I woke up anyway. I have a vague memory of Lydia quietly directing Pat to a portion of the wrap-around couch in the living room with me and the guys, and Josh & Johanna standing nearby, ready to turn and go to one of the upstairs bedrooms. I gave Josh and Johanna each a quick hug, not even getting out of bed, and fell right back to sleep. As I drifted off, I heard Josh say he wanted to stay out here with all of us.
I woke for good around five in the morning. I tried to go back to sleep, but to no avail. I even knitted for awhile in bed. I couldn’t believe how quiet it was upstairs. That’s not a connotative adjective for a room of sleeping teenage guys.
I went downstairs to use the bathroom and heard giggling from the big bedroom. I walked over and saw that almost everyone was awake: Rose, Carolyn, Mary, Amanda, Jordan, Jenna, Julia (still sleeping) and Jessica. Apparently my quiet upstairs was a sharp contrast to the “symphony” that went on last night downstairs, and they were all laughing about it. Except Amanda, she was pretty grumpy about it.
We all took our time getting ready for the day, because we’re on vacation. I had some time to talk with Johanna, and was very glad to see her, Pat and Josh. We had breakfast, and then discussed plans to go to the gym again. I was sore from all the arm and chest work I had done yesterday, and was planning to just go swimming, but it was already 11 a.m. when we finished breakfast. So I decided to shower and hit the road instead. I needed to get home because Jon and Kandi’s wedding is tomorrow.
So I quickly packed my car, said good-bye to everyone (which takes awhile), and drove off. In spite of my best planning efforts yesterday, I realized I would need to fill up here to make it back through Yosemite. As I expected, gas is higher ($5.09/gallon) out here. Oh well.
Driving through Yosemite was both breathtaking and frustrating. When I got stuck behind a line of cars or an RV, I just tried to pull off at a place where I could take some pictures, but those were few and far between when staying on the main road.
About 15 miles from the turnoff to head south on the 41 to Fresno, I saw a guy with his thumb out. I hadn’t picked up any hitchhikers on this trip, in spite of my best efforts to find people to help, so I pulled over and asked him where he was headed. In an Australian accent, he told me he was headed to Glacier Point. We figured out that just going my way would get him partway there, so I made some space for his backpack in the backseat, and invited him in. His name is Bob, and he’s “on holiday” from Australia. He really wants to see some of the National Parks here, and so I gave him some recommendations of ones on the west coast that I’ve been to or through. We talked as I drove, about work, life, our respective countries, etc. He was a really nice guy.
We arrived at his turnoff, and I was just going to let him out, but then I saw the sign “Glacier Point – 16 miles.” And he wasn’t just going there; he was returning. His car was already there, and he had hiked out yesterday, I think. It was an uphill road, too. As much as I wanted to get home quickly, I just couldn’t leave him there. So I took him all the way up. It gave us a chance to talk some more, and it wasn’t too long before we got to the top. I let him out, wished him well, and then started heading back down. The advantage to that was having seen some beautiful view points on the way up, I knew where to turn off to take some pictures, and I got some beautiful shots.
Heading home took me through Oakhurst, and finally to Fresno.
It was HOT here! Before going home, I stopped to take care of some errands. I went and got a wedding present for Jon and Kandi. I have to give a shout-out to Bed, Bath & Beyond because of their EXCELLENT customer service. I walked in, and looking at the long lines, tried to find a clerk to point me to the gift registry kiosk. It turns out they have a manned station area (rather than just a machine like at Target or Sears) for gift registries. Seeing how tired, hot and flustered I was, they gave me a cold bottle of water and patiently let me figure out how to form words. They helped me every step of the way, including quickly gift-wrapping it at no extra charge. If I ever find a wife, we’re registering there for our wedding.
After stopping to get gas again, I drove by the post office to confirm their open hours to pick up my mail tomorrow and drove home. Not only was it boiling outside, but inside my apartment as well. If it was 95 inside, I can only imagine how bad it was outside. Nonetheless, I emptied my car. I had to get ready for my next trip. Chicago, here I come!
Thanks to those of you who had the stamina to read through this journal. I had fun making the journey, and hope the documentation of it blessed you as it did me.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Day 18 - 06/19/2008
I can’t say it enough: this eye mask is amazing. There was direct sunshine coming through my windshield, and I had no idea. I slept until 8 a.m. I decided that I didn’t want to go around Yosemite since it would take so much less time. I went into the Walmart and got directions to get back to the 49, and then to the 120.
After about an hour of driving, I arrived at the west entrance gate to Yosemite. There was a delightfully cheerful woman manning the gate. I bought an annual pass for $40, and she gave me some pamphlets along with directions to get through the park to June Lake.
Driving through the park, I couldn’t believe how big it was. It’s 55 miles across! All this time, I had no idea that it was so huge. I had wondered at Thanksgiving why it took so long to get to the spot Don and Barbara took me to. But it was such a beautiful drive that I hardly minded. It was hard to resist stopping to take pictures along the way because there was a plethora of picturesque spots.
But I pressed on because I wanted to get to June Lake. It was slow going through Yosemite at points because of some really slow cars in front of me. That was somewhat irksome when these cars wouldn’t use turnouts, because I make a point to use them if a car behind me wants to go faster than I want to. What really frustrated me was passing lanes that would only come up on an uphill stretch. Serena doesn’t like hills, and they really tire her out, so it gets harder to speed us and pass other cars when we only have the passing lane traveling uphill.
I finally made it through Yosemite and drove a few miles east on 120 until it dead-ended into highway 395. Following directions from Lydia, I turned south and then into the 158 June Lake Loop. I found the resort, and then what I thought was the guest house. I wasn’t quite sure, though, so I got out of my car to go knock on the front door. To my delight and relief, Carolyn and Lydia opened the door.
Carolyn and Lydia are sisters, and only two members of a huge family in my Orange County church that I’ve been adopted into. The family had invited me to join them at the guest house they had all rented out for the month here at June Lake’s Double Eagle Resort. The only people there when I arrived were Lydia and her husband Dan, Lydia and Carolyn’s mom Rose, Carolyn, and her six kids: Jordan, Justin, James, Jenna, Julia, and Jessica. Lydia and Carolyn have three other sisters, each with their own families, and more people were arriving today.
Lydia fixed me some breakfast since I hadn’t really eaten, and after a shower, I ran over to the resort’s spa to join Lydia, Carolyn, Jordan and Justin at the gym. I started on a treadmill in the cardio area with everyone else, but soon the guys and I moved down to weights. Once the girls finished the movie they were watching while working out, they joined us. We were almost the only ones in the place, so we were able to goof around with each other, and it wasn’t any problem to adjust the machines for the girls’ shorter height. Jordan, Justin and I were recruited as their mom and aunt’s personal trainers.
Going into the locker room, I saw how decked out the place was. They had razors and shaving cream set out by the sinks, and I decided it was beyond time to shave. I had only brought my electric razor with me, and after a few days, my facial hair was too long to maintain without it pulling. So I’ve just been letting it grow out. It was nice to get rid of it, but the razors weren’t very high quality, and I gave myself a pretty nice cut on my mustache line. When I got back to the guest house, I got a band-aid from Lydia, and with my Neosporin, it finally stopped bleeding.
Dan organized lunch for us all. Jenna and Julia were in charge of table setup (Jessica, being only a year old, was excused from kp), and Jordan, Justin and James would take care of kitchen clean-up. Their cousins would join in as they arrived, because according to Dan, the moms shouldn’t be doing any kitchen cleaning on vacation. For lunch we had a spaghetti-like dish that was delicious.
Afterward I was playing with the girls, picking them up, giving moon jumps, throwing them onto the beds, tickling them. Carolyn LOVED the throwing on the bed part. But the girls enjoyed it, and I was careful with them. It reminded me of when my uncle would do that with me and my sisters back when we were that young and small. I also had some time to do some knitting, and James was knitting also, so I had some company.
Carolyn had brought several craft projects with her, but wanted to get some preliminary needlepoint projects for Jenna and Julia. There’s a fabric store in the town of June Lake, so we decided to drive over there before they closed. Driving into town with everyone would require more than Carolyn’s car, so she asked me if I could drive one person. Jordan would ride with me.
As we prepared to leave, I realized I would need to move my car out her way (she obviously needed to lead the way. The guest house is directly down a rock-covered road off the highway, but the road continues off to the right to another guest house. So I backed up on the road leading to the next house, but when I realized Carolyn wanted to do the same thing in order to turn around, I continued backing up. I was backing up at an angle, and I accidentally drove the rear right wheel over the wood plank edge of the road into the surrounding field. I tried driving back out, but with no success. I knew this was going to be bad. Jordan asked if he should get out and push, but I figured there was no way that would work due to the field being on much lower ground, so I gave him a look of utter bewilderment. I honked to get Carolyn’s attention, and she, Lydia and Justin got out. They actually thought we could push Serena up and out, but I thought we’d need AAA. Thankfully I listened to them, because we had Carolyn get in to put the car in drive while the rest of us pushed, and Serena glided ride back onto the street.
Crisis averted, we headed into town. We arrived, and let Carolyn and Jenna off at the fabric store since they would need to maximize their time there. Lydia and I drove the rest of the crew down the street to a candy store. She got some candy for the younger kids, and drinks from the accompanying coffee shop for the rest of us. We hung out and looked around the gift shop while we waited for Carolyn. I gave Julia a ride on my shoulders for awhile, and she enjoyed being taller than everyone else for once.
While we waited, Lydia got the call that Mary (Lydia’s sister), Jeremy (Lydia’s nephew by her other sister Chris), Brian and Amanda (two of Mary’s three adult children) were getting very close. They drove past us while we were in town, and waved as they headed to the cabin. It’s a five-hour drive without traffic, so we forgave them for not stopping to see us.
Once the rest of us returned, we sat and relaxed for awhile before starting dinner. Dan fixed his renowned soup for us, boiling some pasta to pour into the soup as it was being served. I had two big bowls of it because it was so good.
