July 19

I barely left Houston when I immediately had a mishap and then got behind schedule. One of my bottles of water leaked out all over my "bed", the piece of foam with a sheet that I had so meticulously arranged in my hatchbck. So I had to yank off the sheet sleep on a blanket instead, and then rearrange everything again the next day once dry.

But what was worse was that I got behind schedule. The first new store in Baton Rouge being only 300, or 4 hours, away, I expected to drive straight there and wait for the store to open. But I miscalculated the effect of my "Day of Purification", 24 hours without coffee, and I didn't even get an hour out of Houston when I started to feel really bad. I had just passed up the rest area, figuring I could push on, so I had to stop at a gas station. I woke up a couple of hours later and resumed driving, thinking I could still make Baton Rouge by 6:00 AM. Nope. Had to crash once more, at a Stuckey's parking lot this time, until 7:30 this time. Schedule blown, for getting the type of photo I wanted early in the morning. But what was worse was that I would hit traffic in New Orleans, have trouble parking near Cafe du Monde, and probably have to wait in line. I really should have left earlier, because no sooner did I left the Stuckey's than I ran smack dab into construction, a lane closed. An hour earlier and I wouldn't have lost as much time.

Next began my air-conditioning ordeal. I had swapped out a fuse a week earlier and had no problems. But after pulling out of the welcome center in Louisiana, I discovered my air was out. Fuse blown. Nuts. I didn't want to stop the car and swap fuses, so I just waited 'til I stopped at the Starbucks in Baton Rouge. And no sooner did I get on the highway to New Orleans and start chatting with a friend than the air went out again. I had to hang up so I could lower the windows, or bake. Nuts.

Not all was bad, however. Having been worrying about when I'll find a new job, and thinking about my budget for the next month, I decided to try somethign new. In the past I did not want to introduce myself and my project at most stores because I would lose time. However, if I paid for coffee at the 500 stores I hope to visit, that could be over $700. Uh-uh. So when I got the store in Baton Rouge I asked to speak to the manager and explained what I was doing. He had not heard of me, but he spotted me the coffee anyway. cool. At the next store, in Kenner, the district manager was there, and she had heard of me. As of this writing, after 39 stores, I have not paid for coffee yet.

After Baton Rouge, I visited the new store in Kenner and then found an AutoZone down the street where I planned to buy a couple of fuses. They came in a pack of 5. Little did I know that I would need all of them.

I couldn't simply start blowing fuses left and right because even though each fuse is only 45 cents, over the course of 30 days it could add up. I'm seriously on a budget. This is a new experience for me. I'm spotting for cheap gas. I'm trying to keep food under $10 a day. Sleeping in the car is a given, but I'm used to that. It's the hunger that would start to get to me.c

After the store in Kenner I went over to Maple Street to visit with the manager, JP, that I knew from Austin. He hooked me up with a cappucino, which while I didn't have to drink because I had already visited the store, contained calories that were valuable to me.

Then to Kinko's on St. Charles, a lousy choice, because after finishing checking my e-mail and sending off resumes, I had to end up putting more money int the parking meter just while WAITING TO PAY, becaue the line was lone and the store did not offer express pay (with a card, unattended, no waiting).

Finally I made it to Jackson Square, Cafe du Monde, and boy was I famished. So the four blocks that I ran from the parking space to the Cafe--they really tired me out. But I only had 28 minutes. I polished off 5 beignets quickly, and some excellent orange juice. Had to walk back to the car worried about a ticket so I wouldn't cramp. In my hurry to get out before the rush hour I forgot to take that photo of Cafe du Monde that I've forgotten to take for years.

I got back on I-10 easily enough, and soon enough I was caught in traffic out of the city. Just what I had hoped to avoid. What's worse, I called up a high school buddy in Tallahasee to discover he was leaving on a road trip of his own in a few hours. Had I not lost those hours I could have met up with him.

But instead, when I reached the border, and I noticed the sign for a scenic route on US-90, I took it, and got some cool views of beaches and boats . Felt nice not to be in a hurry all the time.

In Mobile I picked up I-10 again because it was dark, so no point in taking the scenic road.

I called up a friend back in Dallas and asked for some nutritional advice, as I planned to be on the road for a month and wanted to save money without killing myself. She warned me not to come back with an iron deficiency, so I picked up some iron pills at a grocery store to go with my vitamins.

