Gee, but it's great to be back home!

“Every traveler has a home of his own, and he learns to appreciate it the more from his wandering.”

                  Charles Dickens

 
(Final) Day 26
612 miles
Utah to Arizona to Nevada to California

Totals:
27 States
7602 miles

This year's travels

We did it!  Another wonderful, inspirational, exhausting, educational journey!  We've seen a lot of beautiful country, visited with people we love, spent a lot of time in the car, laughed a lot, cried a little, met some new friends, and after it all we know again that "There's no place like home!"

Toujours de l'avant!

From this hour I ordain myself loos’d of limits and imaginary lines,

Going where I list, my own master total and absolute,

Listening to others, considering well what they say,

Pausing, searching, receiving, contemplating,

Gently, but with undeniable will, divesting myself of the holds that would hold me.

I inhale great draughts of space,

The east and the west are mine, and the north and the south are mine. 

Allons! whoever you are come travel with me!

Traveling with me you find what never tires. 

Forever alive, forever forward.

                                                                  Walt Whitman, Song of the Open Road

 Day #25
516 miles
Colorado to Utah

We had a wonderful, tiring, dramatic day today.  First, we set off through the Rocky Mountains. The scenery was the most spectacular we had seen on the entire trip.  Breathtaking vistas at 11,000 feet, and then ever-changing but just as beautiful as we wound down and through the mountains.

Then, after cruising along well, we got to some major construction (you'll be happy to know that most states are improving the condition of their roadways :( ).  The road was down to one lane, alternating cars in each direction, over dirt roads.  We were behind a big truck with a trailer carrying two giant logs for many miles.  Finally, we got to a passing lane where I sped up to pass the truck, and....

I have had one ticket in 38 years of driving (in 1990), and that was the last time I was pulled over -- until today!  To add insult to injury, I paid my registration before we left but hadn't yet received my tags, and my insurance was renewed this month while we were on the road, so I had neither current insurance nor registration documents!  I was nailed, I knew it, and I deserved it.  I was very careful to give only yes sir and no sir answers, but as soon as Mr. Trooper returned with my license and expired registration and insurance -- AND a little card letting me know I was getting a warning and needed to drive carefully :), Mimi started engaging him in conversation!  Anyway, I was/am very grateful, and we plodded along at exactly the speed limit for the rest of the trip!

The major objective for today's drive was to locate Joe Bell.  We have been following Joe's journey across the country ("Joe's Walk for Change").  His son, Jadin, committed suicide in February, and Joe is walking and talking to people and groups in order to bring attention to and help to overcome bullying.  We found Joe outside of Dinosaur, Colorado, and walked with him and talked with him.  He is a really good guy, and was very grateful for the company and the support.  We were very humbled by the experience.  We only walked a few miles in the 101 degree heat and we were bright red, tired, and thirsty.  He'd been walking for hours, and had hours, days, and months to go.  Mimi asked him if he ever felt like he couldn't go on, and he said, "Never."  After walking and talking, Mimi asked him if we could record him talking about his son and his mission.  He spoke beautifully about his son and what he was trying to accomplish with his walk.  As soon as I turned off the camera, he (and we) sobbed.  So grateful to share a little in his journey (he told us that only 2 other people had walked with him since he left Oregon!).

Homeward Bound tomorrow!! Hooray!

 

Rocky Mountain High

"Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore!"                                                     

                                                         Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz
Day 23 & Day 24

Kansas to Colorado

Sunday, the 23rd day, we left Kansas to head for Colorado and our meeting with Lisa & Kim in Boulder, driving across miles and miles of pretty lonely country.  When we got into Colorado, we decided to head off the interstate again and drive to Denver on the scenic byway.  As we started on this route, we saw an incredible, striking landscape before us.

Looks fake, doesn't it? Almost like the View from the Fit background!

