Back to Reality

The vacation is over and what a fabulous one it was :).  I just wish it could have been longer because there was still so much that we wanted to see and do.  Although I missed my kids terribly, it was so wonderful to be away from the daily grind.  I didn’t have to worry about driving in dangerous winter conditions, dealing with the overload of work at the office, keeping up with laundry and housework, and paying bills.  It was just pure and total relaxation as we enjoyed morning sunrises over the ocean and walks on the beach, explored the culture and landmarks of South Carolina, shopped ’til we dropped, and enjoyed a detour on the way home to meet a wonderful friend for the first time.

Now I am left with the awesome memories and hundreds upon hundreds of photos to pick from to share with my blogging buddies.  You will have to be patient with me though because I have been super busy since I got home, and that’s not going to change any time soon.  Some people like to start at the beginning when sharing vacation memories, but this time around I must begin at the end, on our homeward bound detour which resulted in the cementing of a friendship that began on the internet.

I have met some truly wonderful people since I started my blog, and they have become a very important part of my life.  They support me, encourage me, fascinate me, and most importantly make me laugh.  One of my WordPress friends who falls into all of those categories is Dor from Virginia Views.  Dor has a way with words that shines through on her blog and captured my attention from day one, and she is always there to support me in my goal to become a better photographer.  I’m sure many of you have discovered the same  type of rewarding friendships from blogging, but have you ever wondered if you would connect with these people as well in person as you do online?  I mean let’s face it, things are not always as they seem, right?

Well, when Dor found out that Mike and I were travelling to South Carolina for March Break, she offered to show us around if we found ourselves in her neck of the woods.  She lives just outside of Lexington, Virginia, and I jumped at the opportunity to take a detour on the way home and meet my virtual friend face to face.  I must admit that we were both nervous.  In fact, Dor’s blog the day we were to meet expressed her concern that we might be axe murderers.  How could she know for sure, right?  LOL!!  But, the first nervous moments slipped away, and we realized that each of us was just as we portrayed ourselves on our blogs, and our friendship fell right into place.  Dor became a wonderful tour guide that evening and the next morning, showing us the sights of Lexington, and we laughed and talked like we had known each other for years.  I think I can easily say that this was the best detour we have ever taken, and I look forward to visiting Dor again sometime in the future.

Now that I’m back to enduring this cold, snowy weather, who’s up for a blogging convention on a sunny, hot beach somewhere so that we can all meet in person?  Sounds like fun to me.  How about you?  I’m sure we could create many special portraits like this one :).

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