After dinner we all sat down to enjoy our various activities. Carolyn started Jenna and Julia each on their own needlepoint project. This was Julia’s first attempt at it, and she was doing so well. Mary, James and I pulled out our knitting, and it was so nice to have some other people join me. After much debate, we decided on a movie to watch. We ended up watching the A&E version of Pride & Prejudice, and I was glad that I know the story so well and had seen it before. That’s because the house was so noisy with so many people, that we missed much of the dialogue. This is clearly not the way a movie is watched in my parents’ home.
Then the phone calls came, and because I knew the movie, I didn’t mind stepping out to answer. The first call was from Cindy, and the second from my friend Daniel Z. (different from Daniel W. who I visited in Idaho). I talked with each of them for awhile, and then went back inside. The movie had been abandoned, and now conversations were going every which way. We all talked for awhile more, and then slowly drifted off to our respective sleeping places. I would be in the upstairs living room with the boys on a fold-up bed. The guest house is set up slightly inverted from normal: the living room, dining room, and kitchen are all upstairs with a few bedrooms (one master). The bottom floor has one huge bedroom (six beds, four of which are in double bunks), the laundry room, a bathroom and the garage.
Johanna (the fifth sister) and her two youngest, Pat and Josh, were driving up, but weren’t due until 2:30 a.m., so we weren’t planning to wait up. They had a key.
After about an hour of driving, I arrived at the west entrance gate to Yosemite. There was a delightfully cheerful woman manning the gate. I bought an annual pass for $40, and she gave me some pamphlets along with directions to get through the park to June Lake.
Driving through the park, I couldn’t believe how big it was. It’s 55 miles across! All this time, I had no idea that it was so huge. I had wondered at Thanksgiving why it took so long to get to the spot Don and Barbara took me to. But it was such a beautiful drive that I hardly minded. It was hard to resist stopping to take pictures along the way because there was a plethora of picturesque spots.
But I pressed on because I wanted to get to June Lake. It was slow going through Yosemite at points because of some really slow cars in front of me. That was somewhat irksome when these cars wouldn’t use turnouts, because I make a point to use them if a car behind me wants to go faster than I want to. What really frustrated me was passing lanes that would only come up on an uphill stretch. Serena doesn’t like hills, and they really tire her out, so it gets harder to speed us and pass other cars when we only have the passing lane traveling uphill.
I finally made it through Yosemite and drove a few miles east on 120 until it dead-ended into highway 395. Following directions from Lydia, I turned south and then into the 158 June Lake Loop. I found the resort, and then what I thought was the guest house. I wasn’t quite sure, though, so I got out of my car to go knock on the front door. To my delight and relief, Carolyn and Lydia opened the door.
Carolyn and Lydia are sisters, and only two members of a huge family in my Orange County church that I’ve been adopted into. The family had invited me to join them at the guest house they had all rented out for the month here at June Lake’s Double Eagle Resort. The only people there when I arrived were Lydia and her husband Dan, Lydia and Carolyn’s mom Rose, Carolyn, and her six kids: Jordan, Justin, James, Jenna, Julia, and Jessica. Lydia and Carolyn have three other sisters, each with their own families, and more people were arriving today.
Lydia fixed me some breakfast since I hadn’t really eaten, and after a shower, I ran over to the resort’s spa to join Lydia, Carolyn, Jordan and Justin at the gym. I started on a treadmill in the cardio area with everyone else, but soon the guys and I moved down to weights. Once the girls finished the movie they were watching while working out, they joined us. We were almost the only ones in the place, so we were able to goof around with each other, and it wasn’t any problem to adjust the machines for the girls’ shorter height. Jordan, Justin and I were recruited as their mom and aunt’s personal trainers.
Going into the locker room, I saw how decked out the place was. They had razors and shaving cream set out by the sinks, and I decided it was beyond time to shave. I had only brought my electric razor with me, and after a few days, my facial hair was too long to maintain without it pulling. So I’ve just been letting it grow out. It was nice to get rid of it, but the razors weren’t very high quality, and I gave myself a pretty nice cut on my mustache line. When I got back to the guest house, I got a band-aid from Lydia, and with my Neosporin, it finally stopped bleeding.
Dan organized lunch for us all. Jenna and Julia were in charge of table setup (Jessica, being only a year old, was excused from kp), and Jordan, Justin and James would take care of kitchen clean-up. Their cousins would join in as they arrived, because according to Dan, the moms shouldn’t be doing any kitchen cleaning on vacation. For lunch we had a spaghetti-like dish that was delicious.
Afterward I was playing with the girls, picking them up, giving moon jumps, throwing them onto the beds, tickling them. Carolyn LOVED the throwing on the bed part. But the girls enjoyed it, and I was careful with them. It reminded me of when my uncle would do that with me and my sisters back when we were that young and small. I also had some time to do some knitting, and James was knitting also, so I had some company.
Carolyn had brought several craft projects with her, but wanted to get some preliminary needlepoint projects for Jenna and Julia. There’s a fabric store in the town of June Lake, so we decided to drive over there before they closed. Driving into town with everyone would require more than Carolyn’s car, so she asked me if I could drive one person. Jordan would ride with me.
As we prepared to leave, I realized I would need to move my car out her way (she obviously needed to lead the way. The guest house is directly down a rock-covered road off the highway, but the road continues off to the right to another guest house. So I backed up on the road leading to the next house, but when I realized Carolyn wanted to do the same thing in order to turn around, I continued backing up. I was backing up at an angle, and I accidentally drove the rear right wheel over the wood plank edge of the road into the surrounding field. I tried driving back out, but with no success. I knew this was going to be bad. Jordan asked if he should get out and push, but I figured there was no way that would work due to the field being on much lower ground, so I gave him a look of utter bewilderment. I honked to get Carolyn’s attention, and she, Lydia and Justin got out. They actually thought we could push Serena up and out, but I thought we’d need AAA. Thankfully I listened to them, because we had Carolyn get in to put the car in drive while the rest of us pushed, and Serena glided ride back onto the street.
Crisis averted, we headed into town. We arrived, and let Carolyn and Jenna off at the fabric store since they would need to maximize their time there. Lydia and I drove the rest of the crew down the street to a candy store. She got some candy for the younger kids, and drinks from the accompanying coffee shop for the rest of us. We hung out and looked around the gift shop while we waited for Carolyn. I gave Julia a ride on my shoulders for awhile, and she enjoyed being taller than everyone else for once.
While we waited, Lydia got the call that Mary (Lydia’s sister), Jeremy (Lydia’s nephew by her other sister Chris), Brian and Amanda (two of Mary’s three adult children) were getting very close. They drove past us while we were in town, and waved as they headed to the cabin. It’s a five-hour drive without traffic, so we forgave them for not stopping to see us.
Once the rest of us returned, we sat and relaxed for awhile before starting dinner. Dan fixed his renowned soup for us, boiling some pasta to pour into the soup as it was being served. I had two big bowls of it because it was so good.
After dinner we all sat down to enjoy our various activities. Carolyn started Jenna and Julia each on their own needlepoint project. This was Julia’s first attempt at it, and she was doing so well. Mary, James and I pulled out our knitting, and it was so nice to have some other people join me. After much debate, we decided on a movie to watch. We ended up watching the A&E version of Pride & Prejudice, and I was glad that I know the story so well and had seen it before. That’s because the house was so noisy with so many people, that we missed much of the dialogue. This is clearly not the way a movie is watched in my parents’ home.
Then the phone calls came, and because I knew the movie, I didn’t mind stepping out to answer. The first call was from Cindy, and the second from my friend Daniel Z. (different from Daniel W. who I visited in Idaho). I talked with each of them for awhile, and then went back inside. The movie had been abandoned, and now conversations were going every which way. We all talked for awhile more, and then slowly drifted off to our respective sleeping places. I would be in the upstairs living room with the boys on a fold-up bed. The guest house is set up slightly inverted from normal: the living room, dining room, and kitchen are all upstairs with a few bedrooms (one master). The bottom floor has one huge bedroom (six beds, four of which are in double bunks), the laundry room, a bathroom and the garage.
Johanna (the fifth sister) and her two youngest, Pat and Josh, were driving up, but weren’t due until 2:30 a.m., so we weren’t planning to wait up. They had a key.
Last Batch of Pictures
Day 14
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002716&l=44cf2&id=150900395
Day 15
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002719&l=fefdc&id=150900395
Day 16
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002720&l=305a3&id=150900395
Day 17
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002735&l=ca2eb&id=150900395
Day 18
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002736&l=0a535&id=150900395
Day 19
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002737&l=b2320&id=150900395
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002716&l=44cf2&id=150900395
Day 15
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002719&l=fefdc&id=150900395
Day 16
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002720&l=305a3&id=150900395
Day 17
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002735&l=ca2eb&id=150900395
Day 18
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002736&l=0a535&id=150900395
Day 19
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2002737&l=b2320&id=150900395
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Day 17 - 06/18/2008
It was a slow start this morning. I didn’t get up until 8:15—so much for remembering I’m on vacation. But I needed to make trails today. Somehow I needed to get to June Lake pronto. My road trip is nearing its conclusion, and I need to maximize every adventuresome minute of it.
We started the morning similar to yesterday. We finished 1 Corinthians and prayed for family, loved ones, and missionaries. I will miss my mornings with Sherman and Harriet. Even though I’ve only had two breakfasts here, I feel as though I as part of their routine. We ate breakfast, and I started packing. As I loaded the car, Harriet surprised me with a sack lunch. I was grateful, but not as grateful as I would become later that afternoon when I clued in that I didn’t have much food left in my trunk.
I think I’ve been neglecting to mention the silent member of the Peterson family. The cat, affectionately called, “Cat.” Sherman and Harriet don’t feed him (gender presumed but not confirmed), but he appears taken care of. He’s been hanging around outside their home for quite awhile now. Anyway, he likes to stare. That’s really all there is to say. And to think I’ve been forgetting to mention Cat.
Before sending me on my way, Sherman wanted to get a few pictures of me and us with his camera. He set up his tripod out on the curb, and he quickly snapped one of just me, one with Harriet and me, and another of the three of us.
