Worldcon IV

Location: Anaheim
Miles: 3996

On Saturday, Don was on two panels. He moderated "Is SF Like a Shark: Does the field need to keep moving or die?" which actually engendered a really good discussion. And he was a participant on "Advances in Computer Science," which was also fascinating, if it did stray a little off topic.

Since Denver won the 2008 Worldcon, now there was high finance to conduct. Worldcon memberships come in two types: Supporting, which gets you all the publications, the right to vote on the Hugos and site selection, and good will from the convention; and Attending, which gets you all of the above plus the right to actually attend the convention. Although exact amounts differ, Supporting memberships usually start out fairly cheap and stay at the same rate up until the time of the con. Attending memberships, OTOH, start out fairly expensive, and increase in steps as the con approaches.

For example, Supporting memberships for this Worldcon were $40. Attending memberships started at something likke $80 three years ago, and were $200 at the door. (In between, Worldcon switched from a three-year lead time to a two-year lead time.)

But there are a few wrinkles. You have to pay a voting fee in order to vote in site selection. This time around, the fee was $40. The voting fee automatically gets you a Supporting membership to the winner's Worldcon. Thomas and I both paid our voting fees, so we had supporting memberships in Denvention (the 2008 Worldcon in Denver).

Attending rates usually go up soon after the current Worldcon is over. If you want to go to Worldcon in two years, it will never be cheaper than it is on the day after Site Selection. Fans flock to pay for attending memberships.

An attending membership for Denvention is (at the moment) $130. However, since Thomas and I voted, our $40 voting fee gets credited -- so we paid $80 each to convert from Supporting to Attending. (yes, we're going to Denver. And yes, we'll very probably drive. Another trip!)

But wait, it gets more complicated (more complicated?) In the years before Site Selection, you can become a Pre-Supporter of a particular bid...and that gets you money off your attending membership. (But you have to back the right horse. People who pre-supported Chicago or Columbus this time got nothing beyond the Supporting membership to which their voting fee entitled them...if they voted.)

To make things even more baroque, there are various levels of pre-support. For example, a simple pre-supporting membership might cost $20 or $25. (Many bids also offer a "pre-opposing" membership for a few dollars more, maybe $30.) In Denver's case, you could also become a Friend of the Bid for $100. Naturally, all these different levels are subtracted from the conversion rate. In the best-case scenario, if you were a Friend of Denver and you voted in Site Selection, then you got your Attending membership automatically, without any further conversion fee.

Everybody got that?

Basically, it's a self-perpetuating system that rewards those who attend Worldcons, vote in Site Selection, and convert their memberships immediately to Attending. Which is just what Thomas and I do.

One further word about Worldcon memberships. With Attending memberships starting at $130 and quickly rising, how are fans to afford a membership, especially if they miss the on-site conversion process? For some fans, it's not that easy to come up with $130, $150, or $180 in a lump sum.

Many years ago, Don wrote to the then-current Worldcon committee and suggested that they adopt an "installment plan" option that would allow fans to lock in the current rate, but pay over time, i.e. once a month or so. Perhaps other people suggested the same idea -- in any case, that Worldcon adopted the notion, and it's since become standard. So a young fan can start paying now, lock in the $130 rate, and pay $10 a month without worrying that the rate will rise on them.

Enough of membership conversion. We spent Saturday evening doing the party circuit, starting out at the GLBT party, which was held in a room that faced Disneyland, so everyone could see the fireworks. Several locals, who have been threre often enough to know the sequence and program, were pretty scary as they narrated for us.

Today (Sunday) was the last day of the con -- always a bittersweet day, what with half the people checking out and departing, goodbyes being said, and the con slowly dissolving back into the mundane world. Don had one more panel, on Global Warming; he was worried about it because one of the panelists was a loud, famous author who is not known for his ability to get along with others. And Don was moderating, so he faced the very real possibility of having to shut the Famous Author up so others could get a word in edgewise.

Well, for whatever reason, the other two scheduled panelists did not show up -- so it was Don and Mr. Famous. Don took the better part of valor: "Hey, I'm the moderator, so I wasn't planning to say much, just ask questions to keep the discussion going, and I know that Mr. Famous doesn't even need that -- so with everyone's permission, I'm going to sit back and let this be the Mr. Famous Show." It worked well -- Mr. Famous was happy, the audience was largely happy (except a few whom, I fear, had come to see people argue with Mr. Famous...but they walked out early). Now, Don doesn't care for Mr. Famous's politics, and thinks he formed his opinions on Global Warming in 1975 and has not changed them since...but it turned out to be a very successful panel.

After that, we both skipped Closing Ceremonies (after you've seen Worldcon Closing Ceremonies a few times, there's really no need to see them again). Thomas wanted to go over to Disneyland (which is literally across the street) because they have some exclusive Star Wars figures and such, sold in the gift shop at the Star Tours ride and nowhere else. We talked to a nice (but, alas, clueless) lady at the Disney Desk in the hotel (she works for Disney): she told us that there was a special "Shopping Pass" that would allow one to enter the park for exactly one hour, for free. She also assured us that Worldcon members would get a 50% discount at Disney. So we trudged over, getting there about 5:15, and talked to the nice man at the ticket booth.

Yes, there is a free Shopping Pass -- but only until 4pm each day. And maybe Worldcon members did get some kind of discount, but tickets had to be purchased through the convention, not at the ticket window. (You'd think the nice lady at the Disney Desk would have mentioned these facts to us, but no.) Since it was ater 5 pm, though, the usual day ticket was discounted from $80 to $60.

Thomas didn't want to spend that much just to run in and buy some toys, but Don insisted. No point in coming this far and then not getting things. Besides, if he bought the same stuff on eBay, he would easily pay more than $60 extra. So out came the Visa card, and Thomas went into Disneyland.

Sequel: he did get some of the stuff he wanted, but the figures he'd particularly set out to find were not available...either not in stock, or not yet released, no one in the gift shop seemed to know.

Thomas also observed that just about everything in Disneyland is now an advertisement for something or other: AT&T, Pepsi, etc. Probably parts of the far-flung Disney corporate empire.

We remember Disneyland as being a fun place, with lots of helpful people around, people who could actually give correct information and find out the answers to questons (hell, in most cases they would anticipate the questions). A place where, sure, you knew you were under the watchful eye of the Mouse, and Disney products were everywhere...but otherwise, it was noncommercial. A place where a ride that was under construction would be concealed (Thomas took pictures today of one such ride showing bare girders and construction equipment), and where the magic was always in force.

Sigh. How far the mighty have fallen....

Enough fo that. Here are some pictures.


(above) This helpful sign was outside the men's room in the Convention Center.


