So that's two posts today, though the last was written on the 12th and covered us up to there. I wrote to some friends earlier today explaining that I wouldn't be doing the day to day coverage after I leave the US, but really, I think I'm done with that after this post. I've been traveling a lot, so it felt like there was a lot to say...or at least a little to say about a lot of things. Now, however, I'm at the end of the time where different things are going to happen. I'm in Reno now, and although I'll be going to Sacramento again this weekend to visit Chris, a high school friend, I'll be doing the same kind of thing most of these days...I think.
Anyway, last Thursday, I had dinner with family, chatted, and went to bed relatively early. On Friday, I drove out to visit Paula in Redwood Valley, north of Ukiah, a quaint hippiesque town. She's living and working on a ranch where they raise chickens (for meat and eggs), goats, and sheep (recently sheared). The ranch is a kind of commune, with around five homes that I recall, different families living on the same grounds. The primary home had recently been burnt down, a sad loss probably due to some old wiring (the house was from around 1910). I got the tour of the grounds, which seemed haphazardly arranged, as though things had been added as they were needed in the areas that seemed most convenient. The ranch structures, mostly clumped together, were pervaded by the earthy but not completely unpleasant smell of animals and manure. Old farm equipment, some dilapidated beyond use, lay randomly about, as if left wherever they had stopped functioning. One of my favorite things was the garden, where evening primroses (I think they were called) bloomed in, of course, the evening...it was a rare treat to stand and watch them open. Paula and I had dinner in Ukiah, which has a cute downtown area, and where some (overly) optimistic hippie-types were protesting Bush (big surprise) and calling for his impeachment. I wish.
Though I had planned to stay with Paula through the weekend, she unfortunately had to leave on Saturday morning to be with her family after a death in the family. I left early and went to a campground nearby, Clearlake, but they were full, not unexpected since it was the weekend, so I moved on to Colusa where there was a state park. I camped there for the night, walked into town to see the new Harry Potter film, and read. All in all, a relaxing day.
Sunday I hit Sacramento, visiting Marin again. We went into Old Sacramento this time, where some old building have been preserved and turned (appropriately) into tourist traps. It was fun to see the old buildings, though, and Marin told me that the originial first floors had been below what appeared to be street level now: the settelers built on a flood plain, so the originial first floors had been filled in.
I came back to Reno after that, and have been hanging out since. Reno is not exciting, but it's relaxing and I've found a coffee shop that has decent coffee and free wi-fi.
I probably won't post again until after I get back to Hawaii on July 24th. Until then...Aloha.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
From July 3 to 12...
I'm now in Reno, NV, after coming the rest of the way across the US. And I've still got some driving ahead of me.
I stayed in Denver until Friday (July 6), hanging out and having a great time with my friends Aaron and Lisa, their friend Aaron, and a few other friends. On the Fourth of July, a bunch of us went to Boulder, bought inner-tubes, and went “tubing” down Boulder Creek. This consists of sitting on a black inner-tube and floating down a series of small rapids. Quite cold, but quite fun...unless you whack your tail bone on a rock hidden in a rapid, then you'll not have fun sitting after that for, what, going on one week now. Oh well, I still had a good time, in spite of bruising.
On July 5th, I saw Sicko, the new Michael Moore film. It was funny and sad, appalling but not so surprising if one has thought about the issues of rising health care costs and access to such expensive care. As all films with an agenda, this one takes a perspective and runs with it, sometimes ignoring counterpoints or weak arguments, but it's a good film about an important issue, and one I think all Americans should address seriously.
I left Denver on Friday, feeling quite sure that when I relocate back to the US, I'll be moving there. My next destination was Cedar City, Utah, home of many Mormons and, apparently, polygamists, though I didn't get to see anyone walking around with their numerous wives. I got to see my friend Krystal there, a former co-worker from Manassas Borders, and we went to see Transformers. I don't expect much from movies like this, the summer blockbuster-type, so I enjoyed it, though there were, of course, things I could have done without. They went for a lot of humor there, and that was okay, but I would have preferred a darker edge. Oh well, no one asked me.
