Hello, Charlottesville!

Last year, I found out about my dad's side of the family. I'd never met most of them. I went to a family reunion and learned a ton of stuff about my history. Awesome.

So, my amazing cousin, A, who introduced me to all of this (we met at a funeral and realized we have a ton of stuff in common and she brought me into the fold) organized a wonderful trip up to Charlottesville to visit some Virginia cousins.

After 8 hours of the most chill car ride I've ever been a part of, we reached our family's house. None of us (A, other cousin Al, nor me) have ever been to their house. We visited Mary, Clint, Kyle and M. The live much, much differently than A, Al and me.

By choice, they have no dishwasher and no dryer. They hang clothing on the line and wash all dishes in dish basins by hand. They have only one (ONE) toilet, which they flush only when it needs to be flushed (to save water). They are a little obsessive about recycling and putting things in the compost pile. It was great, if also not my thing. I've considered myself OCD about recycling in the past, but my Virginia family puts me to shame. Shame.

But, the point of the trip was to hang out with family. M and Kyle are amazing. M is like the little sister I've always wanted. She's amazing and thoughtful and beautiful and sweet. And Kyle is also great. I wished we lived closer to each other so we can visit more.

The weekend was a good experience, but I much admit I'm glad to be back to my very own toilet.