5/12/2008 Baltimore

I have just returned from Baltimore after visiting my friend Sonja and attending her baby shower. I really like Baltimore's character; it has all the nuances of an old friend with good and bad qualities, all of which make you love them. The neighborhoods are close knit rows of turn of the century homes with huge granite slab steps leading to the leaded glass transom doors. Sonja's block has a real "Sesame Street" feel with lots of families and outdoor types. Their home borders a huge, Central Park type green area called Patterson Park giving them the benefits of having a pool, tennis courts, basketball courts, walking trails and playgrounds in their immediate vicinity. Since they have a large dog who must be walked three times a day, Sonja and Steve really appreciate living so close to the park.

On the drive to Baltimore we decided to take I 26 to Bristol, then 81 to the crazy network of loops and beltways surrounding the D.C/Baltimore area. It was amazing how beautiful the drive was all the way up to the metropolitan area. Life was good and the drive enchanting until my air conditioning stopped working. It became unberable at times, and we actually considered stopping to have someone recharge the freon. When we decided to start looking for a place to stop, the sun began to set and the temperature became tolerable, so we just continued.

We arrived and clamoured into Steve and Sonja's air conditioned house, swearing that we would never leave it, moved our belongings out of the car, found a suitable parking space and called it a night. Air conditioning had never felt so good, especially since my clothing had been wringing wet a few hours before and still retained a good amount of moisture in them.

I awoke the next morning when Fox started calling my name from the window-less nursery. How can he know when 7am rolls around when there are no lights or indications of day break AT ALL? We got dressed and prepared breakfast looking forward to the big playground at Patterson park. After disarming the alarm I grabbed my phone, some water and the jogging stroller and Fox and I exited the house into the thickest, hottest heat this side of the Amazon. Immediately Fox's cheeks turned pink and my clothes stuck to me. I got him into the stroller and we made our way to the park.

When the playground was in sight, Fox forgot about the hellish temperature and began bouncing with excitement; plus there were no other kids on the equipment since it was so early, I supossed. When we were securly inside of the fence I let Fox out of the stroller, unleashing him into the brand new-to-him playground. The second he touched the climbing apparatus he gasped and turned to me with the bitter look of betrayel. His eyes were tearing up when I came over to assure him that he was safe, and that he could climb the faux rock wall all by himself like a big boy when my leg came into contact with the thick, plastic wall. The thing was ON FIRE. In fact, the entire playground was the temperature of the sun and it wasn't even 9am yet. I felt so bad for Fox! Just last week we were going to our "regular" playground in Knoxville (the Island Home Park) and as we rounded the bend to the playground we were horrified to discover that a massive Oak had fallen, taking out the entire play place. Danny, Cora and Adrianne were with us and the boys were ultimately confused. They kept running up to the ladder of the tower, then seeing that the ladder lead no where they would turn and look at us with those disappointed eyes!

Fox and I ended up just going on a walk around the huge park with Sonja and Gracie, her pup.

We had lots of fun around the town visiting the museum, going to a Cuban resturant, celebrating birthdays with Sonja's family, and just relaxing in the AC... The day before we were going to leave to return home I decided that my truck AC wasn't going to fix itself, so I made an appt with a place that was familiar to Sonja. It was the first time I had really driven in Baltimore, and I was shocked at the state of the roads there. Not that I'm into paving and paving till things are perfect, but at least filling in gaping pot holes and putting some warning signs when there is a bump the size of a fallen tree. There are better roads in developing countries.Blazing a trail through a forest would yield better roads.

I got the AC charged up and the return drive was much cooler. Now I am back in Asheville and the 85 degree heat feels cool and breezy to me.