LAST SEAT ON THE BUS: It's a wrap (a-choo!)

I planned to finish this blog series a week ago. But real life got in the way. I arrived home Sunday night of inauguration weekend. After catching up with Brian, tossing the ball with Reggie, skimming the mail, and grabbing a hot bath, it was bedtime.

Monday and Tuesday meant a return to work at the newspaper and buttoning up coverage along with normal work duties.

Wednesday would be my catch-up day and it was full to the brim, starting with a hair appointment, then an overdue trip to the grocery store. (Brian still won’t solo). Halfway through shopping, I realized I was not feeling well. By the time I got home, it was clear: I was sick.

Thursday I went to the office to spend a necessary couple hours finishing the weekend Neighbors section. The symptoms by then were familiar: cough, chills, aching body, full throat, fuzzy brain and no appetite. I got home by noon and crashed.

And so it went the next three days. I had to cancel several different plans ranging from Friday Weight Watchers, a Saturday memorial service, lunch with a friend, and helping out at church Sunday. That's not to mention some library returns, a return to the mail stack, unpacking.

But you know how those things go. You feel so bad that it’s just how it is. As Sunday pressed on, my ability to remain upright improved and Brian's lessened. Yep, he's got it.

So that’s a long way of saying I'm here to finally wrap up the trip. I thank so many of you who have traveled this distance with me on Home Row and through the separate news stories printed in The Courier-Times and its sister papers.

I thought I’d post a few random photos. It seems when you visit DC, there is a photo op and story everywhere you look.

My sincere appreciation to my employer, Paxton Media Group, to everyone at my home paper, The Courier-Tmes, to Tom and Sue Saunders who did an outstanding job organizing and implementing the trip, to everyone who traveled with the group, and to the good Lord who helped me meet deadlines and keep my health during a week I’ll never forget.

While touring the fabulous Woodrow Wilson House, the tour guide said this hallway mirror was once in the White House. She explained that at one time, the White House would occasionally purge belongings and put them up for sale. That's where this mirror came from. I wonder what other images it captured throughout history. Wilson died, by the way, in this home in 1924. His wife, Edith, lived there until 1961 until her own passing. She donated most all possessions in the handsome abode to sustain his legacy.

In the cozy Wilson study. He had led the nation through World War I and founded the League of Nations. He was only 67 when he passed.

Pretty dramatic, huh? Looks like a staircase fit for a princess to walk down. This scene, and many remarkable ones like it, are found in the Anderson House, home to The Society of the Cincinnati, which pays tribute to the American Revolution. Can you even imagine hanging that picture?

About 20 in our group of Hoosiers left Bethesda on the Metro at 5 a.m. one morning to meet up on the National Mall for an interview with Fox 59. You might be surprised to know that among our travelers, four people (that I know of for sure) are immigrants.

Ford's Theatre, where Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. I only now notice the white barricades in front.

Trump International Hotel, the former Post Office in DC. The 5-star hotel offers luxury rooms in this historic 1899 building, recently remodeled by Trump. The photo was taken just after dark Saturday, the day after the inauguration and day of the Women's March. Protesters from the march gather in front of the hotel.