As a parting gift, Sherman had given my something very special at breakfast: a round 2-it. He had mentioned how people always say they will do things when they “get around to it,” so he figured they shouldn’t be kept waiting for their round 2-its. He took some metal discs (they kind you would hammer out of a j-box, and marked them “2 IT.” So now people will have no excuse not to get those things done that they’ve been putting off while waiting for their round 2-it’s. That little disc is going to be my motivator to finish up this blog timely.
So I began driving. I went about two hundred miles, and filled up my gas tank in Oregon for the last time this trip. I was so glad because it just feels weird not to pump your own gas. That’s just a “thing” for me, I guess. It just feels so inefficient. And I wonder if it’s to protect additional jobs or some safety hazard concern from people topping off their tanks or something.
I reentered California and started whooping and hollering in my car, even bouncing up and down a little. The guy in the car next to me had a nervous look on his face. I didn’t care: I had missed home in some way. As much as I loved Washington and have a desire to live there someday, I think California will always be home base.
I continued driving, considering whether I was rushing through this stretch too fast. I hadn’t even looked at my AAA Tour Book to see if there’s anything I would want to stop and see on my way down. Oh well, seeing friends and family is more important. The experiences on this trip have been amazing, but I think the people I’ve encountered are what have truly made things enriching.
Driving through Redding, I saw a highway alert that the SB 5 was closed in Sacramento for repairs. I had been planning to transfer over to state highway 16 in Sacramento to get out to June Lake, so I would have to wait and see how this played out.
It started getting warm the farther south I drove. On my way down, I got another call from work. My coworker said I’d need to actually look at this, so I told him I’d call back once I could stop someplace. I kept an eye out for a rest stop, and finally found a truck stop where I could also fill up my gas tank again. But it was too hot to sit in my car and try to do this.
So I took my laptop inside to the restaurant, which required passing through two of those security stands that guard stores from theft. My laptop sent those alarms flying off the handle, and yet the store clerks didn’t even look in my direction as I tried to point out that it was just my laptop. I went into the restaurant and ordered some food so they wouldn’t take issue with me opening my laptop and talking on my cell phone. I was able to give my coworker further instructions on the work to be done, but it was very frustrating to lose over 30 minutes of driving in this miserable truck stop with this deplorable food that I only finished because I was starving and didn’t want to go out to my car for some granola bars.
Today I finished reading Confessions of a Jane Austin Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler, which was thoroughly disappointing. That author did well with the self-reflective nature of the heroine, but dropped the ball with some obvious sub-plots, was entirely too graphic in some of her descriptions, and wrote a really stupid ending. I had expected this book to have the flavor of (or at least be tributary to) Jane Austin’s beloved works, but it sorely missed the mark from an author who claims to be such a fan.
Next I opted for Any Place I Hang My Hat: A Novel by Susan Isaacs. I didn’t finish the first chapter on the first CD. Rereading the back, I wondered what I had been thinking when picking it out at the library. I am doing a lousy job at books selection for this road trip (except for the Bible, of course). The John Grisham book I selected and tried to start the trip out with turned out to be the abridged version (a practice I currently detest, even if the author DID approve it). I must have mentally inserted a “un” prefix in my haste at the library. So, from the library, I’m 0 for 3. Onto The Worst Noel, a collection of short stories about Christmases gone awry, sure to alleviate with humor whatever misery the holidays may find you in.
It’s a good thing I didn’t listen to this collection at Christmas because I likely would have killed myself. My first complaint is that the authors are reading their own works, meaning that they usually lack the vocal performance skills to give an engaging auditory experience. The first story was so littered with profanity that one English teacher’s (Carla, 9th grade, second quarter) words echoed in my ears, “Profanity is a sign of a limited vocabulary,” along with Kelly’s (swim coach, high school) words, “Swearing is a feeble attempt by a small-minded person to express an opinion.” I didn’t get more than three minutes in before moving on.
The second story was a half-hearted improvement, but a disappointment still. The narrative was disparaging, and the ending was so depressing that I can’t even write about it. I listened to the third story, but found it very boring. The title of this book is very appropriate, but the subtitle is a little off: these have to be some of the worst holiday short stories I’ve ever subjected myself to. They’re actually bad stories, not bad situations depicted with intelligent heart and humor. I gave up on that collection.
Next was Company Man by Joseph Finder. The synopsis on the back cover was very intriguing, but I was apprehensive about starting an 18-hour book as my trip is winding down. I decided to give it a try since I was about out of choices. The remaining options just looked unappealing now that they’re in my trunk.
As I got closer to Sacramento, I had to make a decision: just go home, or head out to June Lake? I would love to see everyone there, but part of me just really wanted to go home. I could get back two days early and have time to re-establish life. I decided to go to June Lake. This trip is about new experiences and adventures.
I made it through the detour without issue (shocking, given my track record, I know), and pulled off at another gas station. I wanted to have full tank headed into the Yosemite area since prices would be much higher there. From the gas station, I called Lydia to confirm the directions that she had e-mailed to me about getting to the cabin. I didn’t think I’d get there tonight, but I was going to get as far as I could.
I continued south on highway 16, and soon merged over to highway 49. That route actually drove me past a hospital client I had last year, which brought back some pleasant memories for me and Serena. This was her second client with me, and it was the one where she finally told me her name.
It was about 11 p.m. when I finally decided to stop. I had just arrived at the 108, and was thinking about taking it to go around Yosemite since the entrance gate would be closed. I wanted to purchase an annual pass, and I didn’t know how that would work. I started on the 108 to go the long way around the north end, but almost immediately saw a Walmart in some obscure town that I was about to pass.
I decided this would be our stopping point. I wasn’t tired, but I was worn out. I put my curtains up quickly. I had driven 850 miles today. Wow! That’s probably a personal record for me.
We started the morning similar to yesterday. We finished 1 Corinthians and prayed for family, loved ones, and missionaries. I will miss my mornings with Sherman and Harriet. Even though I’ve only had two breakfasts here, I feel as though I as part of their routine. We ate breakfast, and I started packing. As I loaded the car, Harriet surprised me with a sack lunch. I was grateful, but not as grateful as I would become later that afternoon when I clued in that I didn’t have much food left in my trunk.
I think I’ve been neglecting to mention the silent member of the Peterson family. The cat, affectionately called, “Cat.” Sherman and Harriet don’t feed him (gender presumed but not confirmed), but he appears taken care of. He’s been hanging around outside their home for quite awhile now. Anyway, he likes to stare. That’s really all there is to say. And to think I’ve been forgetting to mention Cat.
Before sending me on my way, Sherman wanted to get a few pictures of me and us with his camera. He set up his tripod out on the curb, and he quickly snapped one of just me, one with Harriet and me, and another of the three of us.
As a parting gift, Sherman had given my something very special at breakfast: a round 2-it. He had mentioned how people always say they will do things when they “get around to it,” so he figured they shouldn’t be kept waiting for their round 2-its. He took some metal discs (they kind you would hammer out of a j-box, and marked them “2 IT.” So now people will have no excuse not to get those things done that they’ve been putting off while waiting for their round 2-it’s. That little disc is going to be my motivator to finish up this blog timely.
So I began driving. I went about two hundred miles, and filled up my gas tank in Oregon for the last time this trip. I was so glad because it just feels weird not to pump your own gas. That’s just a “thing” for me, I guess. It just feels so inefficient. And I wonder if it’s to protect additional jobs or some safety hazard concern from people topping off their tanks or something.
I reentered California and started whooping and hollering in my car, even bouncing up and down a little. The guy in the car next to me had a nervous look on his face. I didn’t care: I had missed home in some way. As much as I loved Washington and have a desire to live there someday, I think California will always be home base.
I continued driving, considering whether I was rushing through this stretch too fast. I hadn’t even looked at my AAA Tour Book to see if there’s anything I would want to stop and see on my way down. Oh well, seeing friends and family is more important. The experiences on this trip have been amazing, but I think the people I’ve encountered are what have truly made things enriching.
Driving through Redding, I saw a highway alert that the SB 5 was closed in Sacramento for repairs. I had been planning to transfer over to state highway 16 in Sacramento to get out to June Lake, so I would have to wait and see how this played out.
It started getting warm the farther south I drove. On my way down, I got another call from work. My coworker said I’d need to actually look at this, so I told him I’d call back once I could stop someplace. I kept an eye out for a rest stop, and finally found a truck stop where I could also fill up my gas tank again. But it was too hot to sit in my car and try to do this.
So I took my laptop inside to the restaurant, which required passing through two of those security stands that guard stores from theft. My laptop sent those alarms flying off the handle, and yet the store clerks didn’t even look in my direction as I tried to point out that it was just my laptop. I went into the restaurant and ordered some food so they wouldn’t take issue with me opening my laptop and talking on my cell phone. I was able to give my coworker further instructions on the work to be done, but it was very frustrating to lose over 30 minutes of driving in this miserable truck stop with this deplorable food that I only finished because I was starving and didn’t want to go out to my car for some granola bars.
Today I finished reading Confessions of a Jane Austin Addict by Laurie Viera Rigler, which was thoroughly disappointing. That author did well with the self-reflective nature of the heroine, but dropped the ball with some obvious sub-plots, was entirely too graphic in some of her descriptions, and wrote a really stupid ending. I had expected this book to have the flavor of (or at least be tributary to) Jane Austin’s beloved works, but it sorely missed the mark from an author who claims to be such a fan.
Next I opted for Any Place I Hang My Hat: A Novel by Susan Isaacs. I didn’t finish the first chapter on the first CD. Rereading the back, I wondered what I had been thinking when picking it out at the library. I am doing a lousy job at books selection for this road trip (except for the Bible, of course). The John Grisham book I selected and tried to start the trip out with turned out to be the abridged version (a practice I currently detest, even if the author DID approve it). I must have mentally inserted a “un” prefix in my haste at the library. So, from the library, I’m 0 for 3. Onto The Worst Noel, a collection of short stories about Christmases gone awry, sure to alleviate with humor whatever misery the holidays may find you in.
It’s a good thing I didn’t listen to this collection at Christmas because I likely would have killed myself. My first complaint is that the authors are reading their own works, meaning that they usually lack the vocal performance skills to give an engaging auditory experience. The first story was so littered with profanity that one English teacher’s (Carla, 9th grade, second quarter) words echoed in my ears, “Profanity is a sign of a limited vocabulary,” along with Kelly’s (swim coach, high school) words, “Swearing is a feeble attempt by a small-minded person to express an opinion.” I didn’t get more than three minutes in before moving on.
