If your going to be in ft,lauderdale area, let me know, dinner is on me. I'm 200 yards from I75 in Weston fl.

My thought is that I would start my day on the road at approximately 6am and be done at about 3 or 4pm. I'm not trying to win a race and like I mentioned, I've never driven this far by myself.

It's not a Florida hotspot, it's a city by the name of LaBelle.

Thank you, sherryann!

Yes, be safe. Assume any body of inland water is a breeding ground for alligators and water moccasins.

Regarding it being an incredible experience, yes, I am not going to be dealing with the cold and snow and thank you!

Redneck Central? I have two work friends, one that permanently lives down there and one who began their road trip down there on 11/28. I would have liked to "caravan" down there with them however I had too many appointments. I do not have any expectations other than warm weather.

Yeah, I had a dental appointment on Friday and it was made 6 months ago, a normal checkup and cleaning. I needed to keep it because about 2 weeks ago my crown came out when I was chewing on a Tootsie Roll. My dentist is about 25 miles away and although you wouldn't be familiar with Hall Rd., I can assure you that traffic sucks for the morning drive and the after work drive, and this road is ALWAYS under construction. I normally allow myself 45 minutes when I'm not traveling during those times because I live in BF Nowhere however Friday since my appointment was at 10am, I left my house at 9. Dang if I don't get a call at 9:20 to tell me there's some type of problem and that if I want to come in on Monday, doctor can take care of my crown and they can clean my teeth in February! Um, I went into blast off!

25 - 30 miles NE of Fort Myers is really Redneck Central?

Thank you.

Miss the snow? Snow does "look pretty" HOWEVER I'm not going to worry about shoveling, slippin' and slidin', you know, winter hazards!

Regarding my circumstances and obligations, my father passed away last year on June 17, almost 1 year to the day that my mother passed. My handsome boy cat, Ozzy, his picture is in my gallery, was quite ill and he had not responded to the veterinarian care or home care he received so on November 23, I felt it was time to let him go. His brother, Rudy, who had never exhibited any signs of illness, died on January 6. Those boys were bonded and I believe Rudy died of a broken heart. They spent 16 years together and they were both somewhere between 19 to 20 years old.

Thanks, 2nice! I have always been concerned whether I "had enough, saved enough", you know. Although the idea of not going to work every day was kinda "exciting", it was also very frightening to me. Getting up, going to work, leaving work, going to another job or school was all I knew and unfortunately, where I live in relationship to where I worked only added more to my day. My daily schedule didn't seem to be conducive to hobbies so even though I received 1 year pay, paid health care, I was scared. My house is paid off but my property taxes are 6k. The jobs I've had along with working at BCBSM offered stock options and profit sharing as well as investing nicely, I feel I'm comfortable and since my circumstances are what they are, buh-bye, Michigan!