The McAllistour - (Not) Hiding On The Backstreets

Grand Cayman

2007-03-29T20:55:00.000-04:00

One of the benefits of working at a university is spring break. Last week during my "spring break" I had the pleasure of spending a few days with my friend Cas in the Caymans. The island is beautiful, the people were friendly, the beach was relaxing and the dining excellent. We stayed at a Courtyard Marriott, which was not as fancy as some other hotels, but had a great pool, friendly staff and comfy beds.

This was the view to the beach from our hotel room.

As you can see from this picture, it's breezy in the Caymans.

All the trees were at an angle!

This was one of the many iguanas living in the palm trees at our hotel. Cas was a master at spotting them in the trees and starting naming them like pets. Fortunately none of them climbed on me while I was sitting by the pool.

Here are a few artistic shots...

Solomons Island, MD

2007-03-29T20:43:00.000-04:00

Blue Heron Bed and Breakfast, Solomons Island

Recently Tim and I spent the weekend at the Blue Heron Bed and Breakfast in Solomons Island, MD. Solomons is a quaint little town on Maryland's Western Shore. This was the view from our room--sweet! We highly recommend the Blue Heron. The innkeeper, Amanda, upgraded us to a suite because we were the only people staying on Friday night. Breakfast was yummy and the great room was an excellent place to watch some basketball Saturday afternoon. We had fantastic dinners Friday and Saturday night at a place called CD Cafe.

This was the sunrise on Sunday morning as seen

from our room. I could get used to this!!

Artistic shot...

Rest in Peace

2007-02-18T18:57:00.000-05:00

My last grandparent (a.k.a Nono) passed quietly into the heavens after a somewhat brief, but typically fiesty, struggle against the hands of time. We're headed to Massachusetts to pay our respects and visit with family.

Baby, it's cold outside!

2007-02-14T11:19:00.000-05:00

This much snow (note the grass in the picture!) closed schools, turned my 40 minute commute into a 75 minute commute, and has left the office a virtual ghost town. Streets in DC are a mess. People are dressed like we live in an Arctic wonderland and the those who braved this horror and made it to the office (myself included!) are boasting of their hardiness and adventurous treks through the snow and ice.
Good times, good times!

Especially the Goats

2007-02-12T10:15:00.000-05:00

"Tell Tad the goats and father are very well -- especially the goats."

Today is Abraham Lincoln's birthday, he would be 198 today. The above quote was one of his personal telegrams to his wife who was in New York. Tad (his son) had asked about the White House goats, but not about his father. The Washington Post has a nice piece on the great president and the invention of the telegram, the 19th century version of email.

Ouch!

2007-02-08T15:23:00.000-05:00

Last week I went to the dentist for a regular check-up and cleaning. They found a problem with one of my 20 year old fillings and a crack in the tooth, so I had to have "emergency procedures" done. Not what I was expecting and not a good way to spend the afternoon.

Now that the emergency was fixed, I had to go back a week later to get the prep work for a crown to cover the ugly emergency fixed tooth. My appointment is for 1:00 in the afternoon, so I figure I'll go to work for a few hours, go to the torture chamber then take the afternoon off to rest my weary head. But I have to go back to the city anyway because I'm meeting a friend for the Caps game at the Verizon Center.

On Tuesday this week, I noticed a puddle of water in the basement directly under the kitchen sink. Yikes! We haven't spilled anything lately, nor run the dishwasher, so what's the problem? I can't find anything except a tiny drip right at the joint of the pipe. hmmm. I call the plumber and arrange for a guy to come out on Thursday morning. Now I won't go in the morning, go to the dentist at 1:00 and then go to work for a few hours before the hockey game. That plan will work for me.

The plumber will be at my home "between 7:00 am and noon" they tell me. He does come out, at 11:00 and plumbs for an hour or so, replacing the leaky shut off valve (not the pipe!) and I hustle to make it to the dentist at 12:57 for my 1:00 appointment. At 1:30, after I've asked twice about my 1:00 appointment ("the dentist is running a bit late") they take me in and sit me in the chair. Tools of torture on display on the tray.

1:45 and "the dentist" comes in. She immediately numbs the right side of my face. Wha? I thought this was going to be quick and painless? Not so, they need to clean up the tooth area and prep it for the crown. OK. wheeeeeee goes the drill and ZING goes my tooth.

NOT................ENOUGH...............F'ING.........................NOVACAINE!!!!!

"Oh, did you feel that?" the she-devil said.

"Why, yes, did the violent jerking of my head and grabbing at your wrist give you any indication I was a bit uncomfortable?"

We had that conversation two more times, and several "low dose" shots of novacaine before I submitted.

Not how I planned on spending my afternoon. After an hour and 15 minutes, they say I can go. I think this may have been the first time that I've ever sweated at the dentist.

Oh, and I have to go back in two weeks to make sure the crown fits.

My Visual DNA

2007-02-07T10:56:00.000-05:00

This is a quick fun time waster. It shows you pictures, you pick the one that best sums up your feelings or answer to a question, and the almighty internets determines your personality type. It has a gift finder, too, so you can ask someone to do the test and it will send you a list of items he or she may want. Good when you are a little lame on the hint-taking department like some of us.

I took the Valentine Gift Finder test, and this is my personality in a visual nutshell. Take note, all those who may be buying me gifts in the near future!

Here's what your choices might mean about you, Tim:

Starting with your style, you lead the way - trendy with a touch of chic thrown in. You have expensive taste, for you it's all about luxe finishes and statement designs.
You get your kicks from living life at top speed - you've got heaps of energy and confidence that takes you in any direction. Your confidence is what others find sooo attractive!
You are an old fashioned romantic, who loves candlelit walks and romantic dinners. You like it when your date pulls out all the stops - your favorite restaurant, chocolates... the whole package!
Dipping your toes into culture hotspots is your thing. Galleries, monuments and coffee houses are your idea of a good time.
Never one for the high life, you like to enjoy life at a steady pace - taking time to enjoy all the ups and downs.
So... you can be ultra competitive, you like to play games and most importantly... you love to win!
When extra time appears you spend it flexing and getting in shape. Health and fitness is at the top of your list.
To impress, your date should come up with a kooky idea that will light up your mind... You're game, and willing to try most things... once.

Old Time Hockey

2007-02-05T21:42:00.000-05:00

I played some old school hockey last night - out on the open ice, under the stars, in the frozen night. The Green Hornets were invited to play the Chevy Chase Club at their private rink. It was a blast, but my water bottle froze before the third period. Not to worry, though, it was too cold to sweat so I didn't need a lot of hydration during the game. They even have a live webcam of the rink! And then after the game, the home team opened the club pub for a night cap! Good times, good times. I love my hockey life.

PS2

2007-01-24T20:31:00.000-05:00

So on Sunday I regressed just enough to buy a (refurbished!) PlayStation 2. Yes, I bought this for myself. Yes, I am 12. But I have a credit card, and a job, so sftu! I never had video games when I was a kid. My parents bought Brendan (the favorite son) a Nintendo system when I was away in college. I remember my dad got pretty good playing Mario Brothers, Duck Hunt, and Tetris while he was recovering from his heart attack. (or did it cause the MI?).

If anyone out there has any old games they want to unload, drop me a note. On the negative side, I think my elbow hurts from playing Lego Star Wars with a wee bit too much of The Force.

The sky is falling!!!!!!!!!

2007-01-22T12:18:00.000-05:00

Oh, the joys of living in the south... We received about an inch of snow last night and I didn't have to go to work until 10:00 today. If you can still see the grass under the snow, there's no reason to panic, but I'm thankful for the extra hour of sleep this morning and the snow does look pretty on the grass.

January TV!