I had hoped to reach Gainesville early in the morning, but once again I tired out and had to stop to rest sooner that I expected, at the first rest area east of Pensacola. But the eight hours I slept probably did me really good, so didn't mind that much. Blew my A/C fuse again and had to swap it out in order to get some cool air, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to sleep. The heat, for the first time, would become a factor on this trip, with regards to sleeping. It wasn't just as simple as running the air, because now the I was in the back of the car, I could really feel the vibrations, So I ran the air when I got up to go to the rest room (many times during the night), and it would cool the car off considerably. But after an hour or so I'd be sweating again. Oh, well... I managed.


July 20

I left the rest area too late to reach Gainesville by 6:00 AM, but at least I was feeling well rested. Which was good because, not long into the drive, when I began pacing an SUV at around 90 MPH, my A/C went out again. I suspected it might have to do with the amount of power required to maintain that speed, and so I called the manager at the Hondew shop in Dallas that has been keeping my Acura running for a year. He said that he didn't think the problem had anything to do with how fast I was going. Me, I don't know beans about cars. Nevertheless, from that point on, I could not run the A/C at highway speeds. The couple of times I forgot I blew the fuse right away. Thankfully, I soon got used to the loud rushing sound of the wind as I drove at highway speeds. Still, after hours, the noise and pressure differential created began to get to me.

I arrive in Gainesville around noon, visit the 39th and Magnolia store first, and the assistant manager there recognizes me. 2 out of three so far, and I begin to wonder what the ratio is going to end up being. Once again I am offered coffee, and I wonder how many stores I'll be able to visit before I have to pay.

I spot a Bank of America and ATM. The drive-up is broken, but there is a walk-up with a line. I don't like the walk-ups as much, because I never know the proper distance to stand away from the person at the ATM so as not to make her uncomfortable, yet not lose my place to another customer that doesn't see me as I read whatever book I'm working on at the time. And I'm sure that my shirtless shaved-headed self was probably making that lady a little nervous no matter how far away I stood. To get an idea of how how it was, I point out that when I retrieve my money from the machine, it was cool to the touch, and I actually had the thought to rub it on my skin to cool off. Yucky, but true. I'd probably get a rash.

After visiting the four stores in Gainesville, no sooner do I get on the freeway than a state trooper enters at one of the next ramps and slows all of us down for quite a while before exiting. But once he's gone, we (me and another two cars) blaze down the three lanes of I-75. I tried to stay in the left lane and get the slower cars in front of me to move over by flashing my lights, as is proper. But the guy in the red truck was just whipping in and out of lanes without proper distance and without signalist. But what choice did I have but to follow him? I was a little relieved when he exited, though, and I was then able to pace someone driving less erratically.

I finally got some rain, which was a pain, because without cold air to defrost the windows they fogged up quickly. I ran the fan at full blast, but it couldn't completely clear up the glass without the A/C. Oh, yeah, I couldn't alternate between slowing down to run the A/C and defrost the glass and then speed up again because I had forgotten to turn off the A/C when I got on the interstate and blew the fuse again. Eventually I learned.

The second store I visited in Tampa was in Ybor City, which seemed like a cool part of town to me, though I was advised not to venture east of 22nd. The attendant at the visitor's center also pointed out that on a Saturday night I was unlikely to find a pasta buffet, which had been my plan for my second meal of the day. However, she told me about several good restaurants in the area, including a Spanish one. I can't resist Spanish or Latin American food, so I decided to splurge and try to pack in enough calories to tide me over for the next day. However, I did take the austerity measures of ordering the meal to go, to avoid the tip and so that I could pay 50 cents for a Coke at a machine rather than $1.95 (+ tax and tip) in the restaurant. The Columbian Restaurant , a historic well-known restaurant, did look pretty, though, and I will have to dine inside one day when my budget is larger.

I must point out that it is a new experience for me to be trying to conserve every penny on a trip, by eating less and more cheaply, hunting around for 50 cent sodas, looking around for the cheap gas, avoiding toll roads, etc. But had I been more thrifty with my money over the last few years, I would not be on such a tight budget now and my trip would be that much more enjoyable without the budget worries. Of course, if I were really taking strict austerity measures, I wouldn't have even gone into such an expensive restaurant. But, just like I can't resist a lap dance from a hot stripper, I can't resist a good meal. Some weaknesses are just too deeply ingrained to overcome.