The second story was a half-hearted improvement, but a disappointment still. The narrative was disparaging, and the ending was so depressing that I can’t even write about it. I listened to the third story, but found it very boring. The title of this book is very appropriate, but the subtitle is a little off: these have to be some of the worst holiday short stories I’ve ever subjected myself to. They’re actually bad stories, not bad situations depicted with intelligent heart and humor. I gave up on that collection.
Next was Company Man by Joseph Finder. The synopsis on the back cover was very intriguing, but I was apprehensive about starting an 18-hour book as my trip is winding down. I decided to give it a try since I was about out of choices. The remaining options just looked unappealing now that they’re in my trunk.
As I got closer to Sacramento, I had to make a decision: just go home, or head out to June Lake? I would love to see everyone there, but part of me just really wanted to go home. I could get back two days early and have time to re-establish life. I decided to go to June Lake. This trip is about new experiences and adventures.
I made it through the detour without issue (shocking, given my track record, I know), and pulled off at another gas station. I wanted to have full tank headed into the Yosemite area since prices would be much higher there. From the gas station, I called Lydia to confirm the directions that she had e-mailed to me about getting to the cabin. I didn’t think I’d get there tonight, but I was going to get as far as I could.
I continued south on highway 16, and soon merged over to highway 49. That route actually drove me past a hospital client I had last year, which brought back some pleasant memories for me and Serena. This was her second client with me, and it was the one where she finally told me her name.
It was about 11 p.m. when I finally decided to stop. I had just arrived at the 108, and was thinking about taking it to go around Yosemite since the entrance gate would be closed. I wanted to purchase an annual pass, and I didn’t know how that would work. I started on the 108 to go the long way around the north end, but almost immediately saw a Walmart in some obscure town that I was about to pass.
I decided this would be our stopping point. I wasn’t tired, but I was worn out. I put my curtains up quickly. I had driven 850 miles today. Wow! That’s probably a personal record for me.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Day 16 - 06/17/2008
Sherman and Harriet start their morning just before breakfast by reading through the Bible and in prayer for missions and family. They’re nearing the end of 1 Corinthians in their progression through the Bible. We had a nice breakfast and I finished the milk as promised last night.
I then emptied the rest of my backseat cargo into the hallway to make room for my passengers. Sherman and Harriet were going to take me to see the Columbia River Gorge. Harriet packed some snacks for us, and we were off. Sherman was in front with me, and Harriet sat behind him.
Before hitting the road, I wanted to stop at Powell’s Bookstore again. They had some books on sale on my last visit, and upon checking Amazon, I learned they were a bargain at Powell’s. So I stopped to buy them, and it gave Sherman and Harriet a chance to see the store. Sherman had been once or twice before, but this was Harriet’s first visit. She liked it, but she knew the beauty of where we were going next, so she wasn’t as enraptured as I was on my first visit.
Sherman had asked a clerk for directions to the gorge from here, and had some very clear directions that didn’t match our starting point. He knew exactly the first street to turn on, but wasn’t sure which way to go to get to it. I turned as he directed, and we found a completely different path that got us on the freeway where we needed to go. He and I have a lot in common.
Our mini side trip got us to the 84 headed east, and a few miles down the road, I pulled off as Sherman instructed. We would be driving along a parallel (not mathematically, but geographically) highway that would offer a beautiful view of the sights. We had entered the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.
Harriet mentioned that there was a Foursquare retreat (Crestview Manor Conference Center) along this road, and I wanted to see it. We figured there was no harm in asking about getting a quick tour. It turns out there was. Jr. High campers were just about to show up, and for security reasons, they had a closed camp, and had to ask us to leave. They were very nice about the whole thing, though. So we walked to my car, and I pulled out of the parking space in the dirt lot. We all heard a scrapping noise as I turned. I had forgotten the rocks lining the corner parking spaces. I got out to check the damage and saw Serena’s new beauty mark on her front left bumper. But it was worth it because I saw something amazing. I saw a speed limit 9.5 mph sign. I don’t steal road signs, and would never consider committing such a crime. But never before have I wanted to more than in that moment.
Our next stop was the Portland Women’s forum, which was actually just a view point for pictures. Sherman was disappointed at all the cloud cover in his attempt to get some nice pictures with his new camera, but I was pretty content with it. While we were there, I asked another visitor there to take a picture of the three of us.
I was taking several pictures, both in and out of my car. Even though I had charged my batteries last night, the rechargeable ones started dying on me today. This seems to happen on the first attempt to charge a set. I think in the future, I just need to unplug the charge station when it first says it’s done, and plug it in to go again. Thankfully I had some one-time use ones in my trunk. But Sherman was really showing me up with his serious photography efforts: he had a nicer camera, and had brought a tripod along. Wow. But he did plan his shots more meticulously, and really reaped the fruits of his labor.
We stopped at a few places along the scenic route, one being Wakheena Falls. We walked over to the base, and I took some pictures from there. I saw a sign, saying that the bridge across a higher point (most of the way up the falls) was only 0.2 miles up, I left my keys with Sherman and started hiking. It was obviously a steep hike, but short nonetheless. I got some amazing pictures up there, and then dashed back down. Sherman had gone off on his own to take some scenery pictures, and Harriet and I had a little trouble finding him at first.
Returning to the car, we headed over to Multnomah Falls, which we more spectacular in size, but under-impressive by the tourism surrounding it. This area had actually stores set up around the falls. We took some pictures, and returned to the car.
We passed a third waterfall, and Sherman asked if I wanted to stop. I figured I had enough pictures of waterfalls, so we pressed on to lunch. We stopped in at a café similar to Fuddruckers (cafeteria style, only with more of a hunting lodge feel than retro) for lunch.
We had been driving along the Oregon side, but decided upon leaving to go back along the Washington side to get some different pictures. We crossed the Bridge of the Gods (yes, that’s really what this toll bridge was called), and started westward along Highway 14.
We hadn’t gone far when we came upon the Bonneville dam. Sine I don’t see many dams, I found this pretty cool, so Sherman and I got out to take some pictures. Harriet didn’t feel like climbing out, so I brought her a couple of the beautiful flowers we saw from our vantage point of the dam.
Many of my readers who know me know that when something strikes me as REALLY funny, I can laugh for a long time. This usually ends with me out-of-breath, in pain, and red in the face. I love to laugh, and so it works for me. Well, prepare to groan, because this is a terribly bad joke. As we were driving, Sherman mentioned that this highway runs all the way through to Idaho. Harriet broke in, and mentioned that it was in the other direction, and I couldn’t help but chide Sherman with the comment that it would take a long time to get Idaho going westward from Washington. Not missing a beat, he deadpanned slowly for effect, “Ha. Ha. That’s about as funny as a screen door on a submarine.” And I just lost it as I fell into fits of laughter. I know it’s goofy, and ridiculous, but I still laugh as I’m typing this journal a week later. Sherman mentioned to Harriet that they need to keep me around, but I don’t think Harriet wanted him to get this kind of encouragement. I even pulled over to get a picture, and had a hard time standing up straight because I would keep doubling over.
I recovered several minutes later, and Harriet mentioned that we were approaching some store. Sherman mentioned to her that we could stop only if the pilot allowed, and I was more than happy to oblige. This place was called Pendleton Woolen Mills, and it’s a clothing store. I didn’t completely understand the uniqueness of it, but I did know that Pendleton was several hours eastward of our current location. They had some pretty nice clothing, and I tried on some pairs of pants, but didn’t find anything I thought was worth buying.
We arrived back home around 4 p.m., Harriet and I wearied from the journey. Sherman strangely wasn’t. I had a call from work to return, and after about 30 minutes of that, I returned to the dining room to find Harriet proposing root beer floats. I figured I had hiked enough this trip, although not today, to earn it, so we indulged. The root beer was of some fancy imported variety, and was very good. As a policy, I don’t drink soda anymore, only granting rare exception to occasions such as these, and it was very refreshing.
The sugar didn’t do anything to wake us up, so while Sherman tinkered around with his new printer (free after rebate with the camera), Harriet and I retired to our respective bedrooms. We had tried to avoid taking naps so late in the day, but it was inevitable. I journaled for no more than fifteen minutes before conking out.
Two hours later, I emerged. Harriet had slept almost as long, and we were both glad we had slept. Harriet fixed a delicious dinner for us, and then we broke out a deck of cards. Sherman and Harriet are avid Pinochle players, and I wanted to learn, but apparently you need four players for standard play. So they decided to teach me a game they called “Crazy Bridge.” Only later would I learn that I already knew this game, under the guise of “Up & Down the River.”
After dinner and the game, we all headed to bed. I journaled for awhile, trying to get sleepy. Finally, sleep came to me.
I then emptied the rest of my backseat cargo into the hallway to make room for my passengers. Sherman and Harriet were going to take me to see the Columbia River Gorge. Harriet packed some snacks for us, and we were off. Sherman was in front with me, and Harriet sat behind him.
Before hitting the road, I wanted to stop at Powell’s Bookstore again. They had some books on sale on my last visit, and upon checking Amazon, I learned they were a bargain at Powell’s. So I stopped to buy them, and it gave Sherman and Harriet a chance to see the store. Sherman had been once or twice before, but this was Harriet’s first visit. She liked it, but she knew the beauty of where we were going next, so she wasn’t as enraptured as I was on my first visit.
Sherman had asked a clerk for directions to the gorge from here, and had some very clear directions that didn’t match our starting point. He knew exactly the first street to turn on, but wasn’t sure which way to go to get to it. I turned as he directed, and we found a completely different path that got us on the freeway where we needed to go. He and I have a lot in common.
Our mini side trip got us to the 84 headed east, and a few miles down the road, I pulled off as Sherman instructed. We would be driving along a parallel (not mathematically, but geographically) highway that would offer a beautiful view of the sights. We had entered the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area.
