This is It! The Final Lap!

 Diane and I wrapped up the final long stop on our trip with a stay in Prince William National Forest RV Park about 40 miles south of Washington, D.C. We lived in Northern VA outside of Washington DC for over 36 years and have friends and lots of memories here. 

Our first full day in the area we visited with our good friend Jerry Wilkowski at his home in Vienna Va. Jerry and I worked together years ago. We stayed in contact even after we both moved to different jobs. We’ve been good friends for decades now. Diane and I went out to dinner often with Jerry and his now departed wife, Sue. We met Jerry at his place just before lunch. We talked, laughed, and then went to the infamous Vienna Inn in Vienna VA for lunch. Diane and I each had one of their legendary Chili Dogs. 

Jerry then took us on a tour of Vienna to show us all that had changed since we were last there. It is stunning. Small ranch homes are being bought for their lot, torn down, and replaced with Mc Mansions. Original residents could reap a windfall if they sold their places but then, where would they move to? It’s a story being repeated all over Northern Virginia because of the billions of dollars of Federal money being pumped into the area in the form of ever-expanding Federal payrolls and programs.  

Jerry, Diane and I basically hung out together and caught up on each other’s lives most of the afternoon. For dinner, the three of us went to Nata Thai. This is a great Thai restaurant that Jerry, Diane, and I have been going to for over a decade. We used go there with Jerry and Sue.  We try to visit it whenever we are in town. The food was reliably great. We spent the night at Jerry’s, shared coffee with him in the morning and then took off.  Diane and I had a Casa Lancione memorial tour planned. 

Diane and I first moved to Washington DC in 1973. We were still newlyweds, still figuring out and trying to make our way in life. A job relocation took us away to Lexington, MA outside Boston in 1989. However, in 1994, I was heavily recruited for a job back in the Washington D.C. area and we moved back to Northern VA. Altogether, we lived in the DC area for 36 years. We owned five different homes during that time. Our plan was to visit each of them just for old time’s sake and take pictures of them while we were in the area. We had some really pleasant surprises. 

When we visited our first single family home in the Herndon, VA area, the current owners were outside in the yard. When we told them we had been the first owners of the home, they invited us in and showed us around. While we lived there, I had installed a fancy white enameled wood stove, built a deck, had a shed built, installed parquet floors, and made a series of other improvement. They were still there. Well, they had put a new floor over the parquet, but they assured us that our floor was still underneath it. They were gracious and welcoming. We really appreciated meeting them and seeing our old home. A similar surprise awaited us at the last property we owned in Northern, VA, our townhouse in the over 55 community of Potomac Green. 

Diane and I were convinced that we would retire in the Northern Virginia area. With that in mind, as I approached retirement, we decided we would move to our “retirement home” so that we would be all settled in when retirement day finally came. We loved the idea of an over 55 community and there was a great one in Ashburn, VA. It was still reasonable for me to commute to work from there until I finally retired, and it had a ton of programs and amenities targeted specifically to retirees. In the end, health reasons led us to relocate to Florida and The Villages. But, we really enjoyed Potomac Green and our wonderful home and neighbors while we did live there. 

When we pulled into our old neighborhood, our only thought was to stop and take a picture of our old house. Instead, our neighbors across the street, Sue and Bob Benning, were in their drive. As soon as we got out of our car to say hello, there were big hugs and smiles all around. They invited us in and caught us up on what had been going on with our mutual friends. Then, we accompanied Sue to a card game she was scheduled to attend at another our friends’ home. There we met another group of neighbors we had not seen since our departure seven years earlier. It was a gratifying and heartwarming experience, one we will not forget for a long time. But, we still had two more sets of friends to touch base with, before our visit to the DC area was complete. 

We had planned to visit our friends Bob and Donna Tap in Alexandria, VA while we were in the DC area. However, Donna's  doctor recently advised her to strictly quarantine until she receives a COVID vaccine booster shot. Undeterred, we visited Bob and Donna from our campsite via Zoom. It was a long and really fun visit, even though it couldn’t be in person. We caught each other up on what was going on with family members and mutual friends. Bob has traveled extensively within the US and so he was very interested in comparing notes with us on places we had both visited in the West.  The only thing missing from our visit was a real hug at the end. Bob has been a close friend to Diane and me since we first met him in Boston in 1989. We have celebrated many, many family holidays together and spent time together in Loon Mountain where we had our condo. He is an important part of our life and we were glad to have this time together with him and Donna, even over Zoom. 

Our last evening in the DC area, we had dinner with Jessie and Ledi Gares at their home in Woodbridge, VA. Jessie and I worked together when I was a VP of Operations at my last company. He was the lead manager on one of our most important programs. The two of us teamed up and together handled unbelievably difficult workloads and work challenges. We have the kind of bond that soldiers who have been through war together and survived, barely, to tell the story. Now that I am retired and he has a different type of job, both of us revel in the joy of having a life outside of work. 

Jessie and I are great friends and frequently keep up to date on each other’s lives by trading e-mails, pictures and messages. I have stayed at his home numerous times in the years when I was traveling alone up to DC for annual health tests at NIH. When we visited this time, he paid me the high compliment of telling me that his two girls, Jessica and Daniela, think I am his brother, since they have seen me on visits to their home since they were very young. 

We had a wonderful evening with Jessie and Ledi. They told us about their recent visits to Disney World and Virginia Beach. We shared stories and experiences with them from our trip. It was one of those great evenings that you hope never ends. However, Diane and I finally had to say goodbye and head back to our RV park so we could prepare to leave in the morning. 

As we were settling down for the evening, Diane and I talked about the fact our dinner at Jessie and Ledi’s was the last official stop on our three-month, 10,000 mile adventure. After we leave DC we begin a three day, roughly 300 mile per day sprint that will finally bring us to our beloved home in The Villages, Florida. This has been an incredible trip, an incredible adventure. But, now both of us are focused on getting safely, but quickly home. It’s time. Thanks for riding with us!