(above) For years, we have maintained that the only proper way to experience Worldcon is with a time machine, looping back several times to catch all the stuff you missed. Here's Thomas at the wheel of Doc Brown's DeLorean from the Back to the Future movies.


(above) This is Sirius, the Con Suite mascot.


(above) Pirates!

Parties on the last night of Worldcon are called Dead Dog Parties: the con is officially over, so having a party is supposed to be like beating a dead dog. This year, with Pluto having just lost its status as a planet, the "Dead Dog" name is particularly apt. (Pluto was Mickey Mouse's dog, you see.) Thomas went off to find Dead Dog parties, and Don went off to find filksingers.

Filk...oh, it's just too much to explain! The name comes from an early typo: instead of "folk music" someone typed "filk music," and the world has never been the same. [Similarly, at the San Antonio Worldcon, the Handicapped Services contract referred to "renatal mobie" instead of "rental mobile" -- ever since then, those scooters for the disabled have been called "mobies."] Filkers are science fiction & fantasy folksingers. An entire subculture revolves around filk, there are filk conventions, and hundreds of filk albums are available on tape and CD (we bought a good half-dozen just at this con). During Worldcon, there is always at least one room where the filkers gather in a big circle, and everyone takes a turn. The process is called Pick, Pass, or Play: when it's your turn, you can Pick someone else to sing, you can Pass to the next person, or you can Play (and/or sing) yourself. (You can also sit outside the circle and just listen, which is what Don usually does.)

Lots of filk is awful, lots of it is very clever, and a surprising percentage is excellent.

Let's see, tomorrow we'll be checking out, loading up Eurovan, and on the way out I-5 and then onto I-40 for the trip home. With any luck, we'll be home the day before Labor Day.

-Don

Worldcon III

Location: Anaheim
Miles: 3996

This is going to be mostly pictures.


What Would Jesus Do? Jesus would go to Worldcon!

A wandering gnome.

It's a cookbook!

From the Masquerade:

The Spammish Inquisition: Cordelia Willis, Kelly Bolton, Leah Jakusovszky, Nina Kempf, Carfolyn Staehle, and Cathleen Trowbridge.

Foster's Home for Imaginary Freinds: M. Kwon, K. Kwon, L. Chen, L. Ikegawa, W. Kaa, and H. Lee.

Trinity Blood: AJ Wu, Judy Grivich, Tristen Citrine, and Aimee Steinberger. This won the award for Best in Show.

Denvention 3

Denver won the bid for the 2008 Worldcon, by 12 votes. Chicago came in second, and Columbus third. It was the closest site selection in Worldcon history, apparently. Ohioans please take note: we know many gays and gay-friendly folks who voted against Columbus because of Ohio's repressive laws. This is the second time Columbus has been defeated for a Worldcon bid.

Denvention 3 will be August 6-12, 2008.

Worldcon II

Location: still Anaheim, Ca
Miles: still 3996

Last night we went to parties. They physical arrangement of the hotel is great. Parties are all on the Lanai level, where rooms open to the interior hall as well as to three outdoor decks. It means that you can wander all around the circumference of one deck, visiting the parties, then cross over to the next deck and repeat. Some big parties (the Columbus and Chicago bid parties, for instance) are across an interior hall from one another but open on different decks, which is magnificently convenient.

Let's see, what kinds of parties are there? Biggest are the bid parties. Worldcon changes location each year, with the members of each Worldcon voting on the site two years in the future. Contenders bidding for future Worldcons throw bid parties, hoping to drum up supporters. Currently, the choice for 2008 is between Columbus, Chicago, and Denver. In addition, Kansas City is getting an early start on a bid for 2009. Sometimes bid parties serve food or drink from their local area: for instance, the Chicago people are serving hot dogs and Kansas City has beef with an assortment of barbecue sauces.

Next year's Worldcon, which is in Japan, also hosts a big party each night (they have poky sticks, Japanese beer and saki). And since Worldcon is out of the US in 2007, there will be a sort of stay-at-home con called NASFiC (North American Science Fiction Convention) in St. Louis -- they also have a big party. And then there are so-called hoax bids: groups that throw parties but aren't actually bidding for Worldcon. The biggest of these, this year, is "Xerps in 2010." Xerps is a made-up alien planet, complete with travel posters, postcards, and local drinks and delicacies.

That's the Worldcon bid parties. A couple of regional conventions are also sponsoring parties, some with fun themes: Westercon, which is a sort of West Coast version of Worldcon, has a Gnome Party; Loscon, which is a local Los Angeles convention; and Costume Con, which will be in Los Angeles next year, is having an Evil Genius party.

Then there are parties thrown by various publishers, large and small, and parties sponsored by groups or individuals. All in all, there are probably a good two dozen or so parties each night, most of them open to all visitors.

Anyway, we had a blast at the parties.

Today has been a bit slower day. We had a chance to spend some time in the exhibit hall, to make a detailed swing through the Dealer's Room and make some purchases, and to inspect some of the Art Show. (In the Art Show hundreds of artists display their works, and members can bid money on them -- items with fewer than three bids go to the highest bidder, while more than three bids kicks the piece into the Art Auction, which is its own universe. Big pieces by professional SF/Fantasy artists have been known to sell for plural thousands of dollars, sometimes tens of thousands.)

Since Thomas was wearing one of his Star Trek costumes, we also stopped to have his picture taken on a replica of the bridge of the Enterprise, surrounded by wax dummies of the original Star Trek crew. This display, which spent decades in a Hollywood wax museum, is apparently quite famous, at least on the West Coast. The display has now apparently found a new home, and the new owners are making a little money by taking pictures of con-goers on the set. Here's the picture of Thomas (he's the one in red who isn't Uhura or Scotty):



I'm just back from the Masquerade, which is one of the two big events at Worldcon (the other is the Hugo Awards ceremony). This year there were 33 entries, all of them entertaining and magnificent-looking. Master of Ceremonies Phil Foglio kept things running smoothly. I did not stay for the judging, so I can't report who won which awards. The crowd-pleaser was "The Spamish Inquisition," which was a dead-on accurate re-creation of the major cast members from Spamalot. Another great one was "Foster's Home fo Imaginary Friends," which used cotume and puppetry to present brilliant live-action versions of characters from the animated TV show.

Now, I know that all our costumer friends are wanting me to go into great detail and post pictures of all the entries -- while at the same time, all our non-costumer friends are thinking, "oh, no, please not that." Well, dear friends, there are plenty of other places online to find out info about tonight's Masquerade...and besides, Thomas has the camera.