Harriet mentioned that there was a Foursquare retreat (Crestview Manor Conference Center) along this road, and I wanted to see it. We figured there was no harm in asking about getting a quick tour. It turns out there was. Jr. High campers were just about to show up, and for security reasons, they had a closed camp, and had to ask us to leave. They were very nice about the whole thing, though. So we walked to my car, and I pulled out of the parking space in the dirt lot. We all heard a scrapping noise as I turned. I had forgotten the rocks lining the corner parking spaces. I got out to check the damage and saw Serena’s new beauty mark on her front left bumper. But it was worth it because I saw something amazing. I saw a speed limit 9.5 mph sign. I don’t steal road signs, and would never consider committing such a crime. But never before have I wanted to more than in that moment.
Our next stop was the Portland Women’s forum, which was actually just a view point for pictures. Sherman was disappointed at all the cloud cover in his attempt to get some nice pictures with his new camera, but I was pretty content with it. While we were there, I asked another visitor there to take a picture of the three of us.
I was taking several pictures, both in and out of my car. Even though I had charged my batteries last night, the rechargeable ones started dying on me today. This seems to happen on the first attempt to charge a set. I think in the future, I just need to unplug the charge station when it first says it’s done, and plug it in to go again. Thankfully I had some one-time use ones in my trunk. But Sherman was really showing me up with his serious photography efforts: he had a nicer camera, and had brought a tripod along. Wow. But he did plan his shots more meticulously, and really reaped the fruits of his labor.
We stopped at a few places along the scenic route, one being Wakheena Falls. We walked over to the base, and I took some pictures from there. I saw a sign, saying that the bridge across a higher point (most of the way up the falls) was only 0.2 miles up, I left my keys with Sherman and started hiking. It was obviously a steep hike, but short nonetheless. I got some amazing pictures up there, and then dashed back down. Sherman had gone off on his own to take some scenery pictures, and Harriet and I had a little trouble finding him at first.
Returning to the car, we headed over to Multnomah Falls, which we more spectacular in size, but under-impressive by the tourism surrounding it. This area had actually stores set up around the falls. We took some pictures, and returned to the car.
We passed a third waterfall, and Sherman asked if I wanted to stop. I figured I had enough pictures of waterfalls, so we pressed on to lunch. We stopped in at a café similar to Fuddruckers (cafeteria style, only with more of a hunting lodge feel than retro) for lunch.
We had been driving along the Oregon side, but decided upon leaving to go back along the Washington side to get some different pictures. We crossed the Bridge of the Gods (yes, that’s really what this toll bridge was called), and started westward along Highway 14.
We hadn’t gone far when we came upon the Bonneville dam. Sine I don’t see many dams, I found this pretty cool, so Sherman and I got out to take some pictures. Harriet didn’t feel like climbing out, so I brought her a couple of the beautiful flowers we saw from our vantage point of the dam.
Many of my readers who know me know that when something strikes me as REALLY funny, I can laugh for a long time. This usually ends with me out-of-breath, in pain, and red in the face. I love to laugh, and so it works for me. Well, prepare to groan, because this is a terribly bad joke. As we were driving, Sherman mentioned that this highway runs all the way through to Idaho. Harriet broke in, and mentioned that it was in the other direction, and I couldn’t help but chide Sherman with the comment that it would take a long time to get Idaho going westward from Washington. Not missing a beat, he deadpanned slowly for effect, “Ha. Ha. That’s about as funny as a screen door on a submarine.” And I just lost it as I fell into fits of laughter. I know it’s goofy, and ridiculous, but I still laugh as I’m typing this journal a week later. Sherman mentioned to Harriet that they need to keep me around, but I don’t think Harriet wanted him to get this kind of encouragement. I even pulled over to get a picture, and had a hard time standing up straight because I would keep doubling over.
I recovered several minutes later, and Harriet mentioned that we were approaching some store. Sherman mentioned to her that we could stop only if the pilot allowed, and I was more than happy to oblige. This place was called Pendleton Woolen Mills, and it’s a clothing store. I didn’t completely understand the uniqueness of it, but I did know that Pendleton was several hours eastward of our current location. They had some pretty nice clothing, and I tried on some pairs of pants, but didn’t find anything I thought was worth buying.
We arrived back home around 4 p.m., Harriet and I wearied from the journey. Sherman strangely wasn’t. I had a call from work to return, and after about 30 minutes of that, I returned to the dining room to find Harriet proposing root beer floats. I figured I had hiked enough this trip, although not today, to earn it, so we indulged. The root beer was of some fancy imported variety, and was very good. As a policy, I don’t drink soda anymore, only granting rare exception to occasions such as these, and it was very refreshing.
The sugar didn’t do anything to wake us up, so while Sherman tinkered around with his new printer (free after rebate with the camera), Harriet and I retired to our respective bedrooms. We had tried to avoid taking naps so late in the day, but it was inevitable. I journaled for no more than fifteen minutes before conking out.
Two hours later, I emerged. Harriet had slept almost as long, and we were both glad we had slept. Harriet fixed a delicious dinner for us, and then we broke out a deck of cards. Sherman and Harriet are avid Pinochle players, and I wanted to learn, but apparently you need four players for standard play. So they decided to teach me a game they called “Crazy Bridge.” Only later would I learn that I already knew this game, under the guise of “Up & Down the River.”
After dinner and the game, we all headed to bed. I journaled for awhile, trying to get sleepy. Finally, sleep came to me.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Day 15 - 06/16/2008
I got a lot of text messages last night and this morning, one from my friend Daniel. He recently moved to Idaho, and we were hoping to meet up. We made plans to meet for lunch, and then I started with my morning.
I have been here so long that I had been leaving my shampoo and stuff in the shower here. Today made me keenly aware that my time in Spokane was ending as I packed it all back up.
I went upstairs for breakfast, and spent it with Roxie, Grayson and Kayla. We had English Muffins, yogurt, and fruit. I had a chance to talk with Roxie and tell her that my parents had some books on missionaries that we had used, offering to send them up to her. We talked for a little while about their homeschooling, and Grayson happened to mention that Abraham Lincoln was a hero of his, something we have in common. Grayson and Kayla played me some more songs on their fiddles. The first was Ashokan Farewell, a Civil War tune that brought tears to my eyes. It had such a sorrowful melody that echoed the travesty of lives lost in that war.
I spent some time blogging, trying to catch up on my journals. My time here has been so filled with activities that I have fallen a few days behind. I got to my cut-off time to get ready to leave, and shut down the computer to start packing. I packed the car up again, said my good-byes (giving Grayson my address and having him try some of Grandma’s rhubarb sauce that had almost forgotten to take), and hit the road bound for Idaho.
As I left the freeway in Coeur d’Alene to meet Daniel, I was shocked to gas for only $3.67/gallon. I was disappointed that I had only used little more than a gallon of my filled tank. I met Daniel and his friend Louie, in whose basement Daniel is currently staying. We walked over to this burger joint, and had one of the best cheeseburgers I have ever consumed. The cook had a pan full of raw hamburger meat, and would just pull out meat to form patties as he cooked. It was a small establishment, with only a wrap-around counter for seating, but we managed to find three seats together. We talked about Daniel’s move up here, and the triathlon they’re both training for (something to shoot for one day after my marathon).
After lunch I got back on the road headed for Vancouver, WA. I needed to get to Sherman and Harriet’s tonight because we were going to spend the next day together. I had wanted to spend more time with them on my way up, but was crunched for time.
Today I started my first book on CD that I had brought with me, Confessions of a Jane Austin Addict. It’s about a modern-day woman whose life is in emotional turmoil, which somehow causes a body swap with a 19th century woman in comparable emotional predicaments. The premise seemed brilliant and promising, but so far it is only mildly living up to expectations. I only keep listening to find out how the heroine gets back to her own time and life. I passed the halfway mark of the 7.5 hours during my driving today.
I was headed west on the 70, and Amy had sent me a message prior to my trip, saying that I needed to stop in a town called Ritzville, that there was some place there where I needed to try their amazing ice cream and see their restroom. She didn’t give me the name of the place, but just the address.
It took a lot of wrong turns to finally narrow down where it was, because few streets are actually marked. I finally found Killian’s Country Creamery and went inside. I walked inside and there were two very bored-looking high school girls behind the counter. I bought an ice cream cone, and started walking around the store. There was a photo booth with pictures taped all over the exterior. A sign was posted asking patrons to donate one of the photos printed to the wall, saying that tape and scissors were available at the counter. I had a thought, and started scouring the photos. Sure enough, I found a picture of Amy and her coworkers from a stop they had made there.
Then it was time to try this bathroom. I had no idea what to expect, but was guessing a huge cow statue or something. Nothing could have prompted me to guess what I’d see: the rest of the store. I walked in to the first bathroom, only to discover that I could see the entire store through a one-way mirror covering an entire wall. It was absolutely freaky. I hadn’t looked at this wall from the outside, but thought it was a mirror from the outside. It was too weird to think of going to the bathroom in there because even if you don’t have an audience, you feel as though you do because you can see them. So I ducked into the next one, which was thankfully without such a wall. Upon leaving I sent Amy a text message thanking her for the surprise.
As it turned out, Ritzville was the city for my turn-off from I-90 to state highway 395. I was following the sign for it, but became absorbed in my book. It was 40 miles later before I realized that I had stayed on I-90. Thankfully, I figured it out just in time to find that the upcoming state highway 17 would also take me south and meet up with the 395. So I wasn’t entirely efficient in my travels, but at least I didn’t have to backtrack. I despise backtracking.
Sherman had told me on my last visit to stop in Kettleman City for cheap gas, but $4.17/gallon didn’t seem cheap compared to what I had seen in Idaho earlier this morning. And then I almost got lost trying to get back on the freeway, because I had pulled off at a juncture of three or four freeways/highways.
I pressed on, and soon took a break from my book to call Dad and wish him a belated Father’s Day. Mom had helped me take care of a gift we knew he’d like, so at least that was on time. Because of my cell phone dying on my hike yesterday, I hadn’t been able to call him after my hike. I then called Sherman to confirm my arrival at his and Harriet’s house tonight. We figured that I’d be arriving about 9 or 10 p.m.
