Mechanicsville

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The Curse Has Lifted!

I landed safe and sound and without any real incident in Suffolk at about 11:45 this morning. The drive from Stafford wasn’t bad, but some of the back roads to get here were a little rougher than I remembered them being when I drove them in the rental car.

A combination of fatigue, rum, and Applebee’s fajitas got me to bed at the unholy hour of 9PM last night, so I was up and at ’em very early. I decided to take advantage of the early hour to leave the Walmart while the lot was empty and very manoeuverable. It was too early to be hungry or even want coffee (!) so I chose to drive for a bit before stopping for breakfast. Once I got underway, I decided I wanted a Cracker Barrel breakkie.

As it turned out, I hit the Cracker Barrel in Mechanicsville at about 9AM. I knew I’d have no trouble finding parking in that area, especially so early on a Sunday morning when most stores would still be closed, so I had no qualms making the impromptu detour.

I didn’t take that many pictures on this trip, but here are a few:

My new rig sitting proudly in St Clair. Miranda looked so forlorn alone there last time!

My new rig sitting proudly in St Clair. Miranda looked so forlorn alone there last time!

Coming out of a lunch break, I found this handsome fellow admiring the view.

Coming out of a lunch break, I found this handsome fellow admiring the view.

They are called RV lanes, idiots!!! (Thanks for the RV lanes, Flying J!)

They are called RV lanes, idiots!!! (Thanks for the RV lanes, Flying J!)

This impressive setup was plated in New Brunswick. It's rare to see RVs plated in the Maritimes. I wish I had enough hitch rating to be able to do something like that and get a little scooter!

This impressive setup was plated in New Brunswick. It’s rare to see RVs plated in the Maritimes. I wish I had enough hitch rating to be able to do something like that and get a little scooter!

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Killing Time

I am at a Starbucks in Mechanicsville, VA. Let me pause for just a minute to say that I have always loved the name of this town; it sounds like a Fisher-Price little people play set. 🙂

I had breakfast at the Cracker Barrel next door, my first and most definitely not last time having breakfast at that chain. Since I don’t eat eggs, I usually end up ordering pancakes for breakfast. By the time I add on some protein and a tip, breakfast comes in around $13, and I always end up throwing away half the pancakes. At Cracker Barrel, I was able to order their hash brown casserole and turkey sausage side combo by itself, which made for a reasonably portioned and very tasty breakkie with a good balance of carbs and protein. Their coffee was really good, too! The tab was $6 and I added a $2 tip.

I’ll be heading into Richmond shortly to have the laptop battery replaced. I found the perfect place to spend the afternoon and hope that it’s as great as the reviewers claim. As a hint, it’s considered Virginia’s answer to the Met. That’s a major promise and I’m curious to see if the comparison is accurate.