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ABOUT zwarg.blog CATEGORIES MAIN ARCHIVES 1999(14) [+] 2000(3) [+] 2001(4) [+] 2002(18) [+] 2003(159) [+] 2004(108) [+] 2005(126) [+]United States vs. Iraq
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Thursday, June 30 2005
In The Maine Twilight Millions of lightning bugs float around the pasture in front of the house, illuminating tiny yellow-green flashes and arcs. The mild weather tonight invites us to stand on the stone wall that looks into the woods, and watch the myriad of ways the bioluminescent insects fly. It looks like fairy dust or magic glowing fields of some fantasy. But no, it's just Maine. Cumberland, Land of Fishers We roll into the peaceful homestead in Cumberland, return Victor the Corrola, and relax with English Muffin pizzas and a nap. [ google map ] entering new england.. the maine turnpike will lead us again to peace and family. [ google map ] almost full circle now.. we leave this small town on the hudson for maine. [ google map ] Wednesday, June 29 2005Oral History We are listening to stories of our families, recorded while staying with parents and grandparent Giant Windmills They stand on top of the ridge to the south of the freeway, tall and bleach white. [ google map ] Strike! We are stopped in front of a rural factory, where the union and police block the highway. [ google map ] Ohio 32 We leave Cincinnati via the Applachian Highway. [ google map ] Monday, June 27 2005St. Louis Over the MS river, and past The Arch as the late afternoon heat pushes 100. [ google map ] Jesus Sells We park in front of a Christian Supply store in Lawrence, KS, amid 90s heat. [ google map ] Sunday, June 26 2005One Dark Dam We camp late, after our first choice was snubbed by 'Stampede' [ google map ] Saturday, June 25 2005Super Chicken A stop at the Brookville Hotel for some famous fried chicken. [ google map ] Nicodemus In the middle of Kansas is the only surviving African American settlement. [ google map ] Thrice Recovered Codell, Kansas. Need I say more? (see my resignation letter) [ google map ] Empty Tanks An open field near the road houses a collection of odd, empty tanks. [ google map ] The Place Cars Go To Die We come upon rolling fields of dead automobiles. [ google map ] A Line In The Sand We exit Colorado and head into flatland. [ google map ] Friday, June 24 2005Grand Luncheon A quick stop for grub in Grand Junction, and we're off again. [ google map ] Them Blasted Rocks Huge stone cliffs surround the highway as it winds through the Utah landscape. [ google map ] Massive Boulders Massive boulders and broken stone shelfs litter the landscape at the San Rafael Swell. [ google map ] Smokey Dawn A smokey haze reddens the sun. [ google map ] Krazy Kamping We stop for 6 hours of sleep, arriving after dark and leaving before daylight. [ google map ] Wrinkled Wrocks We photograph rocks that look like squishy folds of flesh. [ google map ] Sonora Pass We climb to over 9,599 ft amid rushing snowmelt and warm sunshine. [ google map ] New Strategy We rent a one-way to Portland, ME and leave Lady Jane in the care of Buck's Body Shop. 'The Deer Incident' A small (yet well aimed) doe breaks Lady Jane's grill and more. [ google map ] Wednesday, June 22 2005S.F. Out We leave the city by the bay on a hot, hazy afternoon. [ google map ] Monday, June 20 2005San Francisco Bay We board the bridge and approach San Francisco on an unusually bright June afternoon. Mary puts in an Eric Clapton song about San Francisco, and we bounce across the bridge into the pretty city. [ google map ] Julien Ranch We stay at Julien Ranch, and enjoy some good company, and some good home-cooked dinner. [ google map ] Shasta Loom Mt. Shasta looms as we come down the hill from Oregon. [ google map ] Sunday, June 19 2005Goodbye Oregon Coast We turn inland after the Sea Lion Caves, and follow a glassy river. [ google map ] Yurts? I had my first yurt sighting last night in the coastal woods of Oregon. [ google map ] Hello Again Toes, you remember Pacific Ocean. Pacific, you remember toes. [ google map ] Saturday, June 18 2005Mary's OTHER Portland.. She turns to me and says "Oh, David... It's PRETTY. I like it." [ google map ] oregon state line.. mt. hood looms to the east as we cross the columbia river on a drawbridge. [ google map ] south of olympia.... the thick mouth of a nuclear reactor punctuates the green horizon. [ google map ] Lunch @ Pike Place Lunch near the waterfront and in the sun in Seattle proves to be worth the traffic. [ google map ] Inefficient Americans Waiting to return into the states, our options are: 50 or 60 min delay. [ google map ] Posh We splurged on a swanky hotel & fine dining in Vancouver. [ google map ] Wenatchee We turn away from the mighty Columbia River, and begin crossing the Cascades. [ google map ] Thursday, June 16 2005coffee shop in spokane, washington.. sign on the wall read "friends don't let friends drink starbucks" [ google map ] Beauty Creek Camping in the