2007-01-18T13:29:00.000-05:00

I am falling in love again with my TiVo! I can watch 24 without the tension draining commercials. I can skip over the awful singing in American Idol and only watch the truly horrendous and laugh along with the brilliantly observant Simon.

"On the bright side, now you know you won't be a singer."
"That wasn't even human."
"Coaching you to sing would be like coaching a one legged man to run the 100 meter dash in world record time. Can't be done."

And then, of course, Lost.

Escalation is Not the Answer

2007-01-10T12:06:00.000-05:00

Read Senator Kennedy's speech. Read this legislation [PDF].

Contact your representatives and senators and tell them to support it.

This is OUR America, and this is important.

The King

2007-01-08T16:30:00.000-05:00

From the Writers Almanac:

It's the birthday of Elvis Presley, born in Tupelo, Mississippi (1935). He learned to play the guitar when he was 12, and his friends said that he could reproduce perfectly almost anything he heard on the radio. After high school, he got a job as a truck driver for the Crown Electric Company, and he began studying to become an electrician. His career as a recording artist only came about because of his love for his mother.

At the time, the Sun Record Company had a special recording studio where anyone could come in and pay a small fee to record personal records for themselves. In the summer of 1953, Elvis scraped together four dollars to record two songs, "My Happiness" and "That's When Your Heartaches Begin," as a present for his mother.
The recording engineer that day liked Elvis's voice, and somehow those recordings made their way into the hands of producer Sam Phillips, and that was the beginning of Presley's career.

We visted Graceland and Sun Studios this summer, and I have to say, it was one of my favorite stops on the McAllistour.

Running, the iPod Shuffle, and Life

2007-01-06T20:44:00.000-05:00

Saturday was a weird one. It was 75 degrees & sunny. We had windows open all day. This isn't January weather. I know we live in the South, but come on! I ran outside in just shorts & a t-shirt. Lisa got me an iPod shuffle for Christmas. I love it because I am the type of runner that needs distraction. Music in my head lets me ignore the burning in my legs. It is tiny, weighs almost nothing, clips to my shorts, and has 225 songs on it.
I love not knowing what's coming next. It's a good metaphor for life - you have an idea of what you want to come next, and you know based on your style and tastes what might come next, but instead of U2 or REM, you get something from Neil Diamond or Yo-YoMa, and you are pleasantly surprised to listen to the whole song. Like life when things don't go as expected, but the twists are a pleasant surprise and you find yourself enjoying them.

13 Virtues for the new year

2007-01-04T10:08:00.000-05:00

Ben Franklin's 13 virtues are a good template to start thinking about the new year.

Temperance: Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.

Silence: Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.

Order: Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.

Resolution: Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.

Frugality: Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.

Industry: Lose no time; be always employed in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.

Sincerity: Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.

Justice: Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.

Moderation: Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.

Cleanliness: Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloths, or habitation.

Tranquility: Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.

Chastity: Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another's peace or reputation.

Humility: Imitate Jesus and Socrates.

Do you love life?

2007-01-04T09:40:00.000-05:00

"Do you love life? Then do not squander time; for that's the stuff life is made of." -- b. franklin

Ah, I love the new year! Clean slate, so many possibilities lie ahead, so much potential! It's like walking into a hardware store and seeing all the parts and pieces and tools and all you need to make that super-duper "thing" is a little motivation and Yankee ingenuity.

So, for 2007, I am going to do some great things:

First up, and this is a little bit cliche, I know, is to get myself back into shape. I have a modest goal of losing 5-10 pounds by my birthday (March 25).
I am seriously considering a half marathon in late spring.
This blog thing needs to take off again. Writing it over the summer last year, Lisa and I had fun and we were able to put some of our thoughts and experiences into a context that helped us make sense of what we were doing and seeing. I want that to happen on a daily (or at least more regular) basis.
Communicate more with my friends - you know who you are.
Get the lawn into shape.
Travel somewhere new.
Create something artistic that I can be proud of to show off.

What about you? Any goals modest or outrageous?

Window In The Skies

2006-12-21T19:14:00.000-05:00

I have watched/listened to this video/song about a hundred times already. A new U2 classic. I can't wait to hear/see this in concert. It makes me smile, especially the two little kids at the end!

Ho Ho Ho

2006-11-25T20:17:00.000-05:00

We've really got a jump on the holiday season this year! The house is lit up, the tree is trimmed, and Lisa's made great headway on the Gift List. I was a little down on Thursday as this is the first Thanksgiving in a long while that we didn't have guests. But it's been a great weekend. I'm getting in the mood and I'm looking forward to spreading goodwill and Christmas cheer all month long!

Bobby

2006-11-24T17:05:00.000-05:00

Lisa and I went to see "Bobby" on Thursday. It is an incredible movie about the people at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, June 5 1968. They are getting ready for RFK to come and deliver his acceptance speech after winning the California primary and the Democratic nomination for president. There are several overlapping story lines and an incredible cast of stars. The stories are compelling on their own, but the real star of the movie is the growing shadow of history, the tragedy that is coming, the person they are all waiting for and inspired by.

We were both moved to tears. I found myself thinking "Don't go in there!! Watch out!! We need you!!" when Bobby ended his speech and goes to meet some supporters in the kitchen.

Bobby Kennedy was an incredible force and would have dramatically changed the world for the better had he survived. His words were filled with hope, peace, compassion, kindness, strength, and inspiration. He was sincere, genuine, confident, and real. We are all, the whole world, worse off without him.

I think I need to go get a biography about this great American.

McAllistour - The next chapters

2006-11-24T17:02:00.000-05:00

Just because the McAllistour began as a trip around the country, doesn't mean it has to end because we've landed back home. The McAllistour has grown and evolved from a trip of a lifetime to a trip of life time. We'll post here from time to time, talking about what we are doing, what we are thinking, what we are experiencing. Plus, we may even post a picture from time to time.

Stay tuned... and leave your own thoughts, comments, feelings, ideas, and editorial comments.

After the Tour

2006-11-17T11:37:00.000-05:00

Hello faithful readers...

Just a brief update to let you know how we've been faring since the end of the McAllistour. We both returned to work rested, motivated and ready to get back into the swing of things. We had thought that "reentry" would be challenging--after living a life of flip-flops, intermittant showering, beef jerky, kayaking, hiking, and eating out for 3 months--but we adjusted more quickly than we expected. There's always something comforting about being back in your own house, even if you're away doing something fun.

Pepper has readjusted nicely--she didn't seem to be traumatized after a relaxing summer with Sharon in Boston. One of the benefits of having a brain the size of a marble is that she seemed to quickly forget our abondoning her and was able to resume her life of sitting on Tim's lap, meowing by the back door to go outside, eating her morning treat and sitting at her window seat basking in the sun.

The hardest aspect our return home was getting used to the absence of our friend Darlene. Darl had been staying with us on and off since February and house-sat for us over the summer. She has since found herself a new job and is living in Connecticut with her sister. Fortunately she only had to deal with a flooded basement once, during the huge storm that soaked the east coast and caused flooding all the way up to New England. The flooding inspired a classic Darlene line: "The shop-vac--I am supposed to use that squeegey part to push the water to the drain, or is it supposed to suck the water into the bucket?!?!" (Love you Darl!)

The fall has been fairly uneventful, but in a relaxing way. We've been able to have dinner with a bunch of friends we hadn't seen all summer; Tim is back to playing hockey and managing to get hit by pucks in the couple of spots that are not covered by padding; we're catching up on house projects that were put aside for the summer; and getting ready for the holidays.

So, what lessons were learned during the McAllistour...

1. Sometimes it's the journey not the destination that's important, but sometimes the destination is pretty cool too.

2. Left to our own devices, Tim and I were able to spend 11 uninterrupted weeks together and, with few exceptions (most involving me being hot, tired, or hungry) enjoyed every moment of our time together. It was an exceptional opportunity and we tried not to forget that (except in times of hotness, tiredness and hunger as mentioned above).

3. This is a big country, with unlimited fun, varying geography, unique people and opportunities. I feel like we just scratched the surface and can't wait until we're able to take another trip!!

Thanks for sharing our journey with us! We really enjoyed updating the blog and it gave us the motivation to write down our thoughts and experiences while they were happening and they were fresh in our minds. We'll meet you further on up the road...

Lisa and Tim

Ice Cream

2006-08-10T18:10:00.000-04:00

We didn't have nearly enough of this over the summer. (mocha java chip seen here)

Foe Toe Grafs

2006-08-10T18:00:00.000-04:00

New pictures are up on Flickr if you are still interested...

Stats!

2006-08-10T17:55:00.000-04:00

Total mileage: 11,171.3

Top speed: 100 mph. Speeding tickets: 0

Highest gas price seen (reg/unleaded): $3.55 (Connecticut) Highest we paid: $3.14 (Washington) Lowest: $2.74 (South Carolina)

Oil changes: 2

States we visited, or at least passed through (32 states):
Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia and back home to Maryland.

Wild and domesticated animals we done seen: Llamas, donkeys, grizzly bear, brown bear, elk, deer, mountain goats, bighorn sheep, alpaca, antelope, dolphins, bison, wolf, groundhog, prarie dogs, armadillo, gray foxes, yellow bellied marmot, cows, bulls, longhorn steer, chinook salmon, lamprey eel, snake, squirrell, chipmunk, bat, turkeys, pheasant, eagles, osprey, dogs, children.

High/Low Temperature: 114 - Wakeenee, KS. 31 - Bridge Bay Campground, Yellowstone National Park.

An iced Dunkin's for the ride home

2006-08-10T17:51:00.000-04:00

Pepe and Sharon

2006-08-10T17:48:00.000-04:00

Pepe and Sharon share a moment to say goodbye, and Thanks for taking care of me this summer!

Finale!... or is it?

2006-08-10T17:28:00.000-04:00

It's been a week since our last post, so some of you may be wondering:

Is this it?
Where are they now?
Did they make it home safely?
Where is Pepe and how did she fare at Chez Sharon?

Well, yes, this is it. We are home now and getting ready to return to the work force and take up the regularly scheduled life. After a brief stop at Silver Spring (see below) we drove north about 450 miles (one of the longest daily stretches of the trip) to New England. A slideshow to the Mugaveros of Bradford, a dip in the pool in Newburyport, and a few days along the Maine coast seemed to complete the circuit of the USA.

We dropped in on Beth and the kiddos of Bedford before a much anticipated reunion with our friendly feline. She was a bit hesitant at first, a little confused (she does have a small brain), but quickly recognized the whistled notes of "Ode To Joy" -- her favorite tune. She rubbed, purred, bumped, and let us say hello like long lost friends. It was a happy time.

The McAllistour continues!

2006-08-03T21:25:00.000-04:00

We spent the second phase of the tour in York Beach, Maine vacationing with Jim & Gayle, Randi, Liam & Lily (and Dani the beagle-chihuahua mix). We got sunburned on the beach, chased bats out of the cottage, ate moose steaks, and played scrabble. We are slowly winding down the adventures and getting ready to return to our regularly scheduled lives as librarian and academic advisor.

At the start of the tour, 10 weeks seemed like a long time, and the distance seemed to grow as we looked at the maps ahead of us. Now, at the beginning of August and the time seems to have gone in a blink of an eye and the distance is just memories and numbers on the odometer. It feels like we were just at Sharon's dropping off Pepe, and now we are back at Sharon's picking her up for the ride home.

I have NO regrets about taking this time to discover some things about myself, my wife, my life, and my country. We have one week left, and I am sure the spirit of adventure will continue well beyond this trip into other parts of my life.

Shhh!

2006-07-28T15:01:00.000-04:00

Don't tell our bosses, but we spent the night in Silver Spring last night! The McAllistour part one was 9,966.7 miles. We high tailed it out of town this morning, though, and are on our way to rescue Sharon from Ms. Pepe.

Kayaking in Charleston

2006-07-27T17:43:00.000-04:00

We took Matt and Abby kayaking on the Shem Creek in Charleston the other day. We saw a couple of dolphins right from the dock, I tracked them down when we were in the water and harnessed them for some barefoot dolphin water skiing, but we didn't get any pictures, so you will just have to take my word for it!

It was a hot morning and the pelicans were ugly and smelly, but we managed to have a good time paddling around the harbor and the inlets of Charleston.

Whistling in Dixie

2006-07-24T18:03:00.000-04:00

After a long two days of driving from Memphis through Hotlanta, we've landed in Charleston, SC. The Simpsons are our gracious Dixie hosts and we've been having a fun time with them. I've learned a valuable lesson on this trip: Call your friends, they want to hear from you. I think some of the most memorable and best experiences we've had over these last two months have come in the living rooms and dining rooms of our friends. Just sitting, eating, drinking, and laughing about the old days, the new days, and the kids has been great. I'm glad that we have so many connections around the country that we've been able to catch up on!

We're back!

2006-07-24T17:57:00.000-04:00

We're back in the Eastern Time Zone.
We're back on the East Coast.
We're back at sea level.
We're almost back home! (Oh no, we're almost back home!)

Mixed emotions about being back. We're looking forward to being home, back in a regular routine, but we're a little sad about the impending end of The Trip.

Hey Clarice, want some fava beans and some chianti with that?

2006-07-21T23:30:00.000-04:00

We drove by a KFC today in Tupelo. They seem to be expanding their menu to include deep fried organs:

Friday

2006-07-21T23:27:00.001-04:00

Driving driving driving... We slept well in the city of Kings and didn’t end up getting on the road until 10:00 a.m. It was already 95 degrees. I’m a big fan of the hot weather myself, but I don’t know how people here function in this much hot. We stopped for lunch in Tupelo at a deli called McAlister’s, because, well, what would you do? It’s our name, we’ve gotta stop. It’s a chain of delis in the south. The girl behind the counter seemed very impressed by the fact that our name is McAllister and that we’re all the way from Maryland. Tim asked me later if she might have thought that we actually drove all the way from Maryland specifically to visit their establishment. That might have explained the stunned look on her face. Service was a tad slow so we had plenty of time to chat in line. We had a nice conversation with a youngish couple in line. They had a 2 year old with them and Tim stopped her from eating gum off the floor, which she was rolling on. People there are very friendly.

The 4 Kings of Memphis:

2006-07-21T23:27:00.000-04:00

Martin Luther, Jr.
Elvis
B.B.
Budweiser (King of beers)

I’m goin’ to Graceland, Graceland, Memphis Tennessee

2006-07-21T23:26:00.000-04:00

Thursday driving to Memphis Tim suggested that we listen to the song Graceland, by Paul Simon to get in the mood. About halfway through the song we realized that the song isn’t really about Graceland, per se, and that we weren’t that interested in the song. Our conversation is as follows:
Lisa: This song is kind of boring
Tim: Yeah, this used to be a happy song.
Lisa: Huh?
Tim: I always think of Chevy Chase when I hear this song and it makes me happy
Lisa: Chevy Chase doesn’t sing this song
Tim: ……
Lisa: Are you singing the “You can call me Betty and Betty when you call me you can call me Al” song in your head?
Tim: Yes

The streak is broken…

2006-07-21T23:25:00.000-04:00

I drove the car through the St. Louis area on Wednesday. Tim’s streak ended at 8174.8 miles. He felt a bit like Cal Ripken, without the fame and glory and gobs of cash. We took a moment to ponder his achievement and then barreled on.

Signs it’s time to get back home…

2006-07-21T23:24:00.001-04:00

I was playing D.J. this morning with the iPod and decided that a little Barry Manilow (or Manilow!! as I like to call him) was in order. About 45 seconds into Even Now (a classic), Tim said “do I need to run this car off the road and kill us both?”

Miss-iss-i-ppi

2006-07-21T23:24:00.000-04:00

We’re driving through Mississippi this morning. I always feel the need to spell it when the word comes up in conversation. Tim informed me that he learned to spell Mississippi in the first or second grade from his teacher Mrs. Sipsey. Seriously. That’s good stuff. Then, even stranger… we saw a town on the map in Alabama called Sipsey. I’m not making that up.

Kansas

2006-07-21T23:19:00.000-04:00

A bit out of sequence, but...

We left Evergreen on Monday and headed out towards Kansas. We stopped at a KOA in a town called Wakeeney, Kansas. Don’t be jealous. It was hot and windy and hot, with a side of hot. Tim grilled some yummy burgers but we had to eat in our Kozy Kabin because of the aforementioned hotness and windiness. We left Tuesday morning and headed towards Lawrence, Kansas, home of our old friend Park Lockwood. I went to grad school with Park. He is one mellow dude and one of the nicest people we know. We met up with Park at Washburn University where he teaches to check out the campus. He was teaching that evening so we headed into Lawrence to entertain ourselves for the afternoon. We stopped for caffeinated refreshments and started to wander around town. Hot. Very hot. We found ourselves wandering into every shop just to cool down. At one point we wandered into a day spa and just to make chit-chat asked how much the massages cost. And as it turned out, they had spots open at 5:00 for a couples massage. Sign us up! We were both really stiff from a lot of sitting and driving. The place was nice and we both loved our massage therapists. Chad, if you’re out there, I think I love you. After dinner we headed back to Park’s house and were able to meet his finance Kim and her son Ethan. Congrats Park and Kim on your engagement! Oh, and we drove by your new house—VERY nice!! Good luck with your move.

Sun Studios

2006-07-21T22:35:00.000-04:00

Another musical site we saw in Memphis was Sun Studios. The studio is where Elvis, as an 18 year old machine shop worker in 1954, walked in and asked to record a song. The rest is history. Sam Phillips recorded blues and rock and roll pioneers like Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, and BB King, and a whole lot of shakin' went on. The building is the original, but the Sun label closed in 1960. The building was re-opened as an historic site and working recording studio in the late 1980's after going through transformations as a barber shop (I could use a haircut, by the way, but I digress) and a scuba shop. Hard to believe a scuba shop would fail in Memphis, but luckily it did. You can still walk into Sun Studios and record a song for $30 or use the whole shop for $75/hour. U2 did in 1988 and recorded three songs for Rattle & Hum (bonus points for anyone who can name those three songs).

It was a cool tour, and a piece of American history that I was glad I could see. They show you the exact spot (so they say) where Elvis stood. The tour guide said that Bob Dylan came in one day, walked to the spot, knelt and kissed the floor, and walked out. I didn't kiss the floor, but I did get my picture with his microphone.

Is that the ghost of Elvis behind me?

Welcome to the home of the Blues

2006-07-21T10:12:00.000-04:00

After a long day in Memphis, we were greeted by the Ambassador of the Blues at BBKing's Club.

The King of Memphis

2006-07-20T23:32:00.000-04:00

As soon as we crossed the Ole' Miss, we headed straight for Graceland. Where else would you start a tour of Memphis? I told Lisa that before I met her, I wanted to marry Lisa Marie Presley because she was born the same year I was. Then Lisa told me her parents almost gave her the middle name of Marie. Oh, so close!

The King would be proud of his legacy. The house is a prime example of 1970's style and over the top decoration. Elvis bought the house when he was 22. Stained glass, shag carpet on the floor, walls, and ceilings! TV's in every room, leather sofas, wild colors, and lots of mirrors. Although we both went in with a bit of skepticism and prepared for the time shift back about 35 years, we had some nice moments learning about the man, the myth, the King. Near the end of the tour, you go into his raquetball court where they've turned it into a shrine of the later-Elvis. Everyone jokes about the fat-Elvis, but his later carreer was a marvel and we both choked up a little bit listening to the tour, watching the videos, hearing the music, and seeing the pictures.

Dinner of Champions

2006-07-20T23:28:00.000-04:00

Tonight we had the Dinner of Champions at BB King's Blues Club: Fried dill pickles and Bud Light. I was told before we left that if we got to the South, then fried dill pickles were a must- try local cuisine. I have to say, it was a salty treat that made the Bud Light go down easy.

On the Tour

2006-07-20T10:52:00.000-04:00

We spent the night last night at the Comfort Suites in Blytheville, Arkansas, about 40 miles northwest of Memphis. We got the last room in the hotel because the Hooter's Golf Tournament was in town, and the place was full of pro-golfers. We had breakfast with the #25 man on the money list - he's a student from the University of Miami who golfs all summer.

H - O - T

2006-07-19T20:20:00.000-04:00

109 degrees on Monday. 115 in the sun on Tuesday. 103 today. Who's idea was it to travel through the South in the middle of summer?

FYI - The Blairs

2006-07-18T09:33:00.000-04:00

For those who don't know, Caroline is one of Lisa's longest (and tallest) friends from Haverhill. They met in the fourth grade, when they were in a "special" group for smart spellers.

Josh is Caroline's husband. He's a fly-fishing, mountain-biking, wise-cracking, cajun from LaFayette, LA who found the religion of wide open spaces, soaring mountain tops and dirt trails of the west.

Madeline is their cuter-than-buttons daughter who just turned 2. She likes milk, strawberries, and riding on her Papa's back up 14,000 mountains.

They were great hosts and we had a blast relaxing with them. (if anyone is interested in buying a mountain home in Evergreen, give them a call!)

We climbed a 14er!

2006-07-18T00:14:00.000-04:00

We climbed to 14,250 feet in the Rocky Mountains, to the top of Mt. Evans. Outdoorsy people refer to this as climbing a 14er. We didn't know this either. OK, full disclosure here... We drove the first 13, 700 feet to the visitor center and then hiked the last 500 feet to the top...but still...

It was quite an impressive site. Josh and Caroline drove us out there and pointed out many interesting things along the way. I don't know if any of you have been as high as 14000 feet, but it does kooky things to your head. Something about oxygen saturation and other stuff I used to know in my other life, but nevertheless, I was a bit loopy. Oh and we had to pull over on the road so I could throw up because of the combination of the altitude and curvy road. And maybe the beef jerky, but that could just be a coincidence.

So, anyway, by the time we got to the visitor center I was not at the top of my game. After a few minutes I felt much better acclimated but all it takes is a few steps and you really feel the altitude. I decided to sit on a rock instead of climbing and sent Josh, Caroline, Tim, Maddie and the dogs on their way.

In the end I decided to take my chances and climbed slowly to the top, sitting to rest at each switchback. Your body acclimates pretty quickly as long as you take it slowly. The rest of the crew was keeping a watchful eye on me and after a brief hike we were treated to spectacular 360 degree views of the Rocky Mountains. Coming back down was a breeze.

So NOT Silver Spring

2006-07-18T00:07:00.000-04:00

This morning while we were getting ready to leave Evergreen and the Blair family, we spotted 3 foxes in their backyard. Then a buck came down by the window. Pretty cool stuff, but Caroline and Josh--keep the little one inside when the dingoes come down!

Is it hot enough for ya?

2006-07-17T23:34:00.000-04:00

We left lovely Evergreen, Colorado this morning and apparently took a turn into the depths of hell (aka Kansas), where it was a balmy 109 degrees this afternoon. How can it be this hot anywhere? ...cannot comprehend such hotness...

Fortunately we had a pool at the KOA, so we headed into WaKeeney, KS (don't blink or you'll miss it) for groceries and then back for a dip in the pool. We're in a Kozy Kabin for the night that has an air conditioner. We realized after booking the kabin that we didn't know if it had air conditioning--some do and some don't. I'm thinking that given the heat in Kansas, they opted for A.C. This should help mitigate the plastic mattress we'll be sleeping on.

Mountain Biking in Colorado

2006-07-17T00:39:00.000-04:00

One of the things I wanted to do on the Trip, was to mountain bike in the mountains. On Friday, Josh and I saddled up the bikes and rode out to Elk Meadow open park. He led me up a trail, over some rocks and stumps, around some switchbacks and over a ridge. There’s nothing like the burn of oxygen at 7,500 + feet of elevation when you are pedaling with all your might up the side of a mountain, going about 1 mile an hour. Yee-Haw! We came down (the reward for going up) at a much greater rate of speed. You almost have to pay more attention to the trail coming down, because you are going faster. Those rocks and stumps and roots and gullies and dips come at you pretty darn quick. I was focused on the downhill, and caught up to Josh, who shot me a quick grin and pointed. “How ‘bout those elk?” I hadn’t seen any elk, and when I turned around, I realized we had nearly run right through a herd of them. Big ones, little ones, baby ones, eating, sitting, drinking, running. I had nearly missed about 50 elk.

A little later on, one the trail back to their house, we spooked a couple of really big ones right on the trail. Up close, those elks is big!

Thanks, Josh. That ride is one of my highlights of the trip so far!

Zip! Pi! Di! Do! Dah! (redux)

2006-07-16T20:17:00.000-04:00

This is my account of our zipline adventure...

This morning we managed to get out of the hotel by 9:30 and headed straight for Olympic Park, site of yesterday’s ill-fated attempt at adventure sports. It was sunny and 85 degrees and our adventure-lust was stoked. Or something like that. We opted for the “Silver Package”, which included the ultra-zipline (750 feet), the x-treme zipline (1500 feet) and the alpine slide. Frankly, I’m not one for thrill-seeking rides. At amusement parks I’m known as “the one who holds the purses and water bottles for others”. But the 18 year old selling the tickets assured me that it was all good. Dude! So, off we went. You take a chairlift up the mountain, while aspiring Olympians are practicing aerials on a slope covered with Astroturf right next to you. The 18 year olds at the top of the chairlift strap you into harnesses and open the chutes as if you’re about to enter a bull fighting ring. The first 2-3 seconds I was terrified, but the slope levels off really fast and you’re just zipping down the line at between 40-50 mph—up until the point where you abruptly stop at the end. Tim hit himself in the lip with his water bottle and drew blood, but otherwise there were no injuries on either run. Just as fun as the zipline was watching the ski jumpers practice their aerials into a big pool. There were little kids who were just learning and other more highly skilled jumpers. One poor kid didn’t get up enough speed on the small jump and tried to abandon the jump in midstream. Luckily he didn’t hurt himself but he kind of sailed off the side of the ramp into the side of the pool.

Freestyle at Park City

2006-07-15T10:20:00.000-04:00


We watched these freestyle ski jumpers practice at Park City, UT. We did not get to try this at the park.

Cough * Cough * Hack

2006-07-14T00:40:00.000-04:00

Remember that Seinfeld episode where Kramer invites all the smokers into his apartment for unrestricted tobacco and nicotine? And there's smoke pouring out from under the door when Jerry goes to investigate? Well, that was our hotel room last night. If it's possible to catch lung cancer overnight, we need to see a doctor.

We knew it was a smoking room when we checked in, but when you have been driving for almost 300 miles, and you are at least 50 miles from the nearest town, you take what's available. There are 3 hotels in Meeker, Colorado. The Meeker Hotel (no vacancy) The Valley Inn (the roaches don't even shower there) and The White River Inn (one room left). We could have camped in the city park by the softball field for $15, but that seemed a bit too rustic for us. We opened the door and windows for a few hours and hoped for the best. Denise, the lovely proprietress felt our pain, and lent us a bottle of Fabreeze. Have a nice night!

Lisa and I woke feeling as if we had smoked a carton of cigarettes. We had those scratchy, throaty voices like we'd been out all night at a frat house. Eyes were red and puffy, heads pounding, and our dander was up.

One of the things we've been trying to improve about ourselves this trip is to speak up when we feel we've been aggrieved. This was just the time to stand up and practice our skills. We talked to the owner of the hotel, explaining that this was one of the most offensive rooms we've ever stayed in (and remember we stayed in that room in Cleveland). His response: "It's a smoking room. People sit in there and smoke." Have a nice day!

On the plus side, we were out of there by 8:00 am, our earliest start in a while. If you ever go to the White River Inn in Meeker, CO, ask for a non-smoking room.

One more for Portland

2006-07-12T23:40:00.000-04:00

One other thing I did in Portland while Lisa was getting her massage - I went to Powell's City of Books, the world's largest bookstore. It takes up an entire city block and is 4 floors. I bought a new book to read, "I Should Be Extremely Happy in Your Company: A Novel of Lewis and Clark" by Brian Hall. Since we've traveled much of the L&C Trail, I am glad to catch up on it. I have read "Undaunted Courage" before, so this is a good follow up.

We each got our own therapy, then, in Portland.

Zip!

2006-07-12T20:29:00.000-04:00

Have you ever wanted to fling yourself off the side of a mountain? (or fling someone else off?) We did just that this morning. In Park City, Utah at the Olympic Park, you can strap yourself in (or rather get strapped in) to a line that shoots you down the mountain eiter 700 feet or 1500 feet. We did both. Then, we got into tiny plastic sleds and shot down the mountain on a track that looped and turned and careened until you hit a giant wall at the end. Good fun!

I think...

2006-07-12T20:20:00.000-04:00

…we took a wrong turn somewhere because we’re supposed to be in Colorado but we seem to be driving on the surface of the moon right now. I think R2D2 and C3PO just drove past us. Today is a driving day. We left Park City at noon and hope to have found lodging by 5:30 in a town called Meeker, CO. Update—we just got the last hotel room in Meeker. It is a smoking room and smells as if 4000 people were in here having a smoke-in before we got here. On the plus side, it has wi-fi that works, a nice lady running the place, a fridge, microwave and coffee pot. We’ve been airing it out and the nice lady found some Febreeze for us.

Park City, Utah

2006-07-12T20:16:00.000-04:00

For years I have wanted to go to Park City, Utah, for little reason other than that it sounds like a cool place. It fits in my world of cool sounding places with Moab and Telluride, places that were on our original itinerary but were scrapped when we took a different route to head back east. So, a lot was riding on Park City. Our friend Maryann’s brother has lived out here (I think…or it might be Moab…I get confused) and I’ve heard good things. Earlier that morning in SLC Tim had seen a brochure for zipline rides and said “ooooohhhh, that’s the one thing I really wanted to do for outside stuff on this trip!!!!” What luck—it was in Park City, Utah!!

So, as I mentioned above, it was 90 degrees and sunny when we left Salt Lake City. Twenty-five minutes later, when we were pulling into Park City it was ominously cloudy. Then, we pulled into the visitor center, which was closed for lunch. Hmmmm….hey—there’s the Olympic Park, let’s go there! Great! That’s where the zipline is…and the bobsleds and the alpine slide. Suddenly it started pouring rain. Pouring! And the temperature started dropping, all the way down to 57 degrees. And then the hail began, pelting the car while we sat in the parking lot. There we sat, eating my leftovers and marveling at the weather in Utah, because naturally, you can’t have people ziplining off an Olympic ski jump while it’s hailing and lightning. We ended up driving into downtown Park City, which has a decent sized main street with art galleries, shops and restaurants. We also drove around to check out the houses in town, which are often perched on precariously steep cliffs surrounding the ski resorts.

Fish Ladder and the Bonneville Dam

2006-07-12T20:11:00.000-04:00

Somewhere in Oregon on one of our drives we came across the Bonneville Dam and Fish Ladder. We decided to drop by because something like that sounds interesting when you’ve been in the car for hours. We drove into this facility that looks like a nuclear power plant and doesn’t seem like a place where the general public should be admitted. It ended up being a really interesting place, with a cool visitor center and windows into the fish ladder where you can watch the fish battle their way upstream. They put in this elaborate ladder system to allow fish to get through the dam so they can get upstream and spawn. They also count all the fish as they go through so they can estimate fish populations. Here are a few pictures.

Bears

2006-07-12T20:00:00.000-04:00

Be very, very quiet. Hunter doesn't know there is a giant black bear coming through the wall above him.

Luckily, Scott let me shoot his bow, so there was no real danger here.

Idaho!!

2006-07-12T19:56:00.000-04:00

We left Hood River on Sunday morning to begin our trek to Evergreen, CO. After figuring out our route we determined that we’d be driving through Boise, Idaho. Before we started our trip my father’s friends Dick and Sandra had given us directions to their son Scott’s house in Eagle, Idaho, which is pretty close to Boise. They were insistent that we call Scott if we ended up in Idaho, even though we probably haven’t seen Scott in 10 years and we’d never met his wife Nancy. Scott, of course, knew nothing of their insistence. But the thing is, when you’re doing a 10 week roadtrip, it seems perfectly reasonable to call the only people you’ve ever heard of in Idaho to stop by and say hi. So we did. And they were more than hospitable, asking us to stay for dinner and suggesting that we stay in their guest room for the night. We had a great night, catching up with Scott and getting to know Nancy and their kids Brenna and Hunter. The kids were extremely fun and friendly, not to mention extremely cute. See for yourselves:

So, thanks Scott, Nancy, Hunter and Brenna for a nice visit. Call us when you’re coming to D.C. and we’ll put you up at Casa McAllister.

Salt Lake City

2006-07-12T17:07:00.000-04:00

We drove into SLC with an actual hotel reservation, secured earlier on the phone. We checked into the hotel, did a quick search of restaurants and found a Mexican place that sounded good. The guy at the front desk confirmed our choice. The food was excellent and ridiculously inexpensive. I ordered some sort of pork dish with a fruited mole sauce and ate it for dinner and then Tim and I ate the rest of it for lunch the next day in Park City (see below). In the morning we did the tour around the Mormon’s Temple Square, which was both disturbing and informative at the same time. Here are a few pictures from the grounds. When we told some of the Mormons that we lived in Maryland they were very impressed, since we have the gorgeous Mormon Temple within a couple of miles of our house. We headed out of SLC at about noon, when it was 90 degrees and headed towards Park City…

Hood River

2006-07-11T01:34:00.000-04:00

We didn’t have a particular end point in mind when we started driving on Saturday, which, one would think we would learn by now, is not our best plan of attack. We were planning to camp and hoping that a campground along the way would have an opening on a 90 degree Saturday in the Columbia Gorge region. We started the morning with a trip into downtown Portland to check out the Saturday Market, a spring/summer tradition in Portland. There are artists, crafty-bastards, food vendors, etc. We then began the journey east through Oregon with a stop at the Multnomah Falls. Nice falls, too many people. Our friend Cas (hi Cas!) had mentioned Hood River to us and when we pulled into town it seemed like a great place to stay for the night. After 17,000 phone calls we found a Bed and Breakfast over the Hood River Bridge in Washington. We checked in, headed back into Hood River and discovered that everything closes at 6:00. We had dinner at a pubby place with decent food and horrible service and headed for the river to watch the windsurfers and kite-boarders. Good fun. There’s a nice sloped grassy area to hang out, the weather was warm and the sun was shining. A nice end to the day. Back at the B & B we sat perfectly still and quiet for 2 hours reading.

Massaaaaaaaaagggge

2006-07-11T01:32:00.000-04:00

On Thursday night at the “First Thursday” celebration in Portland, we both had 10 minute massages in one of the shops. The massage therapist was so good I asked if she had any openings for Friday so I could get my birthday massage (which was in early June, but we’ve been busy!). She was able to fit me in on Friday morning. It was a fantastic massage and Danielle was great. At the end of the massage she gave me a chocolate truffle from a local Portland candy maker and just for good measure, gave me an extra one for Tim. If you’re even in Portland and need a massage, I highly recommend Danielle Machon. She’s at 917 SW Oak Street in Suite 900 and can be reached at 503-539-2025. The only downside to the massage was that I was completely spaced out for most of the day. Not in a bad way, just in an “unable to read the maps or make decisions about anything” kind of way.

Columbia River Gorge

2006-07-11T00:50:00.000-04:00

Because we decided not to continue down the Pacific coast, we were able to take a spectacular drive along the Columbia River Gorge. I know I've said it before, but the scenery and landscape and natural beauty of this country is amazing! The Columbia River is wide and winding, creating the border between Washington and Oregon.

Saturday summer traffic along the National Scenic Area Highway is a bit slow and crowded, and the fact that we miscalculated when lunch would be necessary, made us a little cranky. We pulled off at one of the many waterfall viewing locations and broke into the emergency peanut butter and jelly.

Then, all was right with the world, and the ride became much more pleasant and scenic.

New Photos

2006-07-11T00:44:00.000-04:00

Lisa takes some mean pictures at 70 mph, and some nice ones standing in Portland's famed Rose Garden. Portland is nicknamed "The Rose City" and they have quite the garden and variety of roses. Check out the pictures in our Flickr account for more of them, and a lot of our pictures (although not all of them, were saving some to bore you all to death when we get back!)

You can always get to the pictures with the link on the right -->

Better Fries this time around!

2006-07-11T00:21:00.000-04:00

Compare with the Freedom Fries we had on the 4th.

Ennui

2006-07-11T00:16:00.000-04:00

On Friday while wandering through Portland we passed a store selling precious and pricey-looking baby clothes and paraphernalia. There was a bench just inside the door and on that bench sat two guys who looked exactly how you might think two guys in a baby clothes store, on a glorious gorgeous Friday afternoon might look. See for yourselves:

First Thursday

2006-07-08T01:06:00.000-04:00

A good day hiking around Portland, Oregon (the other Portland, Jim.) Last night we stumbled upon the "First Thursday" fest, a monthly gathering of artists, gallery owners, shopkeepers, street musicians, and beautiful people in the urban Pearl District. We walked into one shop and this was our conversation:

Person behind counter: "Would you like some wine?"
Tim & Lisa: "Why, yes we would like some wine."
PBC: "Would you like some snacks?"
T&L: "Why, yes we would like some snacks."
PBC: "Would you like a free massage?"
T&L: "Yes, please give us a free massage."
and we got free massages, drank wine, and ate snacks in a little sporty clothing store while chatting with friendly shoppers and artists and street musicians and we were two of the beautiful people.

So far, Portland, Oregon (the other Portland, Jim) is a fair and funky city.

Hipster-Doofi

2006-07-08T01:03:00.000-04:00

We spent the last couple of nights at the ultra hipster doofus Jupiter Hotel. We feel a little bit out of our element here, probably because by 10pm we are ready for bed and the place is just getting started. Our Ikea-centric shabby-chic room faces the Doug Fir bar and club. Maybe we are getting too old!

Heading back East

2006-07-07T02:01:00.000-04:00

We've turned around and are headed East! We hit the Pacific Ocean the other day, and have spent some really good times out here in the West, but I think we are headed home now. We've mentioned to some of you that we decided to not go all the way south to California and the Grand Canyon. This country is just too big, and we feel like we wouldn't be able to spend the time we'd need to get the best experience possible just passing through. We have spent more time than we originally expected in some unexpectedly fantastic places (Montana, Seattle, Oregon) and want to take our time on the return trip and see what we see.

We've been on the road for more than 5 weeks now. Total mileage so far is 5,835. We've talked to strangers, slept under the stars, hiked around cliffs and craters, seen wild animals, met some very interesting people, and have learned alot about ourselves and our country. We've written, read, puzzled, speculated, and joked about just about everything. It's been fun and exciting, and the best part is that it is only HALF over. We still need to get back and there's still a lot of miles between here and home.

See you in August!

Viking! Arrrgh!

2006-07-06T02:01:00.000-04:00

Here is a picture of our room from the Viking Inn in Newport, Oregon.

These Fishes is so delicious...

2006-07-06T01:53:00.000-04:00

Yukon nearly escapes an attack of killer koi:

Fishes

2006-07-06T01:52:00.000-04:00

These were the fish in a pond at a winery we visited. They all came over to the edge when we walked up to it. Freaky.

Willamette Valley, day 2

2006-07-06T01:43:00.000-04:00

Today we spent a relaxing day in the Willamette Valley, tasting the local wines and crackers. We wound our way around the valley and ended up at the Grand Lodge of Forest Grove. Tonight's dinner was a vast improvement, the fries were strong and firm, the food hot and served in a timely manner. Tim took advantage of the free movie - M:I:III (Mission Impossible III, starring Tom Cruise! - he's soooooo dreamy!) while Lisa took advantage of the free Wi-Fi Internet here at McMinimiminuimiunimls. All in all, a good day.

Freedom Fries?

2006-07-05T01:58:00.000-04:00

This is what Lisa had for dinner tonight: cold, limp, soggy, french fries with a burger to match. The waiter comped her dinner and mine. We sat on top of the Hotel Oregon in McMinnville, OR. The view (and the company) was great, but the service and food was a bit lacking. A cook walked off the job and threw the whole operation into choas. It was the only game in town, though, this being the Nation's Birthday.

** Note to Cas - the Terminator Stout was outstanding!

Fugitives...

2006-07-05T00:33:00.000-04:00

Here’s where we’ve slept so far…

Maureen’s house in Bradford, MA
Muggsy’s house in Newburyport, MA
Sharon’s apartment in Watertown, MA
Jim and Gayle’s in Springvale, ME
Maureen’s house in Bradford, MA
Red Roof Inn, Syracuse, NY
Niagara Falls, Ontario
Bob and Laura’s in Edinboro, PA
Holiday Inn, Cleveland, OH (aka the pee-house)
Matt’s house, Skokie, IL
Quality Inn, Des Moines, IA
Best Western, Mitchell, SD
KOA Rapid City, SD (most of the night was in the car)
US Forest Service Campground, Black Hills, SD
KOA Buffalo, WY
KOA Cody, WY
Bridge Bay Campground, Yellowstone National Park
Canyon Lodge, Yellowstone, National Park
KOA Bozeman, MT
Pat & Laurie’s home, Florence, MT
Timberwolf Resort, Hungry Horse, MT
Fairfield Hotel, Spokane, WA
Mediterranean Inn, Seattle, WA
Red Lion Hotel, Astoria, OR
River Inn, Wheeler, OR
Viking Inn, Newport, OR
Hotel Oregon, McMinnville, OR

Vacation Lisa

2006-07-05T00:03:00.000-04:00

Whenever we go on vacation we joke about “Vacation Lisa”. Vacation Lisa is always easy going, doesn’t care if she showers or not, isn’t fussy about where we have dinner, chats easily with strangers, etc. There’s something about being on vacation that makes all the little irritations of daily life seem less irritating. Plus, we always say that everyone always seems more friendly when we’re on vacation, but I suspect that’s because we’re open to talking to random strangers while waiting in line for the bus or asking advice from strangers about restaurants, etc. People really are friendly if you give them a chance, especially if you’re asking them about their city. One night while we were having dinner in Seattle I started chatting up a couple next to us. They ended up having tons of useful info. It turns out that he drives a bus in Seattle, so he knows all the routes. They pulled out a piece of paper and jotted down a bunch of notes for us. One of the things we’d both like to do when we get back to our regularly scheduled lives is try to be more like our vacation selves.

I haven't driven...

2006-07-05T00:02:00.000-04:00

... a car since May 26th.

To my great friend Ann...

2006-07-04T23:57:00.000-04:00

THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND

Well I rode that ribbon highway
I saw above me the endless sky
I saw below me the golden valley
This land was made for you and me

I've roamed and rambled and followed my footsteps
Through the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts
And all around me a voice was calling
This land was made for you and me

This land is your land
This land is my land
From California
To the New York island
From the Redwood Forest
To the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me

Well the sun came shining and I was strolling
Through wheat fields waving and dust clouds rolling
And a voice was sounding
As the fog was lifting
Saying this land was made for you and me

This land is your land
This land is my land
From California
To the New York island
From the Redwood Forest
To the Gulf Stream waters
This land was made for you and me

4th Of July

2006-07-04T23:42:00.000-04:00

Happy Independence Day!

Winging it on the weekend at the beach

2006-07-04T17:43:00.000-04:00

We may have made a slight tactical error heading to the coast for the 4th of July Weekend without hotel reservations. There seems to be a lack of vacancies at every hotel, motel, campground, inn, b&b, and Bates Motel from California to British Columbia. Who'd a thunk it?

Library Geek Alert

2006-07-03T01:44:00.000-04:00

The Seattle Central Library has a visual display of information at the reference desk. They track what call numbers of the books being checked out and create a dynamic live display of those subjects so patrons can see what is popular up to the second. Cool!

Astoria and Fort Clatsop

2006-07-03T01:28:00.000-04:00

We left Seattle this morning, and 350 miles later, my lovely bride was unready for the romance of the pepperoni pineapple pizza, wine in plastic cups, and the lovely Red Lion Hotel of Astoria, Oregon. I believe she swooned.

<-- this is not our hotel in Astoria.

Astoria was the fur trading capital of the Northwest in the late 1700's, but you knew that already. Our good friends Lewis and Clark made their way here in 1805 and hung out for a few months before turning around and walking back to Washington, DC. Lisa and I made a quick stop at Fort Clatsop, the winter headquarters of the Corps of Discovery.

(Yukon Cornelius meets up with his old adventurer buddies, Merriwether Lewis,William Clark and a Clatsop Indian.)

Seattle to Oregon

2006-07-03T00:49:00.000-04:00

After leaving Seattle, we stopped and learned and gawked at Mt. Saint Helens, the only active volcano in the lower 48 states. Once again, the scenery, landscape, history and nature of this country amaze me! I think the impact and devastation of May 18, 1980 has been forgotten by those of us from the East Coast. The entire side of a mountain - a mountain - was blown off and sent hurtling through the forest. Winds in the blast site reached 700 miles an hour. Trees were sheared off of the ground, leaving only twisted, shredded stumps. Glacial ice blocks were thrown thousands of feet in the air. An entire lake, Spirit Lake, disappeared and a new one, Cold Water Lake, was formed. Ash - which we could still see 26 years later - covered the landscape. Our good friend Cas, who lived near Portland Oregon in 1980, remembers shoveling the ash like snow.

It is steaming and reforming the mountain today - see the plume of steam coming from the new volcanic cone?

Guess the foods!

2006-07-02T23:58:00.000-04:00

In the last 7 days, I have eaten all of the following but one:

halibut
hamburger
Dungeness crab enchilada
pepperoni & pineapple pizza
hard boiled eggs
peanuts
hot dogs
goldfish crackers
Raisin Bran
Belgian waffles

Which one did I not eat? Post your answer in the comments, secret answer to be revealed later this week.

PS, keep clicking those ads, we are far away now and need gas to get back home.

Seattle Welcoming Committee

2006-07-02T01:39:00.000-04:00

Hey, look who showed up in our hotel room the other night!

Town hiking

2006-06-30T17:25:00.000-04:00

I think hiking around a city is more strenuous and tiring than hiking around a glacier. Lisa and I have both been exhausted by the end of the day here. I suppose, we are spending more time walking here than we did in the National Parks. There is so much to see, and even though this is a friendly, accessible city, there is a lot of ground to cover. We've availed ourselves of the public transportation to get from (and to) our hotel to downtown. Pikes Place Market is fun and the original Starbucks is there. (We didn't get any coffee there, the line was too long). We got lunch at the Falafel King! (the KING!). It was yummy.

Yesterday, after the Duck Tour (we are still tourists, you know!) we took the ferry to Bainbridge Island across the bay, and we both enjoyed the 35 minute sit down on the boat yesterday. Today we hit the underground tour everyone kept telling us about. You actually go under the sidewalks and walk around the city streets from 130 years ago. The tour guide was good, she had a lot of Seattle trivia, and you know how I like my trivia! (Some people on this cross-country tour feel the need to refer to me as "Cliffy" sometimes, but I don't know why.)

Live from Seattle

2006-06-30T17:12:00.000-04:00

I'm blogging live from the Seattle Central Library. This is quite a structure. The building is really a work of art, all steel and glass, books and computers. There are 11 floors of knowledge and learning here. We've been walking around this fair city, and under this city, for a few days now and I think we get a good sense of Seattle. Except the weather. Everyone keeps remarking about this "amazing stretch" of weather - it's been sunny and warm for the three days we've been here. I kind of feel like we are missing something without the rain. I'm not complaining, though! We're going through lots of sunscreen.

More pictures from Seattle

2006-06-29T12:14:00.000-04:00

The View

2006-06-29T12:11:00.000-04:00

This is the view from our hotel in Seattle.

Sleeping In Seattle

2006-06-28T12:33:00.000-04:00

We crossed the Columbia River (?) into Seattle on Tuesday afternoon and missed the exit for our hotel. Thanks to Garmin, we successfully navigated through the busy, crowded streets, something we are not used to after a few weeks of Iowa, South Dakota, Montana, and Idaho. I think there are about 8 million miles of roads and only about 2,000 people total in those states. We found the Mediterranean Inn and pulled right into the open space on the road! What luck! Then we checked in, but the parking garage has a height restriction of 6’6”. With our roof box, the RAV is about 6’9”. Bad luck. But the first 6 spaces of the garage are at 7 feet and there is one left! Great luck, we can fit in the garage!

There is a Starbucks right in the lobby of the hotel (what luck! – of course this is Seattle) and they are having a Frappucino happy hour (what luck!) with free samples of cake, too (what luck!). Since we are the only two people in the place who seem interested in the free stuff, they pull out the hula hoops (what luck!) I am drafted into a hula hoop competition with one of the Starbuckians (she seems vaguely embarrassed because we are heading out to the street). I tell them that I am a 5^th level blackbelt hula hooper. I crush her with my hip swinging and trick hooping and win the grand prize – two free half pound bags of Starbucks coffee! (what luck!). The poor Starbuckian is left weeping in the street and is immediately fired from her job. I convince them to hire her back, as it was unfair and I am a 5^th level blackbelt hula hooper. They hire her back (what luck!).

So far, Seattle is a great and fair city.

5 Things I'm not missing

2006-06-28T11:51:00.000-04:00

TIM:

Television
Metro Red Line
Yard work
Beltway traffic
Daily showering

LISA:

Blow drying my hair
Television
The flooding in my basement
Ironing
The infernal neighborhood weed-wackers and the screaming savage children who live behind our house

Wandering to the Sun

2006-06-27T00:56:00.000-04:00

Our second day of hiking led us to the St. Mary Falls and the Virginia Falls, east of Logan Pass. We took an early (-er) start this morning and made it to the trail head by about 11:30. Ha ha. If you've ever been to this part of the world, along this Going To The Sun Road, you know you can't do anything quickly - and you don't need to! The scenery is stunning. The weather this time of year is gorgeous. The tourists are at a minimum, so the road is pretty clear. And I couldn't even tell you what day it was. I haven't worn a watch since taking one off a month ago. Yikes, we've now been gone from our home for a month! Life is good. Sorry about all the rain back east, y'all, the temperature out here is lows 60's at night (0r cooler, depending on elevation) and upper 80's in the daytime (which lasts until about 10 pm, sundown.)

We almost hate getting in the car because the weather is so nice, but when we do, we seem to end up in a beautiful spot for a picnic lunch, or a scenic drive around glacial lakes. We haven't seen as much wildlife as we expected, but Lisa did spot a couple of wolves in a mountain medow, we rode by a herd of elk, saw some bighorn sheep, nearly collided with a deer (he veered off at the last moment, adrenaline rush for us), almost stepped on a snake, and watched an eagle grab some roadkill for a snack, and gazed at osprey soar over the canyons. Nice way to spend the weekend, eh? (it was the weekend, right?).

Jammer Bus

2006-06-27T00:43:00.000-04:00

The Timberwolf Resort has coffee (for a dollar, Grizzly Blend) so we had a nice cuppa joe and talked to the "camp hosts." Camp Hosts are people who come out for a while and camp and help out around the resort. These two, I forget their names already, are from Massachusetts! The husband is a Jammer Bus driver, those big Red Buses I mentioned before. I love the old buses, and asked him about them. He offered me a job on the spot, so I guess they need drivers. Tempting, tempting, but the job requires careful driving and reflective narrative on a very steep and narrow cliff road. I can do one or the other, but not both at the same time. Just ask my co-pilot.

Jammer Bus from Glacier:

How you doin'?

2006-06-26T12:54:00.000-04:00

Best part of tonight

2006-06-26T12:53:00.000-04:00

Waking up at who knows when, going out into the black of night and looking up at the thousands and thousands of stars you never get to see living so close to a city.

Best part of the day today

2006-06-26T12:52:00.000-04:00

Lisa: Sitting in a kayak at 5:30pm with our feet stuck in the glacial water listening to the quiet.

Tim: Eating a huckleberry ice cream cone the size of a small child’s head.

Hidden Lake

2006-06-26T12:50:00.000-04:00

Hidden Lake remains hidden to us because the two mile trail, although open, was covered in snow. It was 4:00 by now, and we were getting a little tired, but wanted to see another gem recommended by Rosie the Ranger (who looks an awful lot like my Auntie Mary Ellen). We watched as the buff Montanans came off the trail, bare chested and carrying their skis and snowboards. Huh? Yes, people were climbing the foot hills of some mountain and skiing and snowboarding down. (Jim, if you ever come out here, bring your board, dude!). We walked in a bit to see if the trail cleared, but it didn’t. We could see people about a mile ahead of us slipping and sliding, trying to get to Hidden Lake. We decided since we still had at least an hour drive back to our camp, and the hike was likely to take two hours, we’d pass on this one. Instead, we toured the visitor center, learned about marmot life and grizzly eating habits, and that there were 4,000 inches of snow in the parking lot just two weeks ago.

Onward!

2006-06-26T12:48:00.000-04:00

A few more miles up the Going to the Sun Road, around hairpin turns, avoiding the big Red Buses, dodging falling rocks, crumbling walls, and roadside waterfalls, we made it to Logan Pass. The scenery around this part of the world is simply amazing. This must be one of the most beautiful places on earth. Around each corner, we were both oohing and aahing, pointing, and calling out for a stop to get the camera. Lisa has become a master at the moving snapshot. I need to stop the car, get out, frame the scene, check the camera setting, zoom in, zoom out, zoom in a little, and click.