As we drove, we realized we'd be driving right by my old friend Nancy's farm.  We visited her last year, but this year we'd given no notice.  I tried to text to see if she would be home, but when we got no response, we decided to try to find her home.  Mind you, we did not have her address, and had not driven to her house last year (she picked us up from, and returned us to Denver).  She lives on a farm/ranch in the middle of open countryside in Kiowa, CO.  I vaguely remembered where to turn and we began our wild goose chase.  After wandering down several dirt roads, and past several farms, this was beginning to seem crazy (and a little like stalking!).  Then it became a detective challenge.  We were determined!  Mimi looked up her pictures from the horseback ride she had taken with Nancy's daughter last year and we located some landmarks (a row of trees on a bluff, a long white fence...).  After a little more wandering, we found it!  Suddenly, our adventurous spirit turned to trepidation, that when we showed up unannounced on Nancy's doorstep, she'd be freaked out.  Thank God, she was (appeared) excited and welcoming, and we had a great visit with Nancy, her family, and their animals!

Mimi with "Dolly Parton" the goat (a reasonable substitute for Dollywood!)

After Kiowa, we headed to Denver for dinner with Lisa, Kim, and Kim's friends.  Of course, we sat outside, and of course it rained (Dinner conversation:  "I felt a raindrop."  "It's not going to rain until 9:00." "I felt one too."  [thunder and lightning] "Okay, now it's raining." "No, it's not going to rain until 9:00."  [closer thunder and lightning].  "It's RAINING."  Finally, we move inside).  Then off to the night in Boulder through dark, winding roads with constant lightning on the horizon.  We're staying at Boulder Mountain Lodge -- very rustic, but beautiful surroundings.  It's a little like glamping (glamorous camping -- a real upgrade from a tent and peeing in the woods, but not exactly the Ritz!). The only disturbing part was discovering that, based upon the large blood stain on the box spring, clearly someone was murdered in our room! (Trust me here.  I've watched enough "Snapped," "Dateline," "The First 48," and "Blood, Lies, and Alibis"... to identify a murder scene).

We slept soundly, except for the beeping in the night.  We initially identified it as the alarm from Mimi's Doppler radar app. indicating approaching flash floods.  There are signs posted all over the Lodge property saying, "In case of flash floods, climb to higher ground."  Thank God, Mimi realized her phone was just losing charge, and we didn't have to evacuate in our PJs!

Monday, July 15th: Day 24

When we woke in the lodge, I thought the air conditioning was loud until I remembered we don't have air conditioning.  Upon investigation, we (city girls) realized that was the sound of rushing water!  Our room is right on the creek, and although we didn't have flash floods, there was a sudden, loud rush of water in the rising creek!  (At least we weren't so citified that we couldn't recognize a goat.  Yesterday, Nancy told us that when she takes her goat kid to farmer's market with her, people inevitably ask: "What kind of dog is that?"  I may not recognize a raging river, but I at least can distinguish a goat from a dog!).

We went to Estes Park today and wandered around the Stanley Hotel (setting of and inspiration for "The Shining.")  It reminds me a lot of the Wentworth (aka, Sherry, the Merriweather!).

REDRUM, REDRUM!

 

After wandering around Estes Park, we went into Boulder for some shopping and relaxing and an early birthday dinner for Mimi.  Nice day (and NO driving involved for either of us -- thanks, Lisa!).  Two more nights in a hotel, and then our own bed! 

Fun with friends at the "Best Starbucks in the country" (according to Lisa)

"I have decided to stick to love. Hate is too great a burden to bear." MLK

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Day 22
Missouri to Kansas - 521 miles

Today was a long drive, but we're closer to home.  We only made one stop today, in Topeka, Kansas, and I just wanted to juxtapose pictures we took at 2 different "churches" in the last week: 

Outside the Old South Church in Boston.

Outside the Westboro Baptist "Church" in Topeka

So disturbing, but right across the street is a beautiful example of light driving out darkness, and love driving out hate.

[If you're not familiar with the places in Topeka, here's a brief primer:  The Westboro Baptist Church (officially a hate group - not affiliated with any organized religion) is the church that has become infamous for picketing the funerals of soldiers with "God Hates F***s" signs.  They have also staged protests at concerts, funerals of famous people, and even one of the funerals of a victim of the Sandy Hook school shootings.  The Rainbow House was purchased by the founder of the charity Planting Peace, directly across the street from WBC and painted it in bright rainbow colors. A very bright spot of hope in a very dark and disturbing place.] 