(Thomas didn't compete in tonight's Masquerade, so intstead he volunteered to help out backstage. One thing that I haven't mentioned about Worldcon, because I kinda take it for granted: this 5,000+ person event, with a budget in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, is entirely run by volunteers. No one gets paid for their involvement. Some people devote several years of their lives to running a Worldcon, others volunteer a few hours at the convention; if the convention is successful, they will usually refund membership fees for program participants like Don -- but nobody gets paid anything.)

While I'm at it, things I haven't mentioned: this is the 64th Worldcon. The first was in 1939 and had about 200 people attending. There were no Worldcons in 1942-45 because of World War II. This is Don's 26th Worldcon, and Thomas's 19th. (If you want to know more about cons we've attended, Worldcons and otherwise, check out our badly-out-of-date SF Cons page.

Tomorrow: more panels for Don, and more fun for both of us.

-Don

Worldcon I

Location: still Anaheim, CA
Miles: still 3996

Worldcon (aka L.A.Con IV, aka The 64th World Science Fiction Convention). What to say?

It has been said that describing Worldcon is like the parable of the blind men and the elephant -- everyone's experience of Worldcon is different. It's been called a family reunion, the modern equivalent of an old-fashioned explorer's club, or (in one famous phrase) "a weekend party with five thousand of your closest friends." Worldcon is all of these, and more.

Science fiction & fantasy fans, in addition to being some of the geekiest people on (or off) the planet, are also some of the most intelligent, most creative, and most nonconformist folks around. (An old saying in fandom: "I like your game, but we're going to have to change the rules.") Those of you who are fans know what I'm talking about; the rest of you (affectionately called "mundanes") will have to trust me on this.

Physical surroundings first. We are in a nice room in the Anaheim Hilton. Ours is a Lanai Room, which means we have a sliding glass door that opens onto the pool deck. The Lanai Level has been designated the Party Floor; at night lots of the suites and rooms around us are open and holding parties.

Daytime activities take place in the Ananheim Convention Center, which is directly next to the Hilton. We have to walk outside for maybe fifteen or twenty yards/meters to get there. If you've been in a modern Convention Center recently, you'll recognize the layout. Downstairs there's a big lobby, which opens onto an exhibit hall roughly the size of the average South American dictatorship. This hall contains various exhibits, lounge areas, the Art Show, and the Dealer's Room. Upstairs are meeting rooms in which panel discussions are held on a vast variety fo subjects.


(above) A portion of the exhibit hall.


(above) An exhibit of some familiar robots.


(above) A familiar vehicle.


(above) Thomas (in orange) inspects a customized car. The creator stands with him.

And then, of course, there are costumes. Last night there was a costume ball; Thomas took many pictures, but the following is one of the most innovative costumes we've seen in a while:



Today was a busy day for Don. It started with a 10 am autograph session. To Don's surprise, more than half a dozen people approached him with magazines and anthologies containing his stories, or copies of his books, for autographing. He even sold two books to enthusiastic fans.

At 11:30 am Don moderated a panel discussion titled "Aliens Among Us" -- the topic was how SF writers use existing human cultures in depicting alien races. It was a fascinating discussion that ranged through techniques, philosophy, references, and even the ethical implications of appropriating other cultures.

At 2:30 Don was on "Guerrilla Marketing for the Neo-Pro," a discussion of low-cost, effective marketing techniques for new (and not-so-new) writers. And at 4:00 Don was part of "Estate Planning for Collectors," this time as a member of the Board of Directors of the Star Toys Museum.


(above) Don on the "Guerrilla Marketing" panel.

In between all this, we met several old friends: some from home, some from the West Coast, some from other areas of the country. In fandom, even before the Internet, it has always been easy to make friends from far away.

In the late afternoon we looked at the exhibits some more, then Don went back to the room for a nice dinner of Kraft macaroni & cheese. Now there's a bit of a lull, but soon parties will start. It should be a fun night.

-Don

Map!

Location: Anaheim, CA
Miles: 3996

For those who like maps (and who doesn't?), here is a rough map of our route out to the West Coast.



You can click on the map to make it bigger.

(Oh, I just found out...you can click on any pictures to make them bigger.

Why such a weird, twisty route? Well, we wanted to go through as many states as we could. Prior to this trip, we had never imagined that we would be in, say, Idaho or North Dakota. (We've been in both Dakotas -- how many people do you know who can say that?)

-Don

Yellowstone Pics Are Up!

Location: Anaheim, CA
Miles: 3996

We are down and safe at Worldcon, and we have a stable Internet connection.

I've been able to post our pictures from Yellowstone (well, some of them...we took hundreds) -- take a look below at the Yellowstone entry.

Thanks for all the comments; we are kinda lonely and need to hear from our friends. As Thomas said, posting these blog entries is kinda like throwing out messages in bottles: sometimes we're not sure if anything is getting through.

I'm going to try to continue posting through Worldcon, which runs through Sunday, 8/27. Then it's out on the road again, going east this time. (We can't go much further west without getting very, very wet.)

More in a while! -Don

The Desert

Location: Corona, CA
Miles: 3973

(composed Tuesday, 8/23/06 for later posting)

While Thomas had a little swim, I went to the lobby of the Best Western where they had an ethernet cable for plug-in Internet. I was able to post our entry from the previous day, but for some reason pictures wouldn't upload.

While there, I chatted with the grizzled handyman, who was a little concerned about the wireless problems. He was interested in our trip and seemed intrigued by Worldcon. He told us it was a long trip to Los Angeles. As I was leaving, he dangled by his fingertips above a bottomless chasm, met my eyes, and said, "Fly, you fools!"

Oh, no, sorry, that was Gandalf in LORD OF THE RINGS.

But fly we did. South on I-15 through bleak terrain with high, jagged mountains on the horizon. About noon we stopped to get gas, and found a nail in one of the tires. Closer inspection showed two other tires badly worn, With a day of hot desert driving ahead of us, and a 2,500 mile trip home after that, we decided to get the tires replaced.

Soon we were back on the road on Eurovan's new tires. What a difference! That annoying shimmy around 80 mph was gone, along with the more annoying shimmy at 85 mph, and the downright-scary vibration at 90 mph.

At about 2:00 we saw a sign and took a turnoff into Kolob Canyons, part of Zion National Park. For folks who are flying through with orcs on their tails, like us, there's a five-mile driving tour that hits the highlights of the Canyons. (Kolob Canyons is of particular interest to Battlestar Galactica fans: they were the original inspiration for the planet called Kobol.)

Wow! Once again, pictures cannot do justice to the craggy red sandstone landscapes.


(above) It really does look like that. Magnificent.

One note that may be helpful to someone: the lady at the National Park Service desk told us about a $50 full-year pass to all National Parks. We wish we'd known about that sooner -- it would have been excellent to have on this trip. (Disclaimer: this option is undoubtedly posted at all National Parks and it appears in guidebooks, both official and unofficial. If we had bothered to read, we would have known about it beforehand. But it wasn't until someone actually told us, that it penetrated.