I wanted to get over to Vancouver, but the scenery was so gorgeous that I couldn’t help pulling over at designated View Points to take several pictures. This is such a beautiful drive. As I continued on, I called my friend Joanna to catch up. She’s in the process of moving, and had an unusual problem to deal with: ducks had settled in her pool. As I laughed over this, she also gave me a lecture about eating peanut butter while driving.
Along my trip, I’ve been scanning for local radio stations. I have frequently found KLove, a Christian music station that I have access to in Fresno. But I was very surprised to find “The Fish” radio station while surfing through stations today on break from my book. That one is in Orange County, and I hadn’t come across it before in any of my travels outside of Southern California. That was a memory of home.
As I took Exit 3 off of Highway 14 as Sherman had instructed, I found myself lost. I called Sherman, and after a lot of U-turns, we realized I just hadn’t gone far enough on the road I was originally on. I thought I had gone too far because I passed another entrance to highway 14.
I finally arrived and carried my stuff inside. Harriet put together a snack for us, and Sherman insisted I drink all the milk left in the carton. I told him I’d finish it in the morning with breakfast. We made some basic plans for tomorrow, and headed to bed. After typing for awhile (still trying to catch up), I collapsed, exhausted from today.
I have been here so long that I had been leaving my shampoo and stuff in the shower here. Today made me keenly aware that my time in Spokane was ending as I packed it all back up.
I went upstairs for breakfast, and spent it with Roxie, Grayson and Kayla. We had English Muffins, yogurt, and fruit. I had a chance to talk with Roxie and tell her that my parents had some books on missionaries that we had used, offering to send them up to her. We talked for a little while about their homeschooling, and Grayson happened to mention that Abraham Lincoln was a hero of his, something we have in common. Grayson and Kayla played me some more songs on their fiddles. The first was Ashokan Farewell, a Civil War tune that brought tears to my eyes. It had such a sorrowful melody that echoed the travesty of lives lost in that war.
I spent some time blogging, trying to catch up on my journals. My time here has been so filled with activities that I have fallen a few days behind. I got to my cut-off time to get ready to leave, and shut down the computer to start packing. I packed the car up again, said my good-byes (giving Grayson my address and having him try some of Grandma’s rhubarb sauce that had almost forgotten to take), and hit the road bound for Idaho.
As I left the freeway in Coeur d’Alene to meet Daniel, I was shocked to gas for only $3.67/gallon. I was disappointed that I had only used little more than a gallon of my filled tank. I met Daniel and his friend Louie, in whose basement Daniel is currently staying. We walked over to this burger joint, and had one of the best cheeseburgers I have ever consumed. The cook had a pan full of raw hamburger meat, and would just pull out meat to form patties as he cooked. It was a small establishment, with only a wrap-around counter for seating, but we managed to find three seats together. We talked about Daniel’s move up here, and the triathlon they’re both training for (something to shoot for one day after my marathon).
After lunch I got back on the road headed for Vancouver, WA. I needed to get to Sherman and Harriet’s tonight because we were going to spend the next day together. I had wanted to spend more time with them on my way up, but was crunched for time.
Today I started my first book on CD that I had brought with me, Confessions of a Jane Austin Addict. It’s about a modern-day woman whose life is in emotional turmoil, which somehow causes a body swap with a 19th century woman in comparable emotional predicaments. The premise seemed brilliant and promising, but so far it is only mildly living up to expectations. I only keep listening to find out how the heroine gets back to her own time and life. I passed the halfway mark of the 7.5 hours during my driving today.
I was headed west on the 70, and Amy had sent me a message prior to my trip, saying that I needed to stop in a town called Ritzville, that there was some place there where I needed to try their amazing ice cream and see their restroom. She didn’t give me the name of the place, but just the address.
It took a lot of wrong turns to finally narrow down where it was, because few streets are actually marked. I finally found Killian’s Country Creamery and went inside. I walked inside and there were two very bored-looking high school girls behind the counter. I bought an ice cream cone, and started walking around the store. There was a photo booth with pictures taped all over the exterior. A sign was posted asking patrons to donate one of the photos printed to the wall, saying that tape and scissors were available at the counter. I had a thought, and started scouring the photos. Sure enough, I found a picture of Amy and her coworkers from a stop they had made there.
Then it was time to try this bathroom. I had no idea what to expect, but was guessing a huge cow statue or something. Nothing could have prompted me to guess what I’d see: the rest of the store. I walked in to the first bathroom, only to discover that I could see the entire store through a one-way mirror covering an entire wall. It was absolutely freaky. I hadn’t looked at this wall from the outside, but thought it was a mirror from the outside. It was too weird to think of going to the bathroom in there because even if you don’t have an audience, you feel as though you do because you can see them. So I ducked into the next one, which was thankfully without such a wall. Upon leaving I sent Amy a text message thanking her for the surprise.
As it turned out, Ritzville was the city for my turn-off from I-90 to state highway 395. I was following the sign for it, but became absorbed in my book. It was 40 miles later before I realized that I had stayed on I-90. Thankfully, I figured it out just in time to find that the upcoming state highway 17 would also take me south and meet up with the 395. So I wasn’t entirely efficient in my travels, but at least I didn’t have to backtrack. I despise backtracking.
Sherman had told me on my last visit to stop in Kettleman City for cheap gas, but $4.17/gallon didn’t seem cheap compared to what I had seen in Idaho earlier this morning. And then I almost got lost trying to get back on the freeway, because I had pulled off at a juncture of three or four freeways/highways.
I pressed on, and soon took a break from my book to call Dad and wish him a belated Father’s Day. Mom had helped me take care of a gift we knew he’d like, so at least that was on time. Because of my cell phone dying on my hike yesterday, I hadn’t been able to call him after my hike. I then called Sherman to confirm my arrival at his and Harriet’s house tonight. We figured that I’d be arriving about 9 or 10 p.m.
I wanted to get over to Vancouver, but the scenery was so gorgeous that I couldn’t help pulling over at designated View Points to take several pictures. This is such a beautiful drive. As I continued on, I called my friend Joanna to catch up. She’s in the process of moving, and had an unusual problem to deal with: ducks had settled in her pool. As I laughed over this, she also gave me a lecture about eating peanut butter while driving.
Along my trip, I’ve been scanning for local radio stations. I have frequently found KLove, a Christian music station that I have access to in Fresno. But I was very surprised to find “The Fish” radio station while surfing through stations today on break from my book. That one is in Orange County, and I hadn’t come across it before in any of my travels outside of Southern California. That was a memory of home.
As I took Exit 3 off of Highway 14 as Sherman had instructed, I found myself lost. I called Sherman, and after a lot of U-turns, we realized I just hadn’t gone far enough on the road I was originally on. I thought I had gone too far because I passed another entrance to highway 14.
I finally arrived and carried my stuff inside. Harriet put together a snack for us, and Sherman insisted I drink all the milk left in the carton. I told him I’d finish it in the morning with breakfast. We made some basic plans for tomorrow, and headed to bed. After typing for awhile (still trying to catch up), I collapsed, exhausted from today.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Day 14 - 06/15/2008
I had set my alarm for 9 a.m., and woke up to shower and get ready. I went upstairs for breakfast, and ate with Todd and Kayla, the only ones out of their rooms thus far. Todd told me they had an iron, and told me where to retrieve it. I brought it up from the laundry area because there was music (they almost always have praise music playing lightly in the main rooms upstairs) and the family up there. I started ironing, but some of the rust on the iron’s face started to come off on my shirt. I iron them on the inside, and it hadn’t set in as a permanent stain, so it will come out, but figured it best just to go over to Amy’s to finish the job.
As I walked back upstairs, I met Roxie fixing up Kayla’s long dark tresses, and she said how glad she was that I had become part of their family. I was so touched by her saying that. I talked with Roxie for a little about their church, and was glad to learn they had found one that fit them so well.
I dashed over to Amy’s, and she let me in to iron in her kitchen while she finished getting ready. The placemat kept bunching, and I ended up just using the flat countertop, which worked pretty well. I finished getting ready before Amy, and so I got a little journaling done as I waited.
Amy drove us the short distance to her church, Mirabeau Chapel. Ruby and Sarah M. met us in the foyer. Since they just moved here, they’re trying out different churches. Amy had said this was a Foursquare church, but I didn’t see Hebrews 13:8 on the walls anywhere. I planned to ask for a doctrinal statement at the information table later. Then I looked through the program. On the back, I saw a staff listing, noticing five associate pastors, as well as someone on staff for “illuminate performing arts.” Yep, this was probably a Foursquare church.
As we walked in, an usher was holding raffle tickets and asked if I was a dad. I almost said yes because of all my dorm daughters, but decided that probably didn’t count with them. During the service, two associate pastors and the senior pastor did the drawing. They prefaced it with a discussion that Fathers Day typically has very low church attendance, particularly among men. On their day, many dads don’t want to spend “their day” that way. On the flip side, Mothers Day typically has the third highest attendance numbers, following Christmas and Easter. This is because for Mothers Day, moms want “the whole family to go to church together” (we all echoed this with the pastor) on “their day.”
So they drew five tickets. The first four were for recliners at the back of the sanctuary with Dad’s Root Beer and Krispy Kreme doughnuts to consume at will, and it made me glad I hadn’t gotten a ticket to have the possibility of being tempted with that junk food for over an hour straight. But the fifth ticket made me regret not getting one. It was a $50 gift card to Home Depot.
To give the sermon, the senior pastor Craig had asked his adult son Scott to co-preach with him that morning. Their message was entitled “Things I Learned About God from My Kids.” The topics were 1) Uniqueness (Gen 1:27, 1 Cor 12:18), 2) Gratitude (1 Thes 5:18), 3) Pride (Matt 3:17), and 4) Delight (Ps 37:4). It was a very neat message, and very funny to hear the family’s anecdotes. They even brought Scott’s 2-year-old son Hayden up to the front near the end of the message, and there were lots of “awwww’s” from the audience every time he did something cute.