I waited a long, long, time for my meal, though, which gave me time to scan over John Updike's "Rabbit, Run" from the beginning and try to get a better sense of what was going on. I'm finding it to be a difficult book, especially to read in short pieces.

Nuts. Heading towards the next Starbucks, in Hyde Park, I misread the highway signs and ended up blowing 75 cents on a toll road for one exit. Stupid.

I discovered than in the short two days that I had been on the road, my stomach had already shrunk and I guess my metabolism was adjusting, because I was not able to finish my meal. I spent about 40 minutes on it and barely ate three quarters. I felt terrible about wasting the precious calories, as the meal had cost me $20. I was stuffed, and I had to switch to shots of espresso at the remaining Starbucks that I would visit that evening.

Fourteen stores total, finishing up close to eleven, and then I found some places to park and sleep. Some, I say, because at the first spot I chose, on some equestrian center, when I got up to find a dark spot to answer the call, I spotted a security truck coming up. So then I moved to the back of the Starbucks on Bay-to-Bay that I was planning to photograph in the morning, and at some point around 3:00 or 4:00 I heard some guys talking. I quickly looked up and saw some big redneck looking dude pick up some can or something an approach my car, all during which I was hopping into the front seat, starting the car, and getting the hell out of there into a neighborhood where it was darker and less conspicious, except when I got out of the car periodically to deal with the effects of too much coffee. Man, why can't these damn ignant people find something better to do at 4:00 AM than fuck with a guy trying to sleep.





July 21

Because of the clouds, it wasn't 'til around 6:30 AM that I had enough like to reshoot the stores I had visited last night. Then I go around Old Tampa Bay to Palm Harbor, passing up the exit to 611 north to the Ridgemore Store. But I go back, visit, and promptly leave without taking my photograph. Fortunately I didn't travel that far before turning around. And luckily I made it to Burger King for a biscuit sandwich before 10:30 AM. Yuck, you might say. But it has 460 calories for 1.06. A great value. But at the supermarket they had no juice in the size that I wanted, and the premium Tropicana was too expensive at 99 cents for 10 oz, so I ended up buying half a gallon for 1.69, and drinking most of the it during the rest of the afternoon to avoid wasting, until it became too warm and disgusting.

I cleared out the Tampa area with no problems and moved on down to Sarasota and then onto Miami. 24 Hour Fitness has locations in Florida, but not Tampa, so I still had not showered. Tried to schedule a massage, but the one lady that answered on a Sunday morning was sick. So by the time I arrived at the Flamingo Falls store in Pembroke Pines I'm sure I smelled pretty ripe. Nevertheless, I received my best reception thus far. The manager, or assitant or shift lead, Kim, was excited to meet me and offered me not only coffee but a pastry and milk. I didn't have to eat for the rest of the day. She also had a friend take a photo her and another partner. The friend, Antonio Franco a guy who overheard me explaining about my project, thought it was so cool that he donated $5 to me on the spot. My first cash donation. Excellent!

I went to Kinkos to check e-mail and on 24-hr fitness, and discovered a location just north of Pembroke Pines in Plantation, but about to close at 8:00 PM, so I hauled ass to get there by 7:50. But the attendant said they closed at 10 'til 8:00, and I protested and said I just need a shower man. He said how long, and I said 2 minutes. So he let me through. Damn, it felt good, the shower, even in the dark, cause they turned the lights off on me. Okay, so it took me longer than two minutes. But it was necessary. Felt much better as I continued on and visited a few more stores, the one in Plantation since I was nearby and then west to Ft. Lauderdale because it was already close to 9:00 PM and there was a concentration. I managed to visit three by 10:00 PM and then go into a nearby movie theater that I had passed to see a movie called "Sunshine State", about real estate development in Florida. But it was longer than 2 hrs, and I pooped out and didn't see the ending. A barista at the store on Federal Highway up the street, when I asked where was a good place to park, or to avoid, said I could just stay behind the Starbucks, or in her apartment complex parking space. But I figured people would mess with me, so I just slept behind the store. It was dark enough and no one showed up. I'm still alive.


