Just an update

Taryn and I are heading to Utah today, and we will not have internet again until we arrive in L.A. Pictures and stories to come!

Tip #2 Ugly Monkey Says Never Let Your Gas Tank Get Below 1/4 of a Tank

We made it to Boulder!

Taryn and I are currently blogging away at a coffee shop in a Colorado collegetown with a spectacular view of the Rocky Mountains. I'm sipping my mocha latte and pretending that I slept for more than two hours last night. 

We left on schedule Sunday morning at 9:15 AM. We drove. And drove. And drove. New York.

 Pennsylvania. Ohio. Indiana. Illinois. Iowa. Talking, laughing, and singing songs, we kept ourselves entertained. We found endless amusement in

 taking pictures of "Ugly Monkey," a specially knit creature randomly sent to me from Bubbie in Hawaii. He graces pictures at the entrance to each state, celebrated at our "only 1,000 miles left" 

party, and even took a turn driving the car.

Stopping only for gas, we drove until about 2:30 AM, central time, so 3:30 AM Eastern time. A timely bout of insomnia allowed me to thoroughly enjoy humming along to Guster and Counting Crows while traversing the plains until the wee hours. We didn't stop until a deer stopped to admire my headlights a little too closely...daring us to see ju

st how effective Roxanne's (the Forrester) brakes and handling were. They, in addition to the mushroom clouding f-bombs and praise of the savior screeching from my throat, proved themselves able to avoid a very very messy start to our trip.  

We stopped short of Nebraska at a rest stop to sleep. Curled up in the front seats of Roxie, we slept until 5 AM. And then, firing up our engines, we hit the road again. I-80 Westbound stretched out like the red carpet before us. With a "night's" sleep, we were able to continue happy and safely onward. 

As I was advised by my Papa Neil, I never let the gas run below 1/4 of a tank. Out there in the plains, you never know just how far the next station may be. We exited when we saw a BP gas station sign just when we dipped below 1/4. 

Though we followed our tip cautiously, it doesn't mean that the precaution reached the

 midwest. It was my turn to pay for gas, so I popped the cap, swiped my card and grabbed the regular. But the gas never came. I squeezed, I rearranged, I even re-swiped. Still nothing. I figured I would inquire inside the store. To my surprise, the woman at the counter just chuckled and said, "Oh, well it looks like we've run out." Ran out? What gas station runs out of gas? Who do you call for that problem? AAA? 

Fortunately, another station was just down the road, and thankfully, we followed our helpful tip from Papa. We were able to scoot to the next station, fill up, and continue on our way. 

Taryn drove the long but final leg of the trip, brining us to our destination in Boulder. We

 laughed and screamed like kids in a candy store when we saw the Mountains, admiring their grandeur and reveling in the moment. With a cardboard cutout stating "Enjoy Life" taped to the dash, we completed our 30 hour journey in good spirits. 

And here we are, sleep deprived and exhausted, slurping the dregs of our coffee, searching for the energy to enjoy this new and exciting town. I think with a caffeine, we'll have a brand new set of adventures to blog tomorrow. 

We will be in Boulder and Denver through the day tomorrow (Tuesday). On Wednesday we head out for the Te-aH campground in Utah. Stay tuned.

Tip #1: Always have a roll of toilet paper.

The solo leg of my journey westward is complete! I drove on Friday from Windsor to Saratoga Springs for a feast and a few goodbyes. I had a fabulous last evening with Eric before my trip, and I’ve officially fallen for the city. We spent the evening riding bikes into town, bickering during our weekly scrabble date (which I won. “Cozy” on a triple word score, 54 points). Early Saturday, Eric departed for The City, and I started on my trip to Ithaca.

It may be karma, or just the fate of one that finds humor in everything, but the gods of irony were snickering from their stakeouts this weekend. As most of you know, I have been anxiously anticipating the best hiking of my life...Colorado, Utah, California. Anyways, it was midnight, and the last call at the bar sent us out into the night on Beakman street. Eric and I were strolling along, enjoying each other’s loving company. Courtesy of the Welsh Family, we had shared a bottle of Merlot earlier in the night, and we were no doubt still “enjoying” it. And then…the trip. But not only did I trip, oh no. I busted myself. I cracked my toenail, I bruised and I bled. I plan to hike a ridge with a 1,500 foot drop on either side, but somehow I can't figure out how to walk on a sidewalk. 

In reality, it wasn’t as bad as it seemed, but again, the Merlot. I patched myself up and carried on. (Ahem, rather, Eric patched me up, I pouted).

I arrived in Ithaca on schedule at noon today to empty my remaining belongings out of my house. As always, in the fashion of my mother, I had to pee. So bad. I was actually doing the pee pee dance when I grappled with the deadbolt and stumbled into my house. Evidently,

 renovation was taking place. I jumped over the piles of wood, nails, tiles and made my way to the bathroom. As I turned the corner expecting nothing other than the porcelan throne and sweet sweet relief, there stood…nothing. The toilet was gone. Of course. How silly of me to assume that I would have a toilet until the end of my lease. Fortunatley, Ithaca breeds a strange but generous bunch, and my neighbor was entirely wiling to let me TC of some B at his apartment!

And what a day it has been. Taryn and I finished packing the car, and I’m currently at Wegmans savoring the aromas of the chinease buffet and sipping my last frothy grocery treat. For those of you who have no Wegmans, consider yourself blessed because then you will never know the agony of leaving it behind. Yes, a grocery store. Yes. It’s that good. 

More fun and disaster to come, stay tuned!

Departure

Taryn and I are set to depart on July 26th!!