This is such a large city that It will take some time to write and photograph it, so this post will likely grow over time.
North Raleigh
My regular commute to source goods for my eBay shop takes me to North Raleigh every Wednesday. I shop at the Treasure Hunt Liquidators Bin Megastore on Capital Blvd, on their dollar day mostly.
My route takes me Southbound on US-401 and then I turn at Cavalry Drive, just past the Baptist church on the corner of North New Hope Road and Louisburg Road.
Further up the road, northbound, there is a Mosque in a residential development. There is some construction taking place in front, but I don’t know what’s going to be built.
Central Raleigh
Traveling south along Wade Avenue the traffic pattern begins to shift. My fellow drivers appear more frantic and aggressive in their movements. This is the city.
The portion of Raleigh I travelled through was just a slice of the full concrete and steel beam space. Afterwards, the skyscraper forest gives way to single story shops and sit down restaurant’s.
I came across Wilton while checking prices on Zillow for houses and land. When I checked the map, Wilton didn’t show up right away, so I had to futz with the zoom to get the name to show.
About Wilton
Its an unincorporated town with a few landmarks letting you know where you are.
The local Wilton Elementary and Wilton Grill bear the towns name.
Wilton is located in Granville county which lies along the state border with VA.
Wilton High School was originally built in 1924 and remained in operation until 1962 when the larger Granville High School was built to serve the county. The high school was then converted to an elementary and has been in operation since.
There is a local Wilton EMS / Granville EMS Station 2 is in town just down the road from the elementary school.
Photo update for Wilton EMS / Granville EMS Station 2 By Hillel Dorel (Local Guide Lvl 7)
After I decided on a trip to Wilton, I saw that I would first pass through Franklinton and end near Creedmoor, so I incorporated those two stops into my itinerary.
The center of town lies at the intersection of NC-56 and NC-96.
Sitting on the north east corner is a 76 branded fuel station, and the Wilton Grill sits at the northwest corner.
On the south-west side of the crossing you’ll find Adriano’s Pizzeria, and across to the east is a Dollar General store.
76 Fuel Center in Wilton NC76 Fuel Center in Wilton NCThe Wilton GrillAdriano’s Pizzeria
Franklinton is a town in Franklin County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 2,456 at the 2020 census.
I passed through Franklinton on my way to Wilton and Creedmoor. I took Cedar Creek road, northward, and turned at Lane Store Road.
I hadn’t been down Cedar Creek since I worked at Kerr Drug back in 08′. There was so much development along the way that I hardly recognized the area.
Drive Thru
I plan on going back to Franklinton for a proper walk through town. I’d like to get some better shots of local church architecture and the different cuisine options folks have when visiting.
There are several small local restaurants in town covering a significant number of cuisines. I saw Cajun, Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, American, and Italian.
In Town
I realized I had been here previously last year, just after I got my Nissan LEAF. I had been driving around to potential job locations trying to get a feel for how long the drive would be and if that was something I would be up for.
City Trail Wetlands
I found a spot to park and walked along the City Trail for a short distance. Despite all the traffic, you could still hear the birds and insects that call the marsh their home.
Approach and Exit
I took the 50 South exit and headed down to Falls Lake State Park and one of the boat launch areas.
While visiting my father and his partner in Brooklyn, I stayed at their apartment on Flatbush Avenue. This was in 2018.
It took me some time to adjust to the subway system, but once I felt comfortable, I began visiting local parks and taking lots of pictures.
My visit coincided with the arrival of my uncle from England. We had a good visit and got to see local venues including the Brooklyn Museum of Art and the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge.
The museum had two exhibit’s running, Black Freedom and Korean Art. We also visited the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.
The photos were taken with a Fujifilm Finepix HS 25 EXR.
I had submitted lost item reports to Delta Air Lines, RDU Airport, and Uber, yesterday. I got a response from the lost and found at the airport saying they didn’t have my watch.
I am still waiting on Uber and Delta to get back to me. I am disappointed but I can feel myself starting to move on from the loss.
It’s odd, I still have the tan lines on my wrist in the shape of a watch. I don’t think I will buy a replacement any time soon.
I’m going to start applying to jobs again soon. I don’t think the eBay sales are going to be enough to handle the car insurance payments I have to make.
Direct Auto is charging me $2440 a year as a new driver and I can’t really afford it. They had the best rates when I first checked last year. Progressive and Allstate both wanted double that.
My father scheduled a pickup by the SeaTac Rocket Shuttle at around 10:30 this morning (PST). The drive was around 2 hours, no ferries, just bridges.
We stopped for a break at a McDonald’s restaurant and I went inside and ordered a McCrispy Sandwich. I haven’t eaten at McDonald’s for maybe 5 years. It tasted delicious.
The McCrispyI spent $6.11
At the airport, I printed my boarding pass. This time it didn’t ask me to volunteer my carry on, so that meant I couldn’t skip the line at the gate.
I did see some folks with roll-on luggage that had the volunteer tags. I don’t know how they got them. Lucky folks.
My flight being at 3:50pm, I wandered about the terminal and took photos of the planes arriving and departing.
Papa gave me his old Olympus camera. It’s the same one he had from my 2019 trip to NYC to see my uncle Rupert, come over from England.