If you're going on a trip where you plan to visit a few National Parks, buy a full-year pass.

A last note about National Parks and visitor fees. We paid $15 at Badlands, $25 at Yellowstone, and $10 at Kolob...and we have more to go on the way home. It might seem odd to have to pay so much to visit areas that are the common heritage of all Americans -- you'd think the government would fully fund the National Park Service, so visitor fees would not be necessary. We thought so too, but one thing comforts us: At least all the rich people got their massive tax cuts. That's important, too. Apparently.

Back to the trip. About 5:00 pm we crossed into Arizona. We were now in the High Desert, and soon entered the Virgin River Canyon: a dozen or so miles of huge mountains, twisty road, and incredible scenery right out of Tatooine. Don kept snapping picture after picture, for around each turn there was another amazing vista. We stopped at an exit and took some more pictures.


(above) Thomas in the High Desert. Eurovan said it was 109 degrees Fahrenheit (43 Celsius)

We flew down I-15, crossing into Nevada and Pacific Time. Outside Las Vegas we stopped for gas, but no new tires this time. We zoomed through Las Vegas, and then stopped at the Nevada Landing Casino at exit 12. With $10 each, we played slot machines. Don lost most of his, and got bored rather quickly. Thomas, though, finished ahead, after winning several payoffs, including one that paid 150 quarters ($37.50). We stopped after that one, and had the dinner buffet at $8.61 per person.

Coming into California, but still in the middle of the stinking desert, we stopped in Baker, CA ("Gateway to Death Valley") to visit Alien Fresh Jerky. This Area 51-themed store deals in beef jerky, stuffed olives, dried fruit, and huge amounts of whimsey. We bought some jerky and some garlic-stuffed olives.


(above) Alien Fresh Jerky

In the same town was The Mad Greek and the Bun Boy Motel. We speculated about the relationship between the two....

Continuing on, we finally emerged from the desert and entered Greater Los Angeles. And Don learned the most important rule about driving in California: Don't.

It's not just that the drivers are crazy and the traffic is obscene. It's not just that the roads are confusing. Like in Washington, DC, there is an almost complete lack of informational road signs. This includes those blue-and-white signs that tell you when there's food, gas, and lodging. By this time it was past 10 pm (past 11 pm by our Mountain Time bodies), and we were desperate for a motel. After following several false leads, we finally located a Motel 6 by seeing its sign from the highway. (We would have stayed at the Arizona Inn, whose sign was also visible from the highway, but once we took the exit we could no longer see it, and of course there were no directional signs.)

Ah, well. We made it down safe and settled in for the night. No Internet access, though, so this will have to wait until we're settled at Worldcon. With any luck, all the pictures will upload then, too.

Tomorrow; Worldcon.

-Don

In the Theocracy

Location: Fillmore, UT
Miles: 3448

(composed Monday 8/22/06 for later posting)

We left the Sawtelle Mountain Resort about 11 am, and continued south on Highway 20. A little bit after noon, we stopped at Me n' Stan's Restaurant in lovely Rexburg, ID. The omlets were huge and delicious; the biscuits and cinnamon roll were great; but the scone (which was by itself large enough to feed a family) was a religious experience. If you ever find yourself in Rexburg, Me n' Stan's is highly recommended.

We soon joined up with I-15 and continued south through Idaho. At about 2 pm we stopped at a rest area, which turned out to be in the middle of a volcanic landscape called Hell's Half Acre. We wandered along well-designed trails with informational signs.

We crossed into Utah in mid-afternoon, and around 5:30 we stopped at a Wal-Mart outside Salt Lake City to resupply essential provisions (bottled water, Coke, antihistimines, etc.) Then, back on the road, we detoured about 15 miles to a State Marina so we could dip our toes in the Great Salt Lake.

We found a dilapidated building presiding over a desolate beach. As soon as we were out of Eurovan, we couldn't help but notice the smell: a low-level stench very like a cat box. It comes from the Lake.

We trudged across the lifeless salt flats, and as we approached the Lake we were greeted by clouds of tiny insects hovering over the ground. They parted before our feet like for in a bad horror film. Fortunately, they seemed to have no interest in human flesh.

I dipped my hand in the Lake; Thomas took off his sandals and rolled up his pants, then waded in. He found that the water left salt crystals on his legs and hands. Fortunately, there were outside showers, so he was able to wipe off. (Some visitors told Thomas that they had come to the Lake a while ago, got their shoes wet, and eventually had to throw them out from the smell.)

We filled two bottles with dirt and water from Great Salt Lake -- so when we come home, anyone who wants a taste can come over.

We were glad to have seen Great Salt Lake, but we don't feel the need to go back. At least now we understand why all the Mormon kids in grade school ran screaming whenever someone suggested a trip to the beach....

South from Salt Lake City, we drove on through the gathering darkness, until finally we stopped in lovely Fillmore, UT. We tried several local non-chain motels in search of Internet service, but none had it. So we settled on the Best Western, where they assured us that they have wi-fi. Well, they have it, okay...there's a Linksys wireless router in range, but for some reason we can't join the network. So this entry will go out as soon as we have Internet access.

Worldcon starts Wednesday. Tomorrow, we will drive like hell to get as close as possible to Los Angeles before we stop for the night.

-Don

Yellowstone

Location: Island Park, ID
Miles: 9846

(composed Sunday 8/20/06 for later posting)

We awoke and piddled around in Livingston for a while. We got gas at a Sinclair station (yes, they still exist!), and bought a souvenir t-shirt. Thomas made an interesting observation as he scrubbed dead bugs from Eurovan's windshield. Although it was not too hot, the air was dry and water evaporated from the windshield almost before he could squeegee it off. So it wasn't very hot, but it was a dry "not very hot."

On to Yellowstone, which we reached about half past noon.

Yellowstone National Park is huge. The guidebook says it's 63 by 54 miles, probably bigger than most of central Maryland. At the same time, it is "without a doubt, the most geologically fascinating place on this planet." (The guidebook again.) There's enough there that a week would probably be the minimum to scratch the surface. We breezed through in nine hours. (Our constantly-repeated refrain was "we can't see everything.")

Words can't describe most of what we saw. Even pictures can't do it. Like the Badlands, Yellowstone has to be seen in person. Nevertheless, here are some of the highlights of what we saw.


Mammoth Hot Springs

Very hot water bubbles out at the top and, steaming constantly, flows down the hill. Along the way all the minerals precipitate out, leaving fantastic, brightly-colored shapes of stone.


The Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River

The Yellowstone River, which flows out of the park, has carved this enormous, beautiful canyon (it's very grand indeed).


Lower Falls

We climbed way, way down a steep path to the best vantage spot, and then climbed way, way, way back up. It was steeper on the way back. And since all of Yellowstone is higher than Denver, the air was thinner than we're used to. Nevertheless, it was worth the climb.


Steamboat Geyser

Now we get to the really cool stuff: the geysers. Basically, these are holes in the ground that spew steam and hot water. Some are pools of hot water that bubble and steam alarmingly. (Puddles at home do not do this.) The faint smell of sulphur hangs in the air. Thermophilic bacteria in reds and greens, along with mineral deposits in various colors, make the landscape surreal.


Norris Geyser Basin

The ground is a thin crust over boiling water and steam; visitors are cautioned not to stray from the paths for risk of being scalded to death. (The warning signs have an amusing little drawing of a kid getting scalded to death.) Needless to say, we did not stray from the path. Thomas reached down to stick his finger in a stream, but decided against it when he felt the heat above the water.


The Boys in Front of Beryl Springs

We saw lots of other things in Yellowstone, and took hundreds of pictures, but time is short so I'll just make a list: Liberty Cap, Tower Falls, Elk, Woodpeckers, Chipmunks, a coyote, Gibbon Falls, and some friendly German tourists who were hiking and needed a ride back to their campground.

Yellowstone was definitely great, and we already know that we will be back someday, to spend the time we really need to see it all.

We left the park about 9:30 and stopped for dinner at the Old Town Cafe in West Yellowstone, MT. Then we headed out on Highway 20, into Idaho. After a brief stop for some stargazing (you wouldn't believe how many stars there are up there), we arrived at the Sawtelle Mountain Resort in Island Park, ID. The office was closed, but there was a sign on the door: "NEED A ROOM? Take a key from the black box to the left, come to the front desk in the morning to pay."

We took a key and settled in for some well-deserved rest.

-Don

Thank You, Mr. Edison

Location: Livingston, MT

In our travels, we face a difficulty that the pioneers didn't have to worry about: powering and charging our various electrical and electronic gadgets and gizmos.

To begin with, there are two coolers: a small one in between the front seats (which we use for water, juice, and Cokes) and a large one that serves as our refrigerator, filled with things like eggs, cheese, fruit, and butter. Both coolers run off Eurovan's electrical system; at night we disconnect the little cooler and bring the big one inside, where it can also plug into a wall outlet.

Then there's the camera. We're running it off of rechargeable AA batteries; we recharge them when necessary from a motel wall outlet.

The iPod, which is essential for tunes, runs off an internal rechargeable battery. So does the iBook, our link to the Internet. We plug each of these in at night.

Cell phones: one for each of us, and both need to be recharged each night. (Interesting note: we've been in areas with only analog coverage --- this seems to drain the batteries more than digital coverage, even if we're not using the phone. And, of course, there have been areas of no coverage; we don't know how that affects the batteries.)

PDAs: Thomas's Visor uses rechargeable AA batteries, and usually runs for a few weeks on a charge. Don's Zire, which has a built-in rechargeable battery, is more power-hungry: it's happiest when recharged each night.

Finally, the electric frypan needs to be plugged into a wall outlet when in use.

When we stop for the night, it's not unusual for us to have six or seven devices plugged in, operating or recharging. We carry a couple of extension cords, and so far motels have had enough outlets for us (although not always in convenient locations, and once or twice we've had to unplug a lamp or clock radio.)

I wonder how the pioneers managed?

Hmmm, This Means Something

Location: Livingston, MT
Miles: 2818

Okay, a rather disappointing showing of blog comments (i.e. none). I'm guessing that, today being Saturday, y'all are busy with other stuff besides reading & commenting on our blog (as if there could be anything more important).

Well, while you were all going about your own p/a/t/h/e/t/i/c/ lives, here's what we've been up to:

This morning we headed out on twisty, mountainous Wyoming roads, on the way to Devil's Tower National Monument. Along the way, we saw several areas where the road could be closed: gates and signs saying, "Road Closed. Return to (insert name of town here)." After much discussion, we came up with two possibilities: (a) Cattle drives, and (b) UFOs landing and taking off from Devil's Tower.

The Tower was fairly obvious as we approached it, but we were a little surprised. Instead of standing in splendid isolation, as ususally pictured, the Tower is accompanied by three other peaks that look like Devil's Towers in training.
They are covered with trees, but we figure a few million years of erosion should take care of that.

As we came closer, though, the road curved around, and the other three peaks were soon hidden behind the Tower. Now Devil's Tower stood alone, dominating the landscape. We stopped to take a picture.



Finally we reached Devil's Tower Trading Post, the gift and souvenir shop that commands a choice view of the Tower. We bought some postcards, and mailed them from the Devil's Tower Post Office. In the same parking lot, we found a giant cowboy boot left behind by some giant cowboy. Naturally, we took a picture:



Finally we said goodbye to Devil's Tower and headed for Interstate 90, then northward to Montana. We crossed the border into Montana a little after 5 pm. After a short stop at the Trading Post in Garryowen, MT, we continued. Soon we were in Billings, a major city with actual skyscrapers. Billings sits below some really spectacular cliffs -- but since Montana is absolutely full of spectacular scenery, nobody there even notices the cliffs. The best vantage point we could get was outside the municipal water facility, which is surrounded by a huge fence. Here's Thomas at that fence, with the cliffs in the background:



We continued west on I-90. Along about 8:30 pm we stopped at a rest area to take pictures of the sunset over the Crazy mountains:



At the rest area, we met a cute Goth boy who was born in Idaho and now lives in Montana. We chatted with him for a while, then went on our way.

Finally, with darkness gripping the land, we turned south on Highway 85, which will take us to Yellowstone National Park. Almost at once we stopped at the Livingston Inn in lovely Livingston, MT. We had a great dinner of Kraft macaroni & cheese prepared in our electric frypan, and now we're relaxing.

Tomorrow, Yellowstone...and beyond.

-Don

Wretched Hive

For Betsy, here's one more picture from the Badlands:

"Mos Eisley Spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy."

The Badlands and Beyond

Location: Newcastle, WY
Miles: 2337

We got an early start, leaving Elgin by a little after 8 am. We continued down Highway 49 through North Dakota, and soon we were in South Dakota. A little after 9 am we stopped in lovely Lemmon, SD to see the celebrated Petrified Wood Park. A local resident started this construction project in 1930, as a way to put the town's unemployed men to work. The park consists of hundreds of shapes, buildings, and weird little statues made of petrified wood and other local rocks cemented together. Here's a picture that will give you some idea:



We continued our odyssey south through South Dakota, on roads as straight as a geometer's line, for hours. A little after noon we rejoined our old friend, Interstate 90. The relationship was a brief one, though: at the very next exit we turned off for Badlands National Park.

