week at the factory, and got home. Have spent the last two weeks getting things ready. A funny thing happened last weekend; the furnace went out. Called some dumbasses from Motley Heating and Air in Concord, NC to fix it. Not sure those bastards could fix lunch; pretty much got screwed to the tune of $500, and two days after their "repair" on a Saturday morning, had fire trucks at my house (four of them) at 3:30am. Got a new unit last Tuesday from Carolina Cooling. I would not use Motley if they were the last company on Earth!

Last few days I have been getting things as ready as I can, getting a "Neon" load for the trip. A few things I forgot, the house computer (got a new one for here in Concord), and have been visiting friends. Will not be the last time to see them though; will be back here many weekends.

I will be leaving on Sunday morning February 15, and will report to work at 7:00 am on February 16. Got a letter yesterday with details (though I have the route down) to how to get to work, and where to park now.
Certainly going to be an interesting time in Richmond. I have made three trips there; have seen a lot of interesting places (such as the one to the left here), and am frankly looking at it with a mixture of fear and excitement. No one ever knows what the future holds, and that is certainly true in times like these, but the next few months and years will certainly be filled with all sorts of things new and challenging. My next post (Comcast willing) will be from Richmond, Va.

Virginia Trip #3 (Moving Weekend)

Made the move to Richmond this weekend. Used a big Budget Truck Rental 15 foot truck (very pleased with them by the way) and drove my stuff to the apartment. An older apartment (complex dates to the 1970's) but very nice inside. Patty and myself got me all moved in and set up. Nice place, quiet and well lit, neighbors friendly (one told me no problems living there in 10 years) and police patrolled (in fact we asked a cop directions to the local Food Lion which we found).
On Sunday morning did some exploring on both ends of the Midlothian Turnpike. Going toward the Village of Midlothian we found just about anything a person would need. As a motorcyclist two nice bike shops virtually within walking distance of the apartment, and down the road many places to eat, shop, and check out. One I will check for sure is the Chesterfield Town Center, the entrance of which I have posted here. Nice big mall with a whole lot of stores. It did not open till noon, so we did not get to explore the inside, but did explore the outside. Will be a great deal of things to check out over the next few years there.
It was a great trip and all went well; especially glad the weather cooperated with us. Sunny and warm this weekend made for a smooth drive there and back. Did note a lot of police on the roads, be advised they are serious about speeding, though this does not stop many from speeding (and saw quite a few getting to chat with police officers at the side of the roads with blue lights flashing).
On Sunday February 15, the move will be for real. That is when the adventure will really start!

Countdown To Richmond (January 1,2009)

Took this photo in McAdenville, NC; have been in Concord for ten years but have never driven to see the lights in "Christmas Town, USA". Got to say it was well worth the ride. Have had (still a few more days off) a very fine break from work over the holidays; got in some good motorcycling, had a nice Christmas with my wife, son and two border collies, and have been able to do some serious research on the upcoming move.

I spend a bit of time every day reading The Richmond-Times Dispatch on line....getting as much of a feel for the local Richmond region as possible. I have been getting some information on a small truck to move the things I will be taking there, and also have been looking some at things I will need to get to make life better there. Having just made a move from Louisville, KY to Concord, NC 10 years ago, I do have some idea of what all will be involved in the move. Doing this is never easy.....a great deal of unknowns will happen along the way. I did enjoy the trip there in mid-December, and the company gave me a good book full of information on the job which will be a huge help while I am there. Got to say, they are doing a much better job than they did 10 years ago. That move really was a mystery.

Richmond looks to be a really interesting place. I did read this week that parts of an old hotel downtown fell onto the street (just a few bricks). A blogger noted that the hotel was built in 1929, and was one of downtown's "newer" hotels. For sure to be the age of the city is certainly part of its charm. I do like older towns; spent some time on the motorcycle this week in Salisbury, NC an old town in North Carolina (dating back to the 1700's, heavily damaged in the Civil War) and fun to see the older areas. I like to explore and am looking forward to doing some of that in Richmond, which appears to have a lot to see.