This camera is around 7 years newer than the one I have at home. A true DSLR with 2 different lenses and a filter. It includes WiFi for wireless transfer of photos to a smartphone. Quite fancy. I am looking forward to how it performs photographing apparel for my eBay shop.
Around 2:30, I sat down and did some blogging. By chance I gave up my seat to a family of three. I made the excuse of being at the wrong gate, which was true, but after I got to the right gate, I noticed the sign was wrong.
It turned out my flight had not only changed gates but was boarding already. I had to rush a bit to get to the actual correct gate. Once there I was able to relax a bit. I was in Zone 8 at the back of the plane, so I had some time before my group got called.
The flight was okay. I listened to music and edited the blog posts to remove broken links and redundant files. I got some shots of the Rockies from the plane using the Olympus and also filmed the entire taxiing and take-off sequence on my phone.
It got dark fast since the sun was setting behind us. I played some games and kept editing until we landed. I ordered 2 coffees and got 2 Biscoff wagers. I didn’t spend any money on my return flight.
I got a bit lost after landing and mistakenly told the driver I was at terminal 1, which is what it said on the sign next to me. I was actually at terminal 2.
After some back and forth with the uber reserve driver, I got to the awaiting car. It was a quick ride home, (somebody was speeding in the rain). While I appreciated getting home fast, I think 40 in a 25 is probably not a great idea.
Mama was up late waiting for my return. It was about 1 am when I walked through the front door. Maybe 45 minutes later I realized I wasn’t wearing my watch. I’m not sure when it came off, but I’ve messaged Uber for assistance.
I had switched the shoulder I was carrying my pack over, it possible I dislodged it either in airport, when I entered the car, or while exiting the car. Although, the strap was new, so I think I would have noticed it getting tugged on.
So, one dark spot at the end of a wonderful trip to my hometown and a touching reunion with my father.
I may have some additional posts to make. I’ll have to check the photos to see what I may have missed.
After reviewing my phone I see I took over 300 photos the other day. This included a nostalgic drive past old homes of mine, two beaches, and a walking tour of the housing community my father has retired to.
There is a large community garden with a green house and hefty compost piles. The trees are covered in apples and pears. Truly a vibrant garden with the markings of care and diligence readily apparent.
I start to realize now that my writings cannot keep up with the speed of my photo taking. Its also a bit rude to have my nose in my phone typing away in the presence of company.
What I mean to be saying is that future blog entries for this trip will have to be made after the days activity has ceased. So, if I perhaps begin to refer to actions and thoughts in the past tense, it is only because I am writing post-action.
So, starting the first post for today; I awoke at 2:30 AM. I got around five hours of sleep before I awoke. I think my body has not yet shook off the early hour rigors from the prior days flight.
I managed to fall back asleep after some time before reawakening at 5:40AM, at which time I driven to relieve myself. Afterwards, I layed about in bed till 7AM having heard some movement beyond my bedroom.
To start my day, I had a nice cup of mint tea to chase away the cobwebs and wet my appetite.
My father had also awoken around five and was preparing for breakfast.
In a cast iron pot he placed diced apples from the orchard, dried raisins, cashew nuts, and pumpkin seeds. Today’s morning meal is porridge.
CashewsPumpkin SeedsRolled Oats
With some rolled oats added to the pot and set to simmer. A hearty repast. Porridge sticks to the ribs and lends energy to muck through the day.
After the ferry boat ride we stopped in at Town & Country Market for some lunch and coffee.
I purchased the Maka Special which was a sushi dish of Yellowfin Tuna and Sockeye Salmon with some rice rolls topped with flavorful sauce and some crunchy bits.
I also grabbed a Power Green Salad; edamame, chick peas, quinoa, rainbow kale, and bulgar. A tasty assortment I must say.
Prices are certainly higher on the west coast. I spent $26.04 on my lunch. Back home that would be enough for dinner for a family of three.
Although, you’d never get such premium fish at such a price in NC. The sushi at Publix is half the size and often you’d be given the cheaper cuts and variety of fish or it would just be topped with Indonesian shrimp.
For coffee, I ordered an 8oz Mocha with a single shot of espresso. I was surprised how fast the drinks were ready. I must have gotten used to long lines at the Starbucks drive thru back home.
After lunch we had a slow drive up north through Bainbridge and along wooded roads off the main drag.
I didn’t realize it initially, but I later heard from my father that we had crossed a bridge to the Kitsap peninsula and then crossed the Hood Canal bridge.
Clearwater CasinoBainbridge Island Hood Canal Bridge Mount ?Bainbridge Island
I had been expecting a ferry ride across to Port Townsend, but that turned out to be unnecessary with the rout we took. The detour also allowed my father to show me the slip where his sailboat Cornelia is moored.
After visiting the slip we drove through Hadlock and into Irondale an then we took a more scenic route into Port Townsend.
I got to see the old spots where I and my mother used to live back in the woods in a trailer. I also saw homes and properties where schoolmates once lived.
We passed by Discovery Bay and Cape George. I had friend from Cub Scouts who lived in the private community at Cape George. I recall his mom was our Den mother before we graduated to Boy Scouts.
Fat Wallet Refugee 