The Badlands. We spent the better part of the afternoon going through the park, moving from one scenic overlook to the next, awed at every one. There is no way to describe the Badlands; the travel books say that they look like the surface of the moon, but they don't: the moon doesn't have such colorful geological layers, nor such wind-and-water-sculpted terrain. Suffice it to say that the Badlands are worth the trip to South Dakota.

Here are a couple pictures of us in the Badlands:


(above) "The Jundland Wastes are not to be traveled lightly."

(above) The Badland Boys

While driving along, we saw various interesting things besides the Badlands. We saw a colony of prairie dogs, which is about as close as we've come to meerkats. We saw deer. And we saw the beginning stages of erosion that will eventually lead to full-scale Badlands. These were baby badlands; we called them "naughty lands."

After the Badlands, of course, the next obvious destination was Mount Rushmore. We were prepared to find it tacky and disappointing; instead, it was really cool and somewhat dignified. Our greatest triumph was in the Gift Shop: we conducted a thorough search for the single tackiest item, and we finally narrowed it down to two. The first was a three-dimensional glow-in-the-dark Mount Rushmore refrigerator magnet. The second was a ceramic spoon rest printed with a Mount Rushmore photographic montage, complete with a hole for hanging (it's non-fucntional, you see). Both of these items were so far off the tackyometer that we couldn't decide between them, so we bought both. They may make excellent holiday presents for some lucky(?) friends.

Anyway, here's one of the many pictures we took of Mount Rushmore:



We drove on through gathering darkness, and exited South Dakota about 8 pm, entering Wyoming after a brief interlude in another dimension. (Just wanted to see if you were paying attention.) We didn't want to stay in South Dakota, because of the state's outrageously obnoxious new anti-abortion law (abortion is illegal, no exceptions, not even for rape cases, not even to save the life of the mother, not even if the fetus has been certified as the second coming of George W. Bush.) [Later note: an anonymous comment corrected us on the particulars -- but it's still an obnoxious law, and we're glad we decided to pay our lodging taxes to a more enlightnened state. -Don] In the first town, lovely Newcastle, we stopped at the Fountain Motel and settled in to watch Stargate on TV and munch on bread, cheese, and fruit.

And now, we're all caught up.

Tomorrow: Wyoming, Montana, Yellowstone.

-Don

Past the Fold

Location: Elgin, ND
Mileage: 1933

Composed Thursday night, 8/17

Sorry this is late; the motel we're staying at has no internet access, so I will have to upload later. Plus, believe it or not, the power just went out. It is dark in the middle of North Dakota at night with no electricity. (Fortunately, the iBook battery is fully charged, so I can do today's entry while it's fresh in my mind.)

We woke up this morning in lovely Alexandria, MN and high-tailed it to the Runestone Museum. This museum houses the Kensington Runestone: a stone, covered in runes, discovered in 1898 in the town of Kensington (hence the name). Runes, you may recall, are Norse letters. When the Kensington runes were translated, they told the story of a group of 14th century Norse explorers who had come to the Americas to trade with the natives. The inscription is dated 1362 CE, which puts it more than a century before Columbus.


(above) The Kensington Runestone

There's controversy about the Kensington Runestone; many people say it is a forgery. However, the style of runes and the language are consistent with mid-14th century usage, including some details that were only uncovered in authentic Scandinavian inscriptions during the late 20th century -- a forger in the 1890s could not have known to include these details, you see.

The Runestone Museum contains various other artifacts that are clearly Norse, all discovered in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and surrounding areas. Some, especially wrought iron tools identical to authentic European ones, clearly came from Norse explorers. As the evidence mounts, the conclusion seems inescapable: the Norse were visiting the interior of North America at least a hundred years before Columbus.

And don't even get me started about the Mandan Indians, a pale-skinned, yellow-haired tribe that inhabited these parts....

Okay, if that wasn't enough (and it was), the Runestone Museum also includes a lot of other stuff from local history, including actual log cabins, a frontier-era store, a log church from the frontier period, and a one-room schoolhouse that was used into the 1940s. In addition, they have tons of Indian and frontier memorabilia, and a two-third scale model of a Viking longboat that they acquired from a traveling Smithsonian show. Oh, and there's a railroad caboose that you can walk through, too.

Needless to say, we were quite impressed by the Runestone Musuem.

Across from the Museum is a thrity-foot-tall statue of a Viking, which was constructed to stand in the Minnesota pavilion in the 1964 New York World's Fair. Affectionately known as "Big Ole," the statue is a lot of fun.


(above) Thomas takes a closer look at Big Ole.

Before leaving Alexandria, we stopped in a liquor store and bought two bottles of local wine. We'll report on them when we drink them.

By 12:30 we were on the road again, We stopped briefly for gas in Fergus Falls, MN, where we chatted with some nice Canadian boys. Then we booked west on I-94, until we reached Fargo, ND. There, we passed a major milestone: we drove past the fold on our Rand McNally Road Atlas two-page map spread of the United States. Now, we were truly in the West. We celebrated by zipping through Fargo and on deeper into North Dakota.

You saw the update from the Apple Creek Rest Area.


(above) Don doing wireless at Apple Creek

By 5:20 or so we had reached lovely Bismarck, ND. We arrived just after the local history museum had closed. We chatted briefly with some costumed re-enactors who were loading their vehicles up in the parking lot -- they'd spent the day re-enacting the fur trade for school children. (I did not ask how much fur they got from each kid.)

We visited a local comics/collectors shop called Collector's Universe, which was very nice; I bought some comics and Thomas bought an autographed picture of Samuel L. Jackson as Mace Windu. Then we ate at the Woodhouse Restaurant, a diner-;ike establishment where you place your order by picking up a telephone handset at your table. The food was good, and the walnut-raisin pie was delicious (think of pecan pie, but with walnuts and raisins instead of pecans).

Back on the road, heading west, we crossed over the Missouri River, putting us in Mountain Time.

Along about 7:30, as the sun was westering, we came upon the town of New Salem and its star attraction, Salem Sue. Sue is a giant statue of a cow, which stands on an enormous rocky hill overlooking...well, overlooking absolutely everything for miles around. She was built in 1974 by the Lion's Club, at a cost of over $40,000. We took Eurovan up the hill, then dismounted and climbed further to admire Sue up close. Behind Sue the hill goes even higher, to a rock-strewn crown -- the whole thing rather resembles Weathertop in The Lord of the Rings, except of course Weathertop did not have a giant statue of a cow.


