Greetings from Athens

I wish that the title referred to a sun-kissed city in Greece; unfortunately, the Athens we currently find ourselves in is in northern Alabama.  If you remember, the last time we came through this state, we followed a genuine horse's ass down the highway.  This time through we were spared the view of the equestrian behind, but happily we once again were blessed with sunshine while we drove.  Strangely enough, the sun is still brilliantly shining, but we can see pouring rain through our hotel window.

We spent most of yesterday packing what we wanted to take home into the truck.  Then we thoroughly cleaned the house, and we made sure it was ready to close up for 10 months.  We got to bed by 9:30 p.m., but I tossed and turned until after 11:00.  Rick was out cold and his snoring sounded like a full wood shop at peak production.

The alarm went off at 3:00 a.m., and by 3:30 we were out packing the truck.  We sadly left Gladys, but we got away before our goal time of 4:00 a.m.  After a couple of blocks we had to turn around and reset the thermostat from 79 to 80 degrees which meant that our new departure time was back to 4:00 a.m.  The City of Dunedin will come on Monday to shut off the water and to pick up our garbage can.

We made good time getting out of the Tampa area, although driving in the dark is not our favorite way to travel.  Rick drove the first 2.5 hours, and then we switched drivers as we reached northern Florida.  Getting around Tallahassee was painless.  We switched drivers again because I was having trouble staying awake and all went well until we crossed the state line into Alabama.

Then the phone rang. 

Since Rick was driving, I picked up the phone only to hear the voice of George K., our insurance agent for Citizens' Insurance.  For those who do not know, once Hurricane Andrew blew through Florida, all of the insurance companies abandoned the state.  People could not buy houses because they could not get any company to insure their purchases.  Finally, the state of Florida had to step in to insure homeowners, so they developed Citizens' Insurance.  George has already solved one small problem for us, but this time he delivered a bombshell.

"I just got a letter from Citizens', " he said, "and they have cancelled your homeowner's insurance."

"What?"  I said not too calmly. "Why did they do THAT?"

Apparently the inspector at the time of closing did not sign one form at the right place on our four-point inspection form, so Citizens' decided to cancel our policy.  George told us that we might have to have a new inspection.  I informed George that we were on our way back to Wisconsin, that he had all of the signed paperwork in front of him, and that we were not going to pay for another inspection on a house that was already approved.   He looked around our file and actually found the paperwork.  By that time Rick had pulled off the highway, took the phone, and reiterated what I had just said. George said that he would check back with Citizens' and would call us back.

This is hurricane season, and there is no way that a person can own a home on the coast of Florida and not have insurance. 

Thankfully, George called back and all is well.  He pointed out to the head office that our forms were indeed signed and he assured us that our insurance was intact.

If I started this day a bit sleepy and groggy, that jolt of adrenaline did wonders to wake me up. We made it safely to our destination in northern Alabama.  Tomorrow our goal is to drive as far as northern Illinois, and we should be back in Wisconsin, in our fully insured winter home, by mid-day on Sunday.