mountains underneath a canopy of silent trees. [ google map ] Idaho State Line Little mining towns and trees, trees, trees! [ google map ] Wednesday, June 15 2005Bozeman Knows A stop in Bozeman, MT means more coffee and more miles. [ google map ] Odd Dog An off dog wanders out of a shop, greets us, and wanders off. Welcome to Montana. [ google map ] Jenny Lake We tromp around the alpine lakes at the foot of Grand Teton. [ google map ] Burial An unlucky sparrow net its untimely demise on this lonely road. [ google map ] Now Middle Where Our first friendly visit with the Highway Patrol. [ google map ] Buckboard Xing The barren high desert chills us in Flaming Gorge. [ google map ] Ashley Nat'l Forest Groves of aspen trees hide innumerable deer and antelope. [ google map ] Vernal, Utah Pink dinosaurs and curious children welcome us. [ google map ] Spine Of The World Huge planes of rock angle out of the ground, like vertebrae against skin. [ google map ] Monday, June 13 2005Bair Ranch Lunch on a lawn, watching dogs run away with small children in tow. [ google map ] Friday, June 10 2005Wait, More Trains? Waiting for one train, passed by a freight train. As it slows and brakes, a thunder rockets its length. Brakes And Loathing The brakes have been fixed, along with the axle. The $642.85 question now is, "who's payin'?" Thursday, June 09 2005Home Again We arrived back to the homestead, and unpacked the truck for repairs tomorrow. Gardening, destroying sprinklers, furniture arrangement, and anger management. All in all, a good day at home. [ google map ] Roadside Lunch We stop and get some snacks near the Nebraska/Colorado border. Nice view. [ google map ] Wednesday, June 08 2005Trains Trains Trains A series of trains queue up on the Nebraska plains. [ google map ] Crossing A rickety bridge reaches over the Missouri River, as we flee thunderstorm warnings. [ google map ] viking lake state park.. we fell asleep to crickets and river frogs, and woke to birdsong. [ google map ] Tuesday, June 07 2005When Nature Attacks A tree makes its own skylight in the corrugated metal roof of an old barn in southern iowa [ google map ] sunshine oversize out of date signs line u.s. 34 in iowa. [ google map ] backroads picnic..
[ google map ] Illinois River Road Aiming for a scenic meander down the Illinois River, we sadly miss a nice picnic spot. [ google map ] "The Windy City" Chicago and friends welcome us to their turf. Formula for pleasure = wine bar + long time friend. [ google map ] Monday, June 06 2005interstates are boring.. we decide to follow a local route through michigan. [ google map ] ann arbor at last. after eleven hours on the road, a university town apartment is like heaven. hooray for generous friends! Beneath a swirling cloud of DOOM! A mightily ominous storm comes at us from the west. It's the deluxe model. [ google map ] Back In The USA Homeland security my butt. Whichever joker let us into the country is terribly misguided. [ google map ] along the way.... on a small farm in upstate new york, a wide jet of water carves a moving arc across the sky. [ google map ] Sunday, June 05 2005beaverkill thick green hills and rolling roads led us to a hideaway in the catskills for dinner and family. [ google map ] Friday, June 03 2005Fort William A picnic by a pretty lighthouse and some awesome fried chicken. [ google map ] Flaming Ball Of Death One does not typically expect an axle to be sawn into in the following manner:
 This has been the source of all frustration. The shop in Maine refuses to repair the brakes because of the defect in the axle, and the shop in San Francisco says, "Just replace the axle." Oh, okay. I'll just use the extra axle I keep laying around for that. And how do you miss this? Ridiculous. Chillin' In Maine Well, I can't say this adventure hasn't been exciting. When I arrived in Maine, I thought I would just have the brakes checked out and repaired, since they were covered by a service warranty from 11 and 3 months ago (front and rear, respectively). Turns out that the last time I had the rear brakes worked on, somehow the axle was damaged. This has turned into a giant finger-pointing fiasco, with the net result being: I need to fix the axle before driving to California. This is quite annoying, but I am trying to not let it ruin my trip. The tricky part is convincing your girlfriend that she will not be traveling across the country in a flaming ball of death. Other than that, I've welcomed the extended stay in Maine. We went out to Cliff Island (google map), and stayed there a night. Last night was an excellent dinner, some fun bluegrass, and NOT thinking about how upset I am about the crappy situation regarding my truck. What is today? Who knows. I would like to get the truck back, and maybe even pack it up. May be leaving today, may not. I just know we need to get to Grand Lake, Colorado by the 10th of June. Hm. Do I? I suppose I should check. Sometime around there. And I've got seven days. Well, that seems doable. |