(above) Salem Sue


(above) Thomas and Sue

(You have to admire the person who stood on the side of that hill and said, "You know, what this place needs is a giant cow." Genius!)

And goodness, was it windy at the top of that hill. The wind comes in from the Great Lakes, and there's absolutely nothing to slow it down through all of Minnesota and two-thirds of North Dakota. We could see how some pioneers would be driven mad by the prairie wind....

One last note: the people of New Salem, unlike those at the Twineball, fully recognize what they have, and the local merchants have gotten with the program. At the gas station at the bottom of the hill, we were able to purchase Salem Sue postcards, a keychain, and a cloisonne pin. There were t-shirts, shot glasses, playing cards...the full panoply of tacky souvenir merchandise that one expects at such a major attraction.

Shortly after Sue, we turned left (south) on Highway 49. By now it was getting dark, Highway 49 is this two-lane road (paved, fortunately) that goes arrow-straight about 75 miles to South Dakota. Okay, it jogs slightly to avoid a huge lake. But mostly, it's straight. As we continued south, clouds were rolling in and we saw distant lightning to the west, lightning that was reddened by distance and (presumably) dust in the air. (Did I mention the wind?)

In the small hamlet of Elgin, we passed the Schatz Motel, which was open and advertising vacancies. A glance at the map told us that the next town, New Leipzig, was the last town before 30 miles of desolation and the South Dakota border. Well, we figured it was a good idea to stay in North Dakota, since South Dakota politics is so repulsive (why support such an obnoxious government with our tax money?) We continued to New Leipzig, which was a one-street town with many closed businesses, but no motel. So we turned around, went back to Elgin, and checked into the Schatz Motel.

No internet service (hey, our cell phones are out of service, that's how far in out in the sticks we are), but the room is lovely and we are glad to have a place to stay. We popped a Dr. Who episode into the iBook and watched it. By then the distant lightning was nearby, and it was softly raining. I started to work on this entry, and suddenly the power went out. Which brings us back to how dark it gets. Like, really, really dark. Not as dark as Cave of the Mounds when Trevor turned all the lights off, but pretty dark.

Ah, well, it's a litttle past midnight and the power just came back on, so I guess I should sign off. As soon as we have internet access, I'll upload this entry.

Tomorrow: South Dakota, the Badlands, Mount Rushmore, and beyond....

-Don

Apple Creek

Location: Apple Creek Rest Area, ND
Miles: 1818

This will be brief, and just because we can: I'm writing this entry at the lovely Apple Creek Rest Area off I-94 in the bloody middle of North Dakota. Several states ago, I said to Thomas, "You know what? Highway rest areas should have wireless Internet access." Lo and behold, as soon as I walked into the building here, I saw the sign: WIRELESS INTERNET ACCESS AVAILABLE. So now I'm sitting at an outdoor picnic table in a cool breeze, overlooking the endless prairie and listening to the calls of birds, the chirping of crickets, the flags flapping, and the occaisional whoosh of traffic going by on I-94.

This is a trend that should definitely be encouraged.

We are currently hell-bent* for Bismarck, which is about 30 miles away. (*Hell-bent indeed, the speed limit out here is 75 mph, and Eurovan (which likes to go fast) has been creeping up to about 90 before I notice and slow down some.) At Bismark we will make a left turn (all roads out here are straight, and they all meet at right angles) and head into South Dakota too see the Badlands and such.

More later.

-Don

Twine Ball At Last!

Location: Alexandria, MN
Miles: 1532

We departed lovely Winona, MN at about 11 am. A little after noon we stopped for gas in Stewartville. Then, about 1 pm we arrived in Austin, home of Hormel and the Spam Museum. Below, Thomas poses with a friend at the Spam Museum.



The Spam Museum, which has no admission charge, is well laid-out and quite fun. The best part, though, was the gift shop. We will be bringing home spam-based presents for many friends.

After Austin, we took I-35 north to Minneapolis, then headed west on Highway 12. Traffic around Minneapolis was slow (although not as slow as Chicago), and Highway 12 was fairly congested. Eventually, however, we found ourselves in Darwin, Minnesota, home of the world's largest ball of twine.

The Twine Ball lives in a little glass-enclosed pagoda (see below).



Below, a closer view of the Twine Ball.



And finally, below, the proud boys with the Twine Ball.



Unfortunately, due to the delays around Minneapolis, we arrived at the Twine Ball after 5 pm, and the museum & gift shop was closed. In a desperate search for Twine Ball postcards or other souvenirs, we tried other merchants in town: the Shell station, the liquor store, and the local pub -- but there was no Twine Ball merchandise to be had, not even for ready money. Obviously, the folks in Darwin need to get with the program.

We left Darwin about 6 pm, and headed north toward I-94. We met up with the Interstate and continued west toward our next destination, the town of Alexandria, home of the Kensington Runestone. Of course, it was too late and the museum was certainly closed...so we decided to stop for the night in Alexandria. We found a great place to stay: the L Motel and RV Park; for a very reasonable charge we have a great room with refrigerator, microwave, free internet, and even a laundry. Of course, the internet connection is wired, not wireless -- so we are roughing it.

We settled in for a great dinner spread of fruit, bread, crackers, and fine Wisconsin cheeses. Then we wrote some postcards, answered some email, and started on the blog update.

Thanks to everyone who has left comments so far (Betsy and Melissa, to be specific). For the rest of you...what, are your arms broken? Sure, we're having a great time, but we miss all our friends, and we'd love to hear from you. It's not that difficult!

Tomorrow, the Runestone, and then on to North Dakota.

-Don

Caves and Cheese: Wisconsin

Location: Winona, MN
Miles: 1189

We awoke around 9 am at the lovely Knight's Inn in Beloit. This late in the morning, the motel was deserted: all the deadline-bound tourists off on their frantic journeys. We independent travelers are free to set our own agenda.

(Below) Here's a sign that we hung in Eurovan's window. That's the Hamster Puppet looking out below the sign.



By 11 am we were on the road. We stopped almost immediately at Wal-Mart in Beloit, where we did some grocery shopping. At the suggestion of my dead mother, we've brought along our electric frying pan. With this most versatile piece of equipment, we can make occasional meals in motel rooms, saving on restaurant costs.

Of course, Thomas found some Star Wars toys at Wal-Mart.

Driving on I-90 through Wisconsin, we saw billboards for "Cave of the Mounds." Caves and caverns are a favorite of ours, so we decided to follow the signs and visit the Cave of the Mounds. Wow, was that a great decision! The Cave of the Mounds is a really great cavern, with lots of colorful features. Our guide was the boyishly-cute Trevor, who did a superb job. At one point, he explained limestone erosion by making an analogy: "Carbonic acid is also present in Coke and Pepsi, and it erodes your teeth, making cavities. So basically, the cave is just a big cavity. So brush your teeth, or you might wind up with tours going through your mouth."

