"Close By Ideas For Weekend Trips"

Dear Sam,

There is a map (just purchased) hanging on the office wall, and it has a heavy metal dart stuck in it. Curiosity has struck as to the meaning of this map and dart. It appeared from somewhere overnight, and is ominous in it's projected location. Why! It's a map of our state....the state we live in. The dart is stuck in the map just a hair from a little round dot indicating a town. Closer observation indicates a town or city named Lanexa. Where in Sam Hill is Lanexa? Hmmm. Never heard of it before! Is a logical exclamation.

“Let's go there this weekend!” came a reply from somewhere in the office. “Go there?” “What's there?” comes another reply from somewhere else. A rapid check "on line" under the heading of Podunk areas gives Lanexa as partially being in New Kent County (Home of Martha Washington, and the first horse race track in Virginia. Another part of it is in James City County that contains Williamsburg, Jamestown, and a few assorted stops in between. Who would have known?

Convenient to the I-64, U.S. Route 60, Lanexa is a short drive to Richmond, Va, and Norfolk, Va. Just a few miles east of town is Williamsburg, Va. A lot of motels, restaurants, sights, and history. Lanexa. And I remember something from the past. Ed Allen's Campground that used to be called “Jack-ass-flats” is located there. What a way to start a conversation by stating “I'm from Jack-ass-flats, Virginia. Tell me that won't start an argument....or end one.

Fred, the office assistant manager walks in and wonders about the on going conversation about who's a Jack-ass. Hence a slight bit of uncomfortable hemming and hawing around starts. The reference goes back to Lanexa.

It is decided by a few, that a short visit to Lanexa might just be in order. Not a far drive, won't waste too much gas to get there, and a couple of nights at a motel in another town might be just what is needed by all and their families to get away for a weekend. Not a bad idea at all. Get a map of your state, plus a throwing dart. Hang the map on a wall, throw a dart at it, and where it lands, go there for the weekend. What an idea. Make a nice short weekend. Let's try it again. Sam! give me a call during the week and let us know if you want to go there.

Addendum: 8 of us went to Lanexa....actually a nice 4 star motel outside of Williamsburg and checked in. That Saturday morning we drove to the town of Lanexa. There wasn't much of it to see, but it did have an extremely nice italian type restaurant. A really quiet town to see.

Just possible that thousands of people could save quite a lot of travel time, money, irritation, gridlock, by staying within the confines of their own state and see what goes on. Just might be interesting and extremely rewarding. Try it instead of flying off to Timbuktu and staying in the rat-race....enjoy a quiet time and relax.