So, after a fun, relaxing night chilling with Krystal (a.k.a. Bling), I headed on to Las Vegas to see my cousin Leah, her husband, Jim, and her three kids, Celia, Thomas, and Mia. I got to stay at a room in Caesar's at night, but my days were spent hanging out with Leah and the kids; I'd never really got to spend much time with Celia (now 4) and had never seen the twins (now 15 months). I had to admire my cousin's energy and motherly touch, and while I enjoyed spending that time with them, I still don't know if I'll ever have kids...I just don't know if I can be so giving.
Monday brought another day of driving, on to LA, to spend another night with my cousin, but also to meet an old high school classmate I'd not seen since 1995 or 96. Seeing Jennifer was nice, and interesting, as we'd never hung out much back then. We had a nice lunch and conversation, but the afternoon was bringing on rushhour traffic, and she had to get home.
Tuesday, I trucked it up 5 and a half hours north along I-5 to Sacramento. If you've never done that drive, you're not missing anything. There is nothing exciting or beautiful or even remotely interesting that I saw. “Dull drive” describes it well, as well as it does Kansas. In Sacramento I saw another old high school classmate, Marin, whom I'd last seen two years before in Hawaii. We hung out, ate vegetarian Vietnamese food, and got some ice cream at Vic's, a Sacramento establishment.
Finally, yesterday morning, I got into Reno. I leave tomorrow for someplace north of Ukiah near Redwood Valley to meet my friend Paula, who recently relocated there from DC. We're going on a canoe trip on Saturday, and may be doing some natural home building on Sunday, though I'm not sure about that. It should be a fun weekend. I'll back in Reno on Sunday or Monday, stay in Reno for another week, then I'll be back in Hawaii for 7 weeks.
Hope all is well with everyone out there...
I stayed in Denver until Friday (July 6), hanging out and having a great time with my friends Aaron and Lisa, their friend Aaron, and a few other friends. On the Fourth of July, a bunch of us went to Boulder, bought inner-tubes, and went “tubing” down Boulder Creek. This consists of sitting on a black inner-tube and floating down a series of small rapids. Quite cold, but quite fun...unless you whack your tail bone on a rock hidden in a rapid, then you'll not have fun sitting after that for, what, going on one week now. Oh well, I still had a good time, in spite of bruising.
On July 5th, I saw Sicko, the new Michael Moore film. It was funny and sad, appalling but not so surprising if one has thought about the issues of rising health care costs and access to such expensive care. As all films with an agenda, this one takes a perspective and runs with it, sometimes ignoring counterpoints or weak arguments, but it's a good film about an important issue, and one I think all Americans should address seriously.
I left Denver on Friday, feeling quite sure that when I relocate back to the US, I'll be moving there. My next destination was Cedar City, Utah, home of many Mormons and, apparently, polygamists, though I didn't get to see anyone walking around with their numerous wives. I got to see my friend Krystal there, a former co-worker from Manassas Borders, and we went to see Transformers. I don't expect much from movies like this, the summer blockbuster-type, so I enjoyed it, though there were, of course, things I could have done without. They went for a lot of humor there, and that was okay, but I would have preferred a darker edge. Oh well, no one asked me.
So, after a fun, relaxing night chilling with Krystal (a.k.a. Bling), I headed on to Las Vegas to see my cousin Leah, her husband, Jim, and her three kids, Celia, Thomas, and Mia. I got to stay at a room in Caesar's at night, but my days were spent hanging out with Leah and the kids; I'd never really got to spend much time with Celia (now 4) and had never seen the twins (now 15 months). I had to admire my cousin's energy and motherly touch, and while I enjoyed spending that time with them, I still don't know if I'll ever have kids...I just don't know if I can be so giving.
Monday brought another day of driving, on to LA, to spend another night with my cousin, but also to meet an old high school classmate I'd not seen since 1995 or 96. Seeing Jennifer was nice, and interesting, as we'd never hung out much back then. We had a nice lunch and conversation, but the afternoon was bringing on rushhour traffic, and she had to get home.