July 22

Up at 6:30 again and reshoot the stores I had visited the previous evening. Decided to leave the batteries I had left charging at Kinko's to charge all day. Just need to remember not to forget them. The shift supervisor at the Starbucks at the Las Olas Center was about to become the first not to offer me free coffee, but I left the article with him while I went into the bathroom to deal with the 13 coffees from yesterday, and when I got out he had changed his mind. Head back to 24-hr fitness to shower and start the day fresh. Too bad I can't store showers like a camel stores food.

Later in the day I call the Wellington Mall store (after having called Wellington Green by mistake) and talk to Kim, who invited me to come say hello (and to whom I still owe a postcard). She gets off at 3:15 and agreed to let me use her computer to update my site, so I plan to head there then. I head back south to the store on Tamiami Plaza, where the I'm hooked up with a pastry to tide me over until Versailles. Across the street were some strange (to me) birds . Then the Dolphin Mall, after which I got lost leaving. Then I traversed a long stretch of Calle Ocho and get some take-out arroz moro and tostones at Versailles , well-known Cuban restaurant. I had learned my lesson from the other restaurant about my abilitiy to eat a full meal, so this time it's just a couple of side dishes, only $4.20. I can't seem to find a grocery store on the way to the store at Sunset and 57th, so I break down and pay an extra 30 cents, for a total of 80 cents, for a Coke at a convenience store, grumbling as I'm doing it, and head to the Starbucks to finish my meal, or most of it. I run out of time, however, and end up getting parking ticket. $18. Aaaaargh. Fortunately it's not due 'til late August, so maybe I'll have a job by then. I should learn to listen that buzzing in the back of my head that says I'm going to be ticketed. The store, BTW, was cool--the only two-story I've seen where the second story is only accessible from the outside.

I run out of time to visit a manager named Eli at a new store to open on South Dixie Highway, so just had to head up to Royal Palm Beach to meet Kim. I stop downtown to visit a new store there, where the manager is a bit incredulous about my project, but eventually he warms up and offers me coffee. But I'm not going to make it up to Kim's store by 3:15, so I call her and she'll meet me back at another store next to her house.

Damn, but it takes me a long time to drive up there. It's over 60 miles. I started getting sleepy and thought about napping, but I got my second wind. Visited Kim's store in the mall and the one outside, then met Kim at 441 and Southern, where she ended up paying for my drink. I was expecting her to get the hookup, so I felt a little bad. Followed her back to house where her boyfriend helped me set up the CompactFlash reader and Zip drive so I could offload my photos, downside and upload them, and update my web site. Took me hours.

By the time I got out of Kim's I only had time to visit one more store, in Delray Beach, and then I head down to the store on Hollywood Blvd just off the freeway, which also happened to be next to a Kinko's. Oh, I picked up my a batteries at the other Kinko's in Ft. Lauderdale and then plugged in the other pair at this Kinko's in Hollywood. I tried to sleep behind an eye clinic but got rousted by a cop, or security guard, I couldn't tell, who was protecting those defenseless residents against the evils of my sleeping. But I just moved over in front of the Starbucks and didn't have any problems, periodically checking my e-mail through the night as an excuse to use the restroom, not that I necessarily needed one, as Alejandro who charged up my batteries seemed pretty cool.


July 23

Morning came, as it often does, and I quickly visited the Hollywood store and went ahead and left my batteries, not quite charge, there, thanks to Adi who was impressed with my project. Then I went to a store in Aventura on Biscayne where I ran across a district manager and store opening specialist who had heard of my and were pleased to meet me. He hooked me up with coffee and yogurt.

Then I headed all the way down to S. Dixie Highway and dropped first by the Greenery Mall store to say hi to the person who had e-mailed me about my needing a better photo. I had forgotten that person was Eli, the manager down at 147th and S. Dixie, who had invited me to Friends and Family for a media event, but the store has been delayed. But I went down there anyway and said hello and chatted with him before heading back up Dixie Highway to the Suniland Plaza store. It was getting close to the time for my scheduled radio interview with a radio station in Dallas. I was hoping to use the land line at the Starbucks, but I didn't really expect the manager to go for that, as it would tie up the line for 5-10 minutes. But reception was good on my phone, so I just headed over to a store off the Don Shula expressway to wait for the interview, which ended up being postpone.

But what was significatn was that there I had my first disappointment, a manager who was dealing with some issue and not receptive to my project, not offering me coffee. So I used a coupon instead, and got a vinte latte to take advantage of the calories. Then I headed over to Dadeland Mall, for what they call a Home Kiosk, next to Burdine's, where to my bafflement the supervisor was very curt and adamant about not supporting anything not official to Starbucks. Didn't even want to read my article. Furthermore, when I presented a coupon, she interrogated me about where I had gotten it and who had given it to me because it was not stamped. Of course I wasn't going to tell her. And as she was pulling my shot she commented that she had heard of me, which confused me even more, that she had heard of my project but wouldn't cooperate. At least the manager at the previous store had no idea who I was, even after calling her district manager. So I figured this manager would really give me hard time if she say me photographing the kiosk, so I spent a lot of time trying to find an angle from which she wouldn't see me, and I finally settled on a reflecting where the Starbucks sign was barely visible, to me at least. Turns out it's not visible in the downsized photo, and only visible in the full-sized because I know where to look. Nuts.

But my fortune's turned at the next location, 9001 S. Dixie Hwy, where after getting my shot from the cooperative manager, BAZAAM!!! Who walks in but the big shots from Seattle, the president of Starbucks North America Howard Behar, the VP Jim Alling, and another lady. After all the coffee and lack of food I hope they forgive me for not remembering their names. They were very interested in my project, with myriad questions. The president explained that they had been letting me go about my project without interference to avoid ruining by authenticity of the project with official sponsorship, and I agreed. But he went ahead and loaded up my Starbucks card to the max. And then we took a photo . And I found out for certain that Howard Schultz does know. So I was totally stoked when I left that store.

Head back to Versailles for more take-out. They get the order wrong and give me some "croquettes", I think, instead of plantains, but as a result after going back I ended up with both, and the croquettes cover my dinner for that day. My food budget is going along just fine.

I head back up north, pick up my batteries, and start working my way towards the northern stores I had remaining. The manager at 7777 Glades even hooks me up with a pastry, but the supervisor at Gladez Plaza is thoroughly unimpressed and charges me for the shot. Maybe it was the glazed looked in my eyes. But with a maxed out card, I don't feel so disappointed. Still, if I use the card at each of the locations I have remaining I'll run out, so the free coffee is definitely a must at most stores.

At the Kinkos next door there is this girl wearing a black bikini top and black shorts that couldn't possible be more shorter. I love Florida! And what's better is she's having trouble scanning, so I get to help her out. Who needs the beach anyway?

At the Via Addison store Natalie and Erin insisted on giving me something besides coffee. No, not that. But the t-shirt makes a nice addition to my collection.

On the exit to the Gardens Mall Kiosk store I just had to take a photo of this .

Around 9:00 PM I hit the final store in the area, in Jupiter, and chill out and chat with the manager for a while. Then I call my cousins in Orlando and make plans to visit the next day. I head over to the turnpike and stop at the first service area for much needed rest.


July 24

I start driving around 5:30 and make good enough time to hit the first Orlando store on my list, Hunter Creek Comons, around 7:00. A little too early, actually, because my next store is the Orlando Premium Outlet and I have to end up waiting for it to open at 8:00. Then I see some rush hour traffic on way to S. Orange and Crystal Lake, where I hang out and wait for that interview with Darrell Ankarlo of KLIF out of Dallas. It went over, although the host thought I was crazy over and over.

I called my cousin and headed over to there nearby apartment complex. My cousin Esperanza had never met me, and was excitied to, and she and her husband were totally cool, feeding me and letting me use the computer to update my site, and since I ended up not finishing Orlando, crashing for the night.

After lunch I headed to Best Buy to buy a new Zip drive, because the driver installation disk for my old one was damaged. This new one was USB and much faster. Didn't want to spend the money, but had to offload my photos and wanted to keep my site updated. Then I hit a bunch of stores until I got to Winter Park, where I was told that KQTS, RealRadio 104.1, where Jim Phillips had mentioned me back in April, was nearby, and that I might try to get on. It wasn't so close, and I got lost on the way, but I made it. But after waiting a while, Stacy came out and said they couldn't put me on unplanned, but might try to get me on the Drew Show, which didn't pan out either. Now that I'm soliciting donations for my project, publicity has suddenly become more important.

But at the next store they partners were very cool, and one of the customers who overheard even had me sign a cup for him (not his cup, mind you), and bought me a bagel. The partners had me take a photo with them.

Two more stores, then back to my cousins for some much-needed dinner. I made sure the Zip drive worked, and then I crashed hard. Got up around 2:00 and spent hours working on my web site, and some job hunting, but no new postings. July 25

It took me all morning to finish updating my site, but I wanted to get that done. So I had breakfast and lunch and plan to leave Orlando in pretty good shape, with only two more stores to visit before Daytona.

Having left so late, I expected to hit traffic on the way out of Orlando, especially since the two Starbucks I had remaining took me south and west from my cousin's, so that I would have to clear downtown as traffic was getting heavy. I was well-received at the two stores I visited. In fact, better than that. Some guy with a mysterious identity overheard my spiel and became interest in interviewing me later via e-mail, and he donated $20 my project right on the spot. With $5 from the guy in Pemproke Pines, $10 from my cousins, and $20 from this guy, I like the pattern that is taking shape.

This guy sent me e-mail message later pointing me to his web site, where he had linked to mine. I appreciate the interest and publicity, but I have to confess minor concern about his referring me as a "truly spiritual person". I'll admit to not being able to provide an accurate definition of spirituality, but I can definitely say that I do not consider myself to be spiritual in the sense that I understand the word to be commonly perceived. Specifically, if spirituality has anything to do with faith, then I am absolutely not spiritual, and against it. But I don't know what this guy meant, so I won't make a big deal out of it, being a proponent of giving the benefit of the doubt.

Anyway, I was so excited with the donation and further prospects for publicity that I left without photographing the store and had to rush back. Then on the way to the next store I noticed a collision scene and traffic backup that prompted me to get directions from the manager for a better route out to I-4. A store got slammed and so I finally had to leave without the directions, but by then the traffic had died down.

Nevertheless, I was stuck in heavy traffic out of Orlando and some particularly annoying drivings who don't know beans about maintaining a safe distance, all the way to Daytona. I was relieve to get off I-4 at US-92 and cross over the bridge to the A1A and then head north quite a ways to visit the Daytona Beach store. I had to call the store to make sure I was heading in the right direction because the street addresses would increase and then decrease. But I made it, and then kept driving up to the Ormond Beach store, where I was excitied that the partner had heard of me, as I had been noticing a dropping percentage of partners who had heard of my project. I like the recognizition.

It's being daylight still, I decided to take the scenic route up to St. Augustine, the A1A, rather than going up I-95. A very good idea it was, as the scenery was beautiful, and made the journey itself part of the reward, not just the destination.

But the destination itself was a heck of a reward. Not the Starbucks, which was ordinary, but rather the town of St. Augustine itself . I would later be told it was the oldest city in America. The drive across the bridge that revealed the old, old, architecture of the city was spectacular. It was so cool that I didn't even mind too much when I became lost and ended up on US-1 towards Jacksonville instead of the A1A towards the Jacksonville Beaches. But a local helped me out, and I managed to enjoy a good bit of dusk on the drive up. By the time I reached Ponte Vedra, it was night and I almost passed up the store there. A partner told me something very interesting about the store, that Tiger Woods had been in during a tournament, and that other pro golfers in the area were regulars. And a girl outside who worked for a competitor, Green Bean, told me a funny story about how Tiger Woods' girlfriend was overheard, by the Swedish wife of the owner, telling a friend how she didn't really like Tiger, but stayed for the money. Busted.

I had time to visit two stores, first Windsor Commons, where Amy works, who had e-mailed me about a mistake on my website, how I had mislabeled another store as hers. She wasn't at the store, but I was told she'd be coming in in the morning. But as I was leaving, another partner, Elena, who had returned from the Open Forum in Orlando, wanted to meet me so I hung around abit until I was about to be late to the other store that closed at 10:00. But it didn't close at 10:00, but rather 11:30. I had the stores confused, and could have visited both Deerwood and Hodges and Atlantic. But I'd pick it up in the morning anyway so I didn't matter. At the Deerwood Plaza store, Deerwood Park, I hung out for a while and spoke with my cousin in Atlanta and made plans to visit on Saturday. As I was leaving, I got into a lengthy conversation with another customer who had been curious about what I was doing. But once she found out, she expressed her disapproval at my promting the big corporate giant that was hurting the community. It takes all kinds.

I ended up crashing in the parking lot of a nearby strip center with a Kinkos, after having gone into town and checked out the Jacksonville Landing store to see if there was a good night shot, and getting a little lost and wandering through some rough parts north of downtown.