I will be there in six weeks from today. There is a lot to do in that time, and will be working to get things ready for the transfer. Will be more difficult this time as my family is staying here, and I will be doing this solo....but will be home on (hopefully most) weekends. Patty and I though do have plans for her to make some trips there, and together we will also do some exploring of the Richmond area. It ought to be a lot of fun, hopefully the three years I will be spending there will be just that!

Visit Two and the Tacky Lights Tour

Made my second trip to Richmond, VA on December 13+14. The company put together a bus trip with a tour of the factory. This factory is older than where we currently work, was a bit more crowded, and has a mix of older equipment with new machinery. They are planning to combine production at the older plant; but it looked real nice, and certainly will be interesting working there. We were (some 140 of us) all greeted by employees holding signs, and they did a good job of answering questions and making us feel welcome. Got a nice tour of the plant.

They also put us up at the Embassy Suites on Broad Street, which is a nice hotel, and had a reception for us. We went back on the busses at 8pm for "The Tacky Lights Tour" which is a Richmond tradition and has sights such as the photo you see here. Really enjoyed that a great deal, and found the lights tour to be a great deal of fun. It also was neat to get another look at some of the neighborhoods in Richmond, which was a side benefit to the lights.

Following breakfast at the hotel, we rolled out around 9am. As I found before, it was a relaxed sort of trip via bus, and Sunday morning traffic was not bad as we rolled down I-95. Like a great puzzle, got a few more pieces to put together, as the move to Richmond in February gets closer. Enjoyed the second visit to the city though, and will have a few weeks before I return again; next time to be there with the items I will need to live there in early February.

To all of you, I wish you a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.

Richmond: Visit One (November 8-9,2008)

My wife Patty and I made the first ride to Richmond from Concord, NC on the morning of November 8. It was a pleasant drive, traffic was not bad, road construction on I-85 was minimal. It was a beautiful drive in that the trees were in full color. The route is flat which was also a surprise, no mountains to cross and covered the distance in slightly under four hours.
First project was to find where I was going to be working (which was easy, its right on I-95) and then looked for an apartment as close to the factory as I could find. I looked at four apartments, two were nothing to bother with, but two were really nice. I ended up with an apartment in Midlothian. Its a nice area, though feel like it has seen better days. There is an abandoned mall nearby, but its being re-developed (which seems to be a hallmark of Richmond, a city which recycles its old buildings and puts them to other uses), and a lot of new businesses in that area. Overall it looked like a good area to live. I also liked the condition of the roads, and the fact that its less than 10 miles from work. Looks to be an easy commute, though that remains to be seen when I actually start working in February.
Having located the apartment, rode downtown. Noted that a big difference between the Charlotte area and Richmond is that Richmond is much more compact. Charlotte covers a lot more area than Richmond, so driving distances are shorter. The roads were in very good shape, and signs make it real easy to get where you are going (in Charlotte, its best to have a good idea where you are headed...signage is not very good in much of the city). I rode through Richmond a couple of times, also got out and walked in the area of the train station downtown. There was also a very nice farmers market there, as well as some clubs and restaurants. As noted many were in older buildings which once had other uses, many area warehouses were also converted into apartments. I got a good first impression of the city from the short visit there. Richmond had a lot in common with Louisville, which is my hometown area (moved to Concord, NC from there 10 years ago) which does many of the same things. Louisville is (though today mostly was) like Richmond a "factory town". A lot of industry is located on the outskirts of Richmond, many of those are major city employers.
We had a hotel in Chester. Stayed at the Comfort Inn at Exit 61A, I enjoyed the time spent there. Very nice hotel, very friendly staff. I would for sure give it two thumbs up, and would stay there again. We were pretty tired from the driving and the walking so though a city with great places to eat (we are told anyhow) settled for a Chili's in Chester. However, got to say again that it was great with very good service, and was a good lucky choice for some tired travelers.
My first impressions of the city are very positive, and a lot of things that I have been told did not seem to be true. Though my first visit in what will be a three year adventure, it is certainly off to a good start.
As for the photo above, took that downtown. I have seen that view before in some web searches, and was good to see it live. I hope to have some more photos here from my visit, and also of more to come as I check out the city that will be my "part time" home for the the next three years starting in mid-February of 2009.