Tuesday, I trucked it up 5 and a half hours north along I-5 to Sacramento. If you've never done that drive, you're not missing anything. There is nothing exciting or beautiful or even remotely interesting that I saw. “Dull drive” describes it well, as well as it does Kansas. In Sacramento I saw another old high school classmate, Marin, whom I'd last seen two years before in Hawaii. We hung out, ate vegetarian Vietnamese food, and got some ice cream at Vic's, a Sacramento establishment.
Finally, yesterday morning, I got into Reno. I leave tomorrow for someplace north of Ukiah near Redwood Valley to meet my friend Paula, who recently relocated there from DC. We're going on a canoe trip on Saturday, and may be doing some natural home building on Sunday, though I'm not sure about that. It should be a fun weekend. I'll back in Reno on Sunday or Monday, stay in Reno for another week, then I'll be back in Hawaii for 7 weeks.
Hope all is well with everyone out there...
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
Packing, moving, and leaving
I opened this blog shortly after I got back from Denver, Colorado, where I am now writing this second entry in a Peaberry coffee shop. I opened the blog, fiddled with it that day, and haven't been back since. Now, however, seemed like a good time to add an entry.
In the last month, I've had more meals with friends than I have ever had in such a short time span. Looking back, I think I probably ate out almost every day, for at least one meal. I definitely put on some fat. Not much, maybe, but some. I am certainly going to miss a lot of people in Virginia--perhaps you can't live in a place for almost four years and not get attached to some people--and it was great to see so many people, though I wish I had gotten to see everyone. I guess a few must be missed in any farewell.
In addition to trying to fit as many people as possible into my schedule for goodbye-meals, I also had to (YUCK!) pack. And although I know I've never owned my own home or anything like that, I've still managed to accumulate a fair amount of stuff over the years. I trimmed it down a lot by giving some to friends and donating a bunch to the Salvation Army. I mailed some stuff back to Hawaii, left a few boxes with friends in Virginia, left a few more with my former roommate to mail to me once I get to Japan, and then a bunch went into my car. That packing, though, that's for the birds. I think I might avoid moving forever just so I won't have to pack again. It always goes so smoothly for the first 50 to 75%, then I start getting all sorts of little things I don't want to get rid of. Anyway, all told, I've managed my stuff quite well and it's going to be stored in one place or another. My friends didn't think I'd be able to get all the stuff in my car into it, but I managed and even have small spaces to cram other little things I might pick up along the way.
So, after several very sad goodbyes, especially on Sunday, my last day in Virginia, I got in my car, loaded with all my stuff, and headed west, aiming for I-70 to get to Denver. I did this drive once before, in December of 2005, a mad rush across the US, desparate to avoid any more bad weather--I'd been waylaid by a snow storm my first night out and spent the night sleeping in my car parked under the roof of a bank's drive-thru. That time, after I woke up in the morning, I drove 1500 miles in 26 hours, stopping only for gas and a two-hour nap. That was not a fun drive, so I thought this time I would slow down, stop for some real sleep in a motel and arrive in a not-so-exhausted state. So on Sunday, I got in my car around 5:30 PM, and headed out. I planned to drive until the next morning, get a motel, sleep until that night, and drive into Denver Tuesday morning. Well, I drove until about 2:30, but then I was too tired, so I stopped at a rest area, propped myself up on some pillows (leaning against all my stuff in the passenger seat, with no room at all to recline the seat), and slept for an hour. I drove two more hours after that and then had to stop again, simply too tired to go on. Two more hours of sleep and the sun was up. Then it was easier to stay awake. I thought I'd drive past Kanasas city, another five or six hours of driving, I think Well, get past Kansas City and there's a toll-road all the way to Topeka, another hour or more. So I get past Topeka and start looking for places...but I'm thrifty, so I keep looking, not finding any I'm willing to pay for. So, after another few hours of driving, I find I'm in Salina, Kanasas, and it occurs to me as I leave the fourth hotel asking for too much money, that with the time change to Colorado, if I just started driving, I could get there in 8 or 9 hours, about 9 or 10 Monday evening. I call my friends, they say ok, and off I go. So, with only three hours sleep, somewhere in Illinois or Missouri, I arrived in Denver last night, exhausted but relaxed, pleased to know that I didn't have to go anywhere for four days. And I didn't have to pay for a place to stay.
So here I am, taking advantage of free wi-fi internet at a coffee shop, waiting for a friend to meet me for dinner, and breathing in deeply the exhilarating and slightly frightening feeling of freedom that I've only ever found when moving to a new place, a whole new life in so many ways.
I don't think I'll always be so verbose...I don't think I'll have the time, but who knows...today I guess I just feel like writing.
To those of you in Virginia, I miss you.
In the last month, I've had more meals with friends than I have ever had in such a short time span. Looking back, I think I probably ate out almost every day, for at least one meal. I definitely put on some fat. Not much, maybe, but some. I am certainly going to miss a lot of people in Virginia--perhaps you can't live in a place for almost four years and not get attached to some people--and it was great to see so many people, though I wish I had gotten to see everyone. I guess a few must be missed in any farewell.
In addition to trying to fit as many people as possible into my schedule for goodbye-meals, I also had to (YUCK!) pack. And although I know I've never owned my own home or anything like that, I've still managed to accumulate a fair amount of stuff over the years. I trimmed it down a lot by giving some to friends and donating a bunch to the Salvation Army. I mailed some stuff back to Hawaii, left a few boxes with friends in Virginia, left a few more with my former roommate to mail to me once I get to Japan, and then a bunch went into my car. That packing, though, that's for the birds. I think I might avoid moving forever just so I won't have to pack again. It always goes so smoothly for the first 50 to 75%, then I start getting all sorts of little things I don't want to get rid of. Anyway, all told, I've managed my stuff quite well and it's going to be stored in one place or another. My friends didn't think I'd be able to get all the stuff in my car into it, but I managed and even have small spaces to cram other little things I might pick up along the way.
So, after several very sad goodbyes, especially on Sunday, my last day in Virginia, I got in my car, loaded with all my stuff, and headed west, aiming for I-70 to get to Denver. I did this drive once before, in December of 2005, a mad rush across the US, desparate to avoid any more bad weather--I'd been waylaid by a snow storm my first night out and spent the night sleeping in my car parked under the roof of a bank's drive-thru. That time, after I woke up in the morning, I drove 1500 miles in 26 hours, stopping only for gas and a two-hour nap. That was not a fun drive, so I thought this time I would slow down, stop for some real sleep in a motel and arrive in a not-so-exhausted state. So on Sunday, I got in my car around 5:30 PM, and headed out. I planned to drive until the next morning, get a motel, sleep until that night, and drive into Denver Tuesday morning. Well, I drove until about 2:30, but then I was too tired, so I stopped at a rest area, propped myself up on some pillows (leaning against all my stuff in the passenger seat, with no room at all to recline the seat), and slept for an hour. I drove two more hours after that and then had to stop again, simply too tired to go on. Two more hours of sleep and the sun was up. Then it was easier to stay awake. I thought I'd drive past Kanasas city, another five or six hours of driving, I think Well, get past Kansas City and there's a toll-road all the way to Topeka, another hour or more. So I get past Topeka and start looking for places...but I'm thrifty, so I keep looking, not finding any I'm willing to pay for. So, after another few hours of driving, I find I'm in Salina, Kanasas, and it occurs to me as I leave the fourth hotel asking for too much money, that with the time change to Colorado, if I just started driving, I could get there in 8 or 9 hours, about 9 or 10 Monday evening. I call my friends, they say ok, and off I go. So, with only three hours sleep, somewhere in Illinois or Missouri, I arrived in Denver last night, exhausted but relaxed, pleased to know that I didn't have to go anywhere for four days. And I didn't have to pay for a place to stay.
So here I am, taking advantage of free wi-fi internet at a coffee shop, waiting for a friend to meet me for dinner, and breathing in deeply the exhilarating and slightly frightening feeling of freedom that I've only ever found when moving to a new place, a whole new life in so many ways.
I don't think I'll always be so verbose...I don't think I'll have the time, but who knows...today I guess I just feel like writing.
To those of you in Virginia, I miss you.
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