Somewhere in the Middle

“What is that feeling when you're driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? - it's the too-huge world vaulting us, and it's good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.”

― Jack Kerouac; On the Road
West Virginia to Ohio to Illinois to Indiana to Missouri
720 miles

Long driving day, short post!  We drove through the width of 3 complete states today!  The weather was perfect and most of the drive was under bright blue skies with puffy white clouds.  We saw a lot of corn and few people, but made great forward progress.  My back is better when I'm sitting (although I look like a 90 year old man when I try to stand up!), so we kept sitting and driving.  We had planned to stop somewhere in the middle of Indiana, but gained an hour and decided to keep going. 

States traveled on this trip thus far

Okay, I just looked at a map, and see that I got it mixed up!  I guess we actually went from WV to OH to IN to IL.  As we drive, I am again reminded of a significant hole in my education.  I've always said I could do well on Jeopardy if it weren't for history.  I don't know how I made it successfully through school and learned almost nothing about history.  Now I'm adding U.S. geography to that hole.  Wasn't I supposed to learn all about the states in 5th grade?  Don't kids have to memorize state capitals and fill in U.S. maps ad nauseum in 5th grade?  I seem to have missed that (Okay, Mr. Haws had a 5/6 combo, and must have let a few 5th grade standards drop).  I do know all about New Hampshire (my state report in 5th grade): Capital - Concord; The Granite State; motto: "Live Free or Die"; birthplace of the 14th president, Franklin Pierce; state tree - the white birch..., and I can fill in the map on the West and East Coasts, but I get lost somewhere in the middle.

A sad note about NH: The "Man on the Mountain" is on the seal, license plates, etc., but his face fell off the real mountain several years ago.

When I try to picture Iowa or Nebraska or Kentucky, all I can find is "somewhere in the middle."  I can complete an entire map of Europe (circa 1973) with countries and capitals (thanks, Ms. Matzenbacher), but am lost when I get to the middle of the U.S.  New car game: state capitals (by the way, I had to look up capitol vs. capital -- I think I've got it) and state mottoes.  I'm determined to learn this by the time we get home!

West Virginia:  Montani semper liberi (Mountaineers are always free)

Westward HO!

Westward, ever westward.

Henry Wells

Day 19 & Day 20
19:  Rhode Island to Massachusetts to Connecticut - 154 miles
20: Connecticut to New York to Pennsylvania to West Virginia 521 miles

On Tuesday, we sent the girls off to the airport and headed off to Rhode Island.  Short drive today due to bad weather (pouring rain in Rhode Island), a bad back (just can't sit in the car for a long drive), and a need to rest and recover from the whirlwind family vacation!  Checked into a pretty dumpy hotel in RI, but it had a bed and an ice pack!  Just crashed.  Got up on Wednesday to prepare for and go to my appointment at the Dept. of Education in Providence.  It went really well (guess what, Calvin?  I'm a consultant!).  We had planned to go to Narragansett to hang with the O'Rourkes, but the weather report and my back pain convinced us to head away from the Atlantic, rather than towards it!  Sorry to miss the fun with the O'Rourkes, but happy to be on the road for home. (Besides, it would have violated our one and only Rule of the Road.  As I described it last year, the objective is the same as our golf game -- always forward.  As long as each shot is closer to the hole than the last, we're going in the right direction.  Same philosophy of travel -- we won't go backward!).

Yesterday... hours after we were right there!

We made it to Danbury, Connecticut where we checked in relatively early.  Once again, there was a tornado warning a mere 20 miles away from us, so Mimi was glued to the news reports and downloaded a Doppler radar app with a loud alarm/warning system if we are in a weather warning area (I am certain this will keep her very busy for the rest of the trip.   The alarm has only gone off once, thank God!).  The last two nights have been an attempt to cost-average the trip.  Thanks to the champion coupon girl/stay 2 nights get one night free/stay 6 nights get gold status/save points on a different hotel chain/..., we've got a list of  good deals for this trip.  The dump in Rhode Island was paid for in points + $35, and last night's hotel was FREE.  We even got a "light dinner."  As we sat looking at our "popcorn chicken" (apologies to the Colonel) and rice, we decided the cost averaging had gone a little too far!  At breakfast (also free), we noticed several angry-appearing hotel guests.  Mimi has suggested that these grouchy breakfast eaters are probably consultants, sick of traveling and staying/eating at the Residence Inn  (Thanks, Mim)!