We had been told during the service to turn in our information cards at the visitor center for a welcome gift. We stopped by there and it took awhile because the woman manning the booth had run out of the welcome mugs. She said they get a lot of visitors, but they did find some for us. They were nice-sized coffee mugs with a Hershey bar, a welcome note, and a gift certificate for a free beverage at their coffee bar (which strangely was closed).
After church, Amy and I rushed back to her place to change for Lisa’s graduation BBQ. Amy wanted to bring something, and decided to guess at a casserole with the leftover pasta from last night sans sauce, cheese bits, peas, mayo, and raspberry vinaigrette dressing. We would later discover that it didn’t work. She also brought Kool-Aid.
The BBQ was a lot of fun. The ribs and chicken were both amazingly delicious, and I was able to meet some more people in Amy’s life. I met her friends Aaron and Sarah B., as well other friends of Lisa’s: Laura, Elise, and Elise’s husband (whose name I’ve forgotten). Aaron is in the Moody program, and is from Michigan. Sarah B. used to be in the Moody program, but decided not to pursue it. She’s in the process of getting her degree from Biola, and is from Colorado. We were really able to connect through both having lived in Southern California. Laura is from Texas, and like Lisa, is doing her first few years at SCC and will transfer into the Moody Aviation program later on.
Elise and her husband are an older couple who used to live near Lisa and her family in Northern California, but now live over in Idaho. They are to her like Don & Barbara in North Fork are to me: a set of pseudo-grandparents looking out for her in her new home. I also met Placer, a huge dog (I’m not sure what breed). I’m not sure who she belonged to (Lisa and some other girls are renting this house we were celebrating at), but thankfully she wasn’t too drawn to me. Placer did really like Amy, though, who does like dogs.
Brian was at the BBQ and asked what I was doing after this. I told him that Amy had lost her To-Do list of places to take me, to which she nodded in agreement. So he invited me to hike Mt. Spokane with him and D.J. (Sarah M.’s brother) that afternoon. He gave me about ten minutes to decide, and since Amy didn’t mind, I accepted. He said the hike would only be about forty minutes up to the top, so I figured I’d still have the evening to hang out with Amy.
I left with Brian in Rosy, his 1987 Lincoln Town Car, and we went back to his house to grab a few things. Thank goodness I didn’t follow Amy’s advice and wear sandals to the BBQ. I borrowed a sweater from Brian because there was snow expected at the top. We then headed over to rendezvous with D.J. He’s a cool guy, and as I got to know him, I was really glad to have him on the hike. They are both finishing their first year at Moody. It was a long drive to the base of the hiking trail. We passed a circle intersection, and Brian told D.J. and me that he held the record of making 25 consecutive circles at that intersection, and put D.J. in charge of tracking if any of the new starts next fall tried to beat it. The drive up gave me a chance to ask both the guys about their particular calling to be missionary pilots. For both of them it came later, as Brian had spent a couple years at San Jose State, and D.J. already had his bachelor’s degree from a school in New York. I love hearing the stories of the people in this program. I think it can be harder for those who have already put in some time at school to get a calling from God to essentially start over. I’ve been impressed at the humility the older guys display, being back in school with guys just graduating high school.
We entered Mt. Spokane State Park, and parked at the base of the trail. We grabbed Gatorade, cameras, sweaters, and started up. Brian also brought his pistol, which apparently he always carries (he has a license to carry a concealed weapon in the state of Washington). I’m learning that Spokane is a very unsafe area with a high degree of crime, and that several guys even in the program are always packing.
We initially had two options for out hike: the road or the trail. We opted for the trail to start. None of us were expecting this, but there was still a lot of snow (sometimes a couple feet deep) on the ground even at the base of the trail. I learned that snow is difficult to hike in. I was quickly out of breath, but don’t think I slowed them down too much. I think I needed to stop for a minute or two only twice the whole hike, and other than that kept up pretty well with them. Brian had asked on the way up if I walk fast. I almost laughed as I responded in the affirmative, thinking of how many people complain that they can’t keep up with my normal stride. I was glad I hadn’t told that detail to him because it probably would have encouraged him to faster still.
I would pause and take pictures periodically, and Brian would authoritatively warn me that I was wasting my pictures as the top was that much better. I was skeptical and kept snapping away. I’ve been on a few mountaintops, and I don’t think the view could be that spectacular not to take pictures of the beauty on the way up.
D.J. was stopping along the way to look for new small trees to take back down the mountain and plant. Craig had talked about doing the same thing, and so I ended up joining D.J. in grabbing a few for Craig. What surprised me was the method. D.J. was uprooting them, claiming that they could just be replanted upon getting back down. I was skeptical, but I certainly had no desire to dig up and carry dirt down with me, so I didn’t argue.
We alternated between the three ways of ascending this mountain: following the paved road (slowest option), following the clear foot trail, and just going straight up the side (not a climb as much as a STEEP hike). Each afforded us some new perspective on the whole experience. We abandoned the trail and road near the top and started going straight up, climbing up hills and over rocks.
Getting to the top and looking around offered an unbelievable view. There were marked poles where metal tubes were attached, guiding the viewer to lakes and other areas visible to the naked eye. But just walking around offered witness to God’s majestic creation. I took a lot of photos, and Brian got out his fancy camera to take several pictures. He wanted some pictures with D.J., and gave me a quick tutorial on his camera, describing the shots he wanted. I like Brian because not only is he particular, but also decisive. We took some pictures of the three of us after the short photo shoot.
There were two antenna towers at the top, which helped guide us after we left the trail. Brian wanted us to climb one of them. D.J. decided not to, but I figured that I really don’t do enough stupid things, and decided to go for it. I have a fear of falling that kicks in intermittently, but seeing how well anchored the antenna tower was helped erase the possibility that the tower might collapse. D.J. photographed us as we climbed. I was still experiencing trepidations, so I climbed cautiously. Brian, however, scurried up to the top and started looking around. He yelled down that he saw a sign about disconnecting some wire before removing a faceplate to avoid radiation. He didn’t see anything to disconnect, and thankfully he had no desire to encounter radiation (much less expose us as well), so he started climbing down.
I was still climbing at that point, very ambiguous about when to stop and go back down. I started singing “‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus” to keep me going. I finally made it to the top, and climbed back down with a great sense of satisfaction.
On our way back down, as D.J. and I were pulling up trees, Brian stumbled upon something lying on the ground. It looked like the top two feet of a walking cane. It turned out that the plastic handle pulled out from the metal tube to reveal an encased knife, very much like a saw blade. We had no idea how it had been left behind since it seemed like a personal weapon rather than a forestry tool.
There were mosquitoes and biting flies (apparently called “face flies,” we would later learn), and Brian was getting bitten without mercy. D.J. and I were pretty much untouched. Mosquitoes don’t seem to like my blood (thank goodness!) because I always seem fine whenever people complain about them. I did get one bite, though. Those face flies were actually leaving open wounds and causing blood to trickle down Brian’s legs at a few bite marks. He wasn’t happy about those.
When we arrived back at Brian’s car, there was a note held in position by the windshield wiper. At first Brian thought it was a parking ticket, but then saw that it was a personal note. Some friends of theirs from the Moody program had also been hiking and recognized Brian’s car when they got back down themselves. They invited us over for some pizza at their nearby cabin. We stopped and were very grateful for the sustenance (pizza, veggies and potato salad). I met Dan and his girlfriend Brooke, and both of their sets of parents.
It was a long drive back, and my cell phone had died. We used Brian’s phone to call Amy and asked her to pick me up at Brian’s house. We talked more about California, my road trip, Brian’s upcoming summer travels, and several other things. There was something that prompted a high-five, and Brian commented on how soft my hands were. I realized that was the first time he had touched my hands, since he hugs everyone, and we had only hugged hello and good-bye, never shaking hands.
We returned to the house to find Amy, Ruby, Sarah B. and Sarah M. sitting at the top of the driveway near the garage, having a tea party. I’m not sure if there was even really tea in the teapot. We waited for Brian to burn me a CD of his pictures.
As we left the house, the girls started giggling and running to the car. They hurried me through putting my stuff away and getting in myself, and Amy drove off screeching her tires through several turns and laughter exploded in the car. It took awhile to get it out of them because they were in hysterics, but I finally learned they had stolen all the toilet paper from the house. As funny as the act itself was in the moment, I felt terrible for the guys. They were about to have a potentially difficult house meeting, and that problem certainly wasn’t going to help the tensions there.
We went back to Amy’s apartment. The girls had just started watching P.S. I Love You before they came over to pick me up. I wanted to stay and watch the movie with them, but I needed to get home and to bed so that I could be rested for the road tomorrow. So I just set up my computer to unload my pictures.
I finished transferring my pictures and typing out an outline for today, and then shut down my computer. I waved good-bye to the girls, not wanting to interrupt the movie. Amy followed me out to walk me to my car and say good-bye. I am so glad I came to see her and her life here. I think her move was a really good one for her, and I can see how God has blessed her. As much as I miss having her nearby, I can see that this is where she needs to be.
As I walked back upstairs, I met Roxie fixing up Kayla’s long dark tresses, and she said how glad she was that I had become part of their family. I was so touched by her saying that. I talked with Roxie for a little about their church, and was glad to learn they had found one that fit them so well.
I dashed over to Amy’s, and she let me in to iron in her kitchen while she finished getting ready. The placemat kept bunching, and I ended up just using the flat countertop, which worked pretty well. I finished getting ready before Amy, and so I got a little journaling done as I waited.
Amy drove us the short distance to her church, Mirabeau Chapel. Ruby and Sarah M. met us in the foyer. Since they just moved here, they’re trying out different churches. Amy had said this was a Foursquare church, but I didn’t see Hebrews 13:8 on the walls anywhere. I planned to ask for a doctrinal statement at the information table later. Then I looked through the program. On the back, I saw a staff listing, noticing five associate pastors, as well as someone on staff for “illuminate performing arts.” Yep, this was probably a Foursquare church.
As we walked in, an usher was holding raffle tickets and asked if I was a dad. I almost said yes because of all my dorm daughters, but decided that probably didn’t count with them. During the service, two associate pastors and the senior pastor did the drawing. They prefaced it with a discussion that Fathers Day typically has very low church attendance, particularly among men. On their day, many dads don’t want to spend “their day” that way. On the flip side, Mothers Day typically has the third highest attendance numbers, following Christmas and Easter. This is because for Mothers Day, moms want “the whole family to go to church together” (we all echoed this with the pastor) on “their day.”