Cave of the Mounds is most highly recommended; when you go, make sure you get Trevor as a guide.


(Above) One of the magnificent features in Cave of the Mounds

Following Cave of the Mounds, we set off in search of a cheese shop (it being Wisconsin, after all). The first cheese shop we found was closed on Tuesdays, boo. So we set forth on the highways, confident that we would find a cheese shop. Leaving lovely Sauk City, I noticed a huge sign in the rear-view mirror which read, "EROTS ESEEHC" -- so we turned around, and found ourselves at Carr Valley Cheese (one of four locations in Wisconsin). No, there was no bouzouki player, and there was plenty of cheese. We bought about $20 worth of cheese to see us through the rest of our arduous joruney.

While driving around, we searched for NPR stations on the radio, as is our wont. And we found a few...but we also found two independent public radio stations, not connected with NPR. One was considerably more liberal than NPR, and the other was similar.

Along about 7pm we crossed over the Mighty Mississippi and into Minnesota. (below)



The terrain changed on the other side: we climbed steadily upward until we hit a plateau, where it was flat farmland as far as the eye could see -- except much higher.

We stopped in lovely Winona, MN, where we are now in the Sugarloaf Motel. We fired up the electric frying pan and made a delicious meal of scrambled eggs, toast, and fine Wisconsin cheese. And now, with Futurama on the TV, we're settling down for a restful evening.

Tomorrow, we have a full day planned for Minnesota sightseeing. First there's the Spam Museum, then the Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota (made famous in the Weird Al song of the same name), and finally the Kensington Runestone (we'll explain tomorrow, or you can google it).

-Don

Adventures in Michigan

Location: Beloit, WI
Miles: 915

This morning we toured Ann Arbor with Matthew-who-is-called-Sid as our able & enthusiastic tourguide. Ann Arbor is a great town, well worth visiting, with many attractions. The highlights of the tour were the giant cube and the alley of art and graffiti.


(Above) Here's Matthew/Sid and Don at the giant cube.


(Above) And here's Matthew/Sid and Don in the alley of art & graffiti.

Before leaving Ann Arbor, we stopped in at Middle Earth, a fantastic shop that sells jewelry, books, cards, buttons, bumper stickers, toys -- all aimed at the literate, liberal adult. Lots of cute anti-Bush graphics and jokes. Among other things, Thomas bought a button that says, "God doesn't believe in me, either. It all evens out." If you are in Ann Arbor, you cannot miss Middle Earth.

We also stopped in at Kaleidoscope, a marvelous book-and-curios store that is crammed full of used books and all manner of knick-knacks. Like a great air-conditioned attic, the store is crammed with unknown numbers of old books. If there's ever a fire, it will burn for days...and dozens will be trapped under collapsing piles of hardcovers and bookshelves. Don bought a couple sf paperbacks, and Thomas found a vintage Empire Strikes Back Luke Skywalker halloween costume, complete with flimsy plastic mask.

Around noon we headed west on I-94. By two we were in Battle Creek...who could resist? We stopped to go to Kellogg's Cereal World, which is basically a museum of Kellogg's cereals, including great displays of cereal premiums throughout the ages. Definitely well worth the $7 admission charge.


(Above) Thomas and a friend at Kellogg's Cereal World.

From Battle Creek we continued west on I-94, which bent south just in time to miss Lake Michigan. We followed I-94 through Chicago...what with construction and traffic, it took us two hours to crawl through downtown Chicago. Memo to big cities: this idea of having multiple Interstate Highways go directly through your downtown is never a good one. Beltways and bypasses exist for a reason.

Finally, around 9:30 (Central Time) we stopped to eat at Beefaroo in Rockford, IL. Beefaroo is one of those faux-fifties burger joints, but with great food and an innocence that somehow transcended the tackiness. Highly recommended.

At 10:45, we reached Beloit, Wisconsin...or at least, a stone's throw away from Beloit, Wisconsin. (We didn't see a "Welcome to Wisconsin" sign, but it was dark and we were both very tired.) And now we are safely ensconced in the Knight's Inn, which is a nice enough place for a roadside motel.

Tomorrow: Wisconsin and, if we're lucky, on into Minnesota.

-Don

Ann Arbor

Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Miles: 532

We rolled out of home at about noon. After a brief stop at the Wal-Mart on Route 40, we were on the road.

We went west on Interstate 70, where there is a road sign that lists distances to several points, including "Denver, 1700 miles."

West on I-70 to lovely Breezewood, PA, where the expressway ends and everyone must turn right at the light. No, I'm not kidding: instead of merging with I-76 like a proper Interstate Highway, I-70 ends at a traffic light and to continue onto I-76, all traffic must turn right. Ever fast-food joint, tacky motel, and fireworks store has an outlet in Breezewood. We sailed blissfully past them all.

West on I-76, the Pennsvylavnia Turnpike. Through the Alleghany Mountain tunnel, then a pause on the other side to take pictures of the giant windmills. Then, westward ho.

About 20 miles before the Ohio border, we stopped to get gas and eat. You see, we didn't want to spend any money or pay any taxes in Ohio. Ohio has some of the most obnoxiously anti-gay laws in the nation (only Virginia is worse): if we were in an accident and one of us went into the hospital, the other would not be allowed to visit because that's a privilege that belongs to marriage, and unmarried couples can't have any such privileges in Ohio. (Courts there have recently ruled that unmarried couples -- either gay or straight -- can't get state protection from domestic violence, because that's another privilege that's reserved for marrieds. In Ohio it's okay to beat your girlfriend half to death, but not your wife.)

Needless to say, we did not take the "Welcome to Ohio" sign very seriously. We know we are unwelcome.

Anyhow, we stopped in lovely Koppel, PA, an area that is not so much economically disadvantaged, as economically devastated. Lots of abandoned, boarded-up or burned down buildings, very few places to shop or eat. We bought gas at Al's Corner, then drove down the road to Beaver Falls, where we happened upon Guiseppe's Tuscany Grill: a wonderful oasis of delicious Italian food and great service, literally in the middle of nowhere. Thomas says that his tiramisu was the best he's ever had; me, I didn't have room for dessert. Definitely recommended!

We continued into Ohio, where we were unable to avoid paying the highway toll, but otherwise paid nothing. As a matter of fact, the only thing we did there was pee. That, I didn't mind doing on Ohio.

Around 9:30 pm we crossed over into Michigan, and by 10:30 we were in Ann Arbor. Matthew (aka Sid) Jacobs, a student at University of Michigan, talked us in from the highway, met us outside the Pita Pