Jul 10, 10:08 AM: Scrapbook – Spring 1998

The articles for the Scrapbook Project are starting to come in. Judson wrote this first one and I also have one from Karen already. We don’t have pictures for this one yet, there are photos they just need to be located. This is pretty much how it will appear in the book. As always your feedback is very welcome.

Judson’s Return or Things to do in New Jersey when you’re Dead!

When we completed our manager training with Wyndham I was sent off to New Jersey (one state away from Garrett’s home state) and Garrett was sent to my hometown, Atlanta. I spent a year in NJ, but I can’t say I prospered. I liked the people and had great employees, but I wasn’t a good fit. Possibly because things back home were a little dramatic. During that year, my sister became pregnant with twins and my mother discovered she had breast cancer. I missed being there when the girls were born, but I did make it for Mom’s surgery. Not a good year to be away from home.

When NJ and I decided to part ways, I called Garrett to let him know I’d be headed back that way. It was decided that he would come up and help me move back and we’d have a little fun while he was here. Garrett took some time off (much more than planned) and flew to NJ.

Coincidentally I was “downsized” from my job at the 1848 House so I was able to take as much time as need to help Judson move. ~GWB

I picked him up at the airport and the move began! Truthfully, the Move happened at the very last minute! If I recall correctly, we drove from the airport into Manhattan. We toured around a bit and had a meal at a microbrewery (I think) on Time Square. I also went into one of the many electronic shops in the area and haggled over camera prices and finally purchased a Konica APS. These were new at the time and it was pre digital revolution. There are some photos from this trip, but I can’t seem to find them.

We wasted loads of time playing Quake and even made a day trip to Atlantic City. We got a package deal that got us on a bus with a bunch of Grannies and Grandpas and eventually took us to a casino in AC. We gambled for a few hours helped ourselves to a buffet and were herded back to central Jersey with the octogenarians. We finally decided to get busy and packed the boxes and moving truck just in time to leave for Atlanta. We had a marathon drive. Many of the details really are a blur; I do know that we stopped in Knoxville to stay the night with my brother. I remember this because I got the trailer carrying my car stuck on a curb at his apartment complex. The next day we made back to Atlanta. Though Wyndham and I had parted ways and I was jobless, I had a message from the Wyndham conference center waiting for me. I was hired back and continued on with Wyndham.

My year as a Yankee was a tough period in my life but it ended with a great adventure.

~Judson

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Tags: Atlantic City, moving, 1998