So they drew five tickets. The first four were for recliners at the back of the sanctuary with Dad’s Root Beer and Krispy Kreme doughnuts to consume at will, and it made me glad I hadn’t gotten a ticket to have the possibility of being tempted with that junk food for over an hour straight. But the fifth ticket made me regret not getting one. It was a $50 gift card to Home Depot.
To give the sermon, the senior pastor Craig had asked his adult son Scott to co-preach with him that morning. Their message was entitled “Things I Learned About God from My Kids.” The topics were 1) Uniqueness (Gen 1:27, 1 Cor 12:18), 2) Gratitude (1 Thes 5:18), 3) Pride (Matt 3:17), and 4) Delight (Ps 37:4). It was a very neat message, and very funny to hear the family’s anecdotes. They even brought Scott’s 2-year-old son Hayden up to the front near the end of the message, and there were lots of “awwww’s” from the audience every time he did something cute.
We had been told during the service to turn in our information cards at the visitor center for a welcome gift. We stopped by there and it took awhile because the woman manning the booth had run out of the welcome mugs. She said they get a lot of visitors, but they did find some for us. They were nice-sized coffee mugs with a Hershey bar, a welcome note, and a gift certificate for a free beverage at their coffee bar (which strangely was closed).
After church, Amy and I rushed back to her place to change for Lisa’s graduation BBQ. Amy wanted to bring something, and decided to guess at a casserole with the leftover pasta from last night sans sauce, cheese bits, peas, mayo, and raspberry vinaigrette dressing. We would later discover that it didn’t work. She also brought Kool-Aid.
The BBQ was a lot of fun. The ribs and chicken were both amazingly delicious, and I was able to meet some more people in Amy’s life. I met her friends Aaron and Sarah B., as well other friends of Lisa’s: Laura, Elise, and Elise’s husband (whose name I’ve forgotten). Aaron is in the Moody program, and is from Michigan. Sarah B. used to be in the Moody program, but decided not to pursue it. She’s in the process of getting her degree from Biola, and is from Colorado. We were really able to connect through both having lived in Southern California. Laura is from Texas, and like Lisa, is doing her first few years at SCC and will transfer into the Moody Aviation program later on.
Elise and her husband are an older couple who used to live near Lisa and her family in Northern California, but now live over in Idaho. They are to her like Don & Barbara in North Fork are to me: a set of pseudo-grandparents looking out for her in her new home. I also met Placer, a huge dog (I’m not sure what breed). I’m not sure who she belonged to (Lisa and some other girls are renting this house we were celebrating at), but thankfully she wasn’t too drawn to me. Placer did really like Amy, though, who does like dogs.
Brian was at the BBQ and asked what I was doing after this. I told him that Amy had lost her To-Do list of places to take me, to which she nodded in agreement. So he invited me to hike Mt. Spokane with him and D.J. (Sarah M.’s brother) that afternoon. He gave me about ten minutes to decide, and since Amy didn’t mind, I accepted. He said the hike would only be about forty minutes up to the top, so I figured I’d still have the evening to hang out with Amy.
I left with Brian in Rosy, his 1987 Lincoln Town Car, and we went back to his house to grab a few things. Thank goodness I didn’t follow Amy’s advice and wear sandals to the BBQ. I borrowed a sweater from Brian because there was snow expected at the top. We then headed over to rendezvous with D.J. He’s a cool guy, and as I got to know him, I was really glad to have him on the hike. They are both finishing their first year at Moody. It was a long drive to the base of the hiking trail. We passed a circle intersection, and Brian told D.J. and me that he held the record of making 25 consecutive circles at that intersection, and put D.J. in charge of tracking if any of the new starts next fall tried to beat it. The drive up gave me a chance to ask both the guys about their particular calling to be missionary pilots. For both of them it came later, as Brian had spent a couple years at San Jose State, and D.J. already had his bachelor’s degree from a school in New York. I love hearing the stories of the people in this program. I think it can be harder for those who have already put in some time at school to get a calling from God to essentially start over. I’ve been impressed at the humility the older guys display, being back in school with guys just graduating high school.
We entered Mt. Spokane State Park, and parked at the base of the trail. We grabbed Gatorade, cameras, sweaters, and started up. Brian also brought his pistol, which apparently he always carries (he has a license to carry a concealed weapon in the state of Washington). I’m learning that Spokane is a very unsafe area with a high degree of crime, and that several guys even in the program are always packing.
We initially had two options for out hike: the road or the trail. We opted for the trail to start. None of us were expecting this, but there was still a lot of snow (sometimes a couple feet deep) on the ground even at the base of the trail. I learned that snow is difficult to hike in. I was quickly out of breath, but don’t think I slowed them down too much. I think I needed to stop for a minute or two only twice the whole hike, and other than that kept up pretty well with them. Brian had asked on the way up if I walk fast. I almost laughed as I responded in the affirmative, thinking of how many people complain that they can’t keep up with my normal stride. I was glad I hadn’t told that detail to him because it probably would have encouraged him to faster still.
I would pause and take pictures periodically, and Brian would authoritatively warn me that I was wasting my pictures as the top was that much better. I was skeptical and kept snapping away. I’ve been on a few mountaintops, and I don’t think the view could be that spectacular not to take pictures of the beauty on the way up.
D.J. was stopping along the way to look for new small trees to take back down the mountain and plant. Craig had talked about doing the same thing, and so I ended up joining D.J. in grabbing a few for Craig. What surprised me was the method. D.J. was uprooting them, claiming that they could just be replanted upon getting back down. I was skeptical, but I certainly had no desire to dig up and carry dirt down with me, so I didn’t argue.
We alternated between the three ways of ascending this mountain: following the paved road (slowest option), following the clear foot trail, and just going straight up the side (not a climb as much as a STEEP hike). Each afforded us some new perspective on the whole experience. We abandoned the trail and road near the top and started going straight up, climbing up hills and over rocks.
Getting to the top and looking around offered an unbelievable view. There were marked poles where metal tubes were attached, guiding the viewer to lakes and other areas visible to the naked eye. But just walking around offered witness to God’s majestic creation. I took a lot of photos, and Brian got out his fancy camera to take several pictures. He wanted some pictures with D.J., and gave me a quick tutorial on his camera, describing the shots he wanted. I like Brian because not only is he particular, but also decisive. We took some pictures of the three of us after the short photo shoot.
There were two antenna towers at the top, which helped guide us after we left the trail. Brian wanted us to climb one of them. D.J. decided not to, but I figured that I really don’t do enough stupid things, and decided to go for it. I have a fear of falling that kicks in intermittently, but seeing how well anchored the antenna tower was helped erase the possibility that the tower might collapse. D.J. photographed us as we climbed. I was still experiencing trepidations, so I climbed cautiously. Brian, however, scurried up to the top and started looking around. He yelled down that he saw a sign about disconnecting some wire before removing a faceplate to avoid radiation. He didn’t see anything to disconnect, and thankfully he had no desire to encounter radiation (much less expose us as well), so he started climbing down.
I was still climbing at that point, very ambiguous about when to stop and go back down. I started singing “‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus” to keep me going. I finally made it to the top, and climbed back down with a great sense of satisfaction.
On our way back down, as D.J. and I were pulling up trees, Brian stumbled upon something lying on the ground. It looked like the top two feet of a walking cane. It turned out that the plastic handle pulled out from the metal tube to reveal an encased knife, very much like a saw blade. We had no idea how it had been left behind since it seemed like a personal weapon rather than a forestry tool.
There were mosquitoes and biting flies (apparently called “face flies,” we would later learn), and Brian was getting bitten without mercy. D.J. and I were pretty much untouched. Mosquitoes don’t seem to like my blood (thank goodness!) because I always seem fine whenever people complain about them. I did get one bite, though. Those face flies were actually leaving open wounds and causing blood to trickle down Brian’s legs at a few bite marks. He wasn’t happy about those.
When we arrived back at Brian’s car, there was a note held in position by the windshield wiper. At first Brian thought it was a parking ticket, but then saw that it was a personal note. Some friends of theirs from the Moody program had also been hiking and recognized Brian’s car when they got back down themselves. They invited us over for some pizza at their nearby cabin. We stopped and were very grateful for the sustenance (pizza, veggies and potato salad). I met Dan and his girlfriend Brooke, and both of their sets of parents.
It was a long drive back, and my cell phone had died. We used Brian’s phone to call Amy and asked her to pick me up at Brian’s house. We talked more about California, my road trip, Brian’s upcoming summer travels, and several other things. There was something that prompted a high-five, and Brian commented on how soft my hands were. I realized that was the first time he had touched my hands, since he hugs everyone, and we had only hugged hello and good-bye, never shaking hands.
We returned to the house to find Amy, Ruby, Sarah B. and Sarah M. sitting at the top of the driveway near the garage, having a tea party. I’m not sure if there was even really tea in the teapot. We waited for Brian to burn me a CD of his pictures.
As we left the house, the girls started giggling and running to the car. They hurried me through putting my stuff away and getting in myself, and Amy drove off screeching her tires through several turns and laughter exploded in the car. It took awhile to get it out of them because they were in hysterics, but I finally learned they had stolen all the toilet paper from the house. As funny as the act itself was in the moment, I felt terrible for the guys. They were about to have a potentially difficult house meeting, and that problem certainly wasn’t going to help the tensions there.
We went back to Amy’s apartment. The girls had just started watching P.S. I Love You before they came over to pick me up. I wanted to stay and watch the movie with them, but I needed to get home and to bed so that I could be rested for the road tomorrow. So I just set up my computer to unload my pictures.
I finished transferring my pictures and typing out an outline for today, and then shut down my computer. I waved good-bye to the girls, not wanting to interrupt the movie. Amy followed me out to walk me to my car and say good-bye. I am so glad I came to see her and her life here. I think her move was a really good one for her, and I can see how God has blessed her. As much as I miss having her nearby, I can see that this is where she needs to be.
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