Flight path to crash site in Shanksville, PA

Today we headed west through miles and miles of beautiful Pennsylvania countryside, and then miles and miles of slow, messy road construction.  Except for some brief rain, we've stayed ahead of the weather (okay, I guess the weather obsession has paid off!).  We took a side trip today to the Flight 93 Memorial.  The memorial isn't finished, but is very moving and sad.  We decided today that this has been a bit of a Tragedy Tour (native American interment camp, Oklahoma City memorial, tornado devastation, Boston bombing, Flight 93...).  After the Flight 93 memorial, we were headed toward Johnstown, PA when we remembered the Johnstown Flood.  We decided we'd better take a different route!  Tonight we're in Wheeling, West Virginia - another beautiful part of the country.  We're going to plug on with few stops (unless we find any other major or minor tragedies to visit) in the hope of reaching Colorado by Sunday for a couple days of fun and relaxation with Lisa and Kim.

Were You in Old Boston Town?

 Ah, were you in Boston in 1919?
Were you in old Boston town?
Molasses did flood like a brown wall of mud.
Were you in old Boston town?

                                                                       Steve Suffet

Last morning in Boston...  We set out to cram in just a little more tourist fare before we put the girls on the plane for home.  Harbor Cruise.  It was a cool morning, and we took a 90 minute cruise filled with history and trivia.  I've never done this before, and it's fun to see Boston from a different angle and to hear stories I've never heard before (Did you ever hear of the Boston Mollasacre?  The great Molasses Flood of 1919 involved the explosion of a vat causing a 15 foot wave of molasses traveling at 35 mph through a section of the North End, killing 21 and injuring 150?  This is true.  Look it up (and listen to the song cited above)!  Some residents claim that on hot summer days, they can still smell molasses!).  This was a great way to end our visit to Boston and our time with the girls.

Erin and Alexis & the USS Constitution

 Once we got the girls off to the airport, my traveling companion and I set off again!  Today was a short trip to Rhode Island (I have a meeting at the Dept. of Ed tomorrow), and upon arrival at the hotel, we both promptly crashed and took a long nap!  Traveling with little kids is exhausting, but traveling with adult kids is almost as tiring!  We kept on the move almost non-stop, sightseeing and eating (and some of us drinking - I won't mention any names), and 4 in a hotel room doesn't lend itself to a lot of sleep (even though the girls swear it was me that was snoring)!  We're pooped and stuffed and ready to return to our routine of leisurely travel and light eating, but I'll miss my baby girls!

Boston Strong!

"We are one. We are strong. We are Boston. We are Boston strong," 

                 Fenway Park announcer, after the Boston bombings

Today was a complete tourist day in Boston!  We took the T to Copley Plaza and had breakfast at Max Brenner's (chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate).  It is two storefronts away from the site of the second bombing.  Then we walked down Boyleston Street.

Finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon

 

 

 Then we went to, as Alexis described it, "Baseball's Mecca," Fenway Park!! We went on  a really great, interesting tour, only marred by the fact that the field was being covered up for tomorrow's Paul McCartney concert.  [Alexis:  Disappointing!  The field is legendary!  Liz: Some people think Paul McCartney is pretty legendary, too!].

The view from atop the Green Monstah!

Next stop, a drink at the top of the Prudential Building (nothing like a little alcohol and a snack to quell potential whining of young travelers!).

After a little shopping on Newbury Street, then a stroll through Boston Common, we headed to Fanuiel Hall and MORE FOOD!  We have successfully eaten our way across New England.

New Hampshire to Boston

"We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open." -- Jawaharal Nehru

 (Catching up on blog -- I refuse to pay $14/day for Internet access!]

Today was check-out day from the house we've loved for the last week.  We got up early to finish packing and clean up.  Unfortunately, with my first bend toward my suitcase, my back went out and I couldn't move!  (Sound familiar Kim?  I had a flashback to you lying on the floor and us wondering if we'd ever get home from Colorado!).  As I refer back to the artist sketch on the prior post, I have a better understanding of the genesis of this back pain!  I swear I didn't do it to get out of the work (another flashback -- to cleaning days during Alexis' childhood when she inevitably developed a "stomach attack" and was locked in the bathroom for hours while the rest of us cleaned!).  We packed up and headed out to lunch at Portsmouth Country Club.

The girls and me at the tree planted at PCC in memory of my Dad

On to Boston!

The first important stop in Boston was a taxi ride to the North End to Al Dente (I must say, I was in agony and could barely move, and there was some talk about leaving me behind at the hotel.  I was NOT going to miss this one!)  The most fabulous Italian food and funny, friendly people.  Then we walked (I hobbled) through the North End to see the Old North Church and eat cannolis from Mike's Pastry!

A great start to the Boston leg of the adventure!

A very full, stay-at-home day!

Everyone must believe in something. I believe I'll go canoeing

                                                                                     Henry David Thoreau

The day dawned cooler than it has been for days, with a wonderful breeze.  The house we're renting has a dock with kayaks and a canoe.  Mimi and I went canoeing a few days ago.  Perfect, glassy water on the bay.  We glided along looking at the beautiful homes on the water and searching for Aunt Cal's camp.  Really fun, so we decided to set out this morning with the girls on a canoe/kayak adventure.

Erin was a little uncertain about the whole idea (read here: extremely anxious!), but we finally talked her into the adventure with me at the bow and Alexis at the stern of the canoe, and Mimi in the sit-inside kayak, with Erin balancing precariously in the center, bottom of the canoe!  We paddled off merrily (shakily!).  The wind and waves kicked up, and we had a pretty good rocking, chopping ride, but it was a beautiful morning, and we were together, enjoying the scenery.  By the time we turned around to go back, it was very choppy and as fast as we paddled 10 feet forward, we were pushed 9 feet back.  Mimi was paddling along her merry way (mostly in a hurry to get back to the dock before the total failure of her Sea Bands!), and left us in the dust screaming "Paddle harder!".  Needless to say, this didn't do much for Erin's anxiety about the whole adventure.  After some yelling and frantic struggling, we made it back to the dock.  I'm pretty sure that if I did this for a few more days, I'd have Michelle Obama arms and wear sleeveless everything!

After getting back on dry land (and Mimi retiring to recover from the seasickness), the girls and I went down to the other dock to discuss the possibility of a swim in the bay (if you had seen the eels for sale at the Suds 'N Soda, you might not have jumped right in either.  "We caught them right here in the Bay!"). 

Getting in meant a quick jump off the dock!  Getting out was a little more challenging as we realized the swim step was entirely out of the water when we were not standing on the dock!  I am so happy to say there are no pictures of the process we used to hoist me out, but here is an artist's rendering of the scenario (Alexis in the water below, me on the ladder):

 

Really fun day, capped off by dinner at the River House and martinis on the water!

Beach Day!

“Now she’s lit by the warm orange spreading from the horizon as not-quite-day, becomes not-quite-night”

                                                                                            ― David Levithan, Every Day 

Easy day today.  The girls slept in today and we went out to lunch with frielatives.  Then, after a little visiting, we headed to the beach.  The past couple of days have been really hot and humid, so it seemed like the best plan.  It was beautiful at the beach and we even braved the 62 degree water!

Beach day!

Dinner at the Ice House, and then back to the house for the most spectacular sunset!  Wonderful day!

Happy 4th!

Where liberty dwells, there is my country. 

                                                   ~Benjamin Franklin

So happy to have my girls arrive today!  Erin and Alexis flew in on the red-eye overnight, and so the last part of the NH leg of the trip is a family affair.  After bringing the girls home to get settled and have a rest, we ventured out into the heat and humidity.  Strolled around downtown Portsmouth (did I mention it is hot and humid?), and then off to Ray's for the second time in two nights!  Erin had lobster #1, and Alexis had fried clams.  Happy girls. 

My twin lobsters sporting their red, white, and blue!

 We then walked on the beach, and came back home for fireworks.  We sat out on the deck (and then in the house looking out the picture window after being attacked by bugs!) and watched at least 4 fireworks shows (and also a firefly display) across the Great Bay.  Best seat in the house.

Camp at camp

Tomorrow the objective will be to stay cool in this heat wave (96 degrees and high humidity).  We're going to head to the beach for a while, where the 62 degree water should offset the heat if we can stand to go in!

A day for remembering...

I am the child of two only children.  That doesn't mean we were every lonely -- we grew up in a home with 2 parents, 2 grandparents and 4 kids, lots of fun and plenty of love.  We rarely noticed the lack of more extended family except, maybe, on Thanksgiving when it was the same 8 of us sitting around the same table, eating the same great 3 course meal that our grandmother, Manu, cooked for us every night of the year.  Even though we did not have any aunts, uncles, or cousins by blood, we were blessed with more "fake" aunts, uncles, and cousins than anyone I knew. Our adult neighbors were all "Aunt" and "Uncle," and our parents' friends were too.  However, our New Hampshire Aunts and Uncles are the closest thing to blood relatives I could have known.

Over the past several years, when I've visited Portsmouth as an adult, I've had a series of visits to make.  Mind you, these were not obligations by any stretch of the imagination.  I love my east coast aunts, uncles, and cousins.  Over the years, we've lost most of the uncles, but the highlights of every trip east were the visits with Aunt Joanie, Aunt Betty, and Aunt Cal.  In the past 2 years, we've lost all of them.  The visit here seems a little empty without them, but today was an opportunity to say goodbye to Aunt Cal.

Aunt Cal, Erin, and me.  1989.

My "cousin" Calvin, Aunt Cal's son, and his wife Kim came by for a visit tonight.  We are staying on the Great Bay, and we sat and reminisced and told stories just a short distance away from Aunt Cal's camp that she loved.  It was NOT a palace but she came back to it year after year.  We stayed there with her for a couple days one summer.  It was tilted and tiny, and Aunt Cal slept on the porch!

Aunt Cal, me, Mimi at the "camp"

So it seemed right to stand before this place she loved, raise a glass, and say Farewell, I love you, and I'll miss you forever to my beloved Aunt Cal!

Day 1 in NH

“If you don't like the weather in New England now, just wait a few minutes.”
― Mark Twain

 The New Hampshire part of the trip is mostly about sitting, relaxing, eating, and visiting, so I hadn't really planned on blogging this part of it, but I do want to recount a few of the high (low?) points.  We'll resume the on-the-road regular blog next week, but I'll fill in a few details while we're here.

For 3600 miles, we drove in a little sunshine bubble.  Honestly, we'd watch the news about approaching storms or record heat, but we seemed to just miss it every time.  For 8 days across 14 states, we didn't see a drop of rain, and the temperature varied between about 60 degrees and 90 degrees.  Even on our first night in New Hampshire, with the camping curse hanging over us, the weather was perfect.  Then we arrived at our house in Greenland!

View from our deck

The boat dock

Our house on the bay

This morning we ran some errands and went to Portsmouth Country Club for lunch.  The tradition has been to eat lunch and then take a picture next to the tree we planted in memory of my Dad nearly 21 years ago.  However, as lunch progressed the skies darkened and then opened up.  By the time we went to the car, it was POURING rain.  We pretty much cancelled the plans for the rest of the afternoon so we could hunker down and relax. 

When we got back to the house, we turned on the tv to see the emergency bulletins with the TORNADO WARNING 35 miles south and moving north ("Massachusetts residents are urged to take cover in the following towns...").  That was it... Mimi went in to action researching tornadoes, watching the Doppler radar, stacking up pillows and blankets, and examining the cellar for the best corner in which to hide! After and hour and a half of vigilance (and, I hate to admit, a little nap on my part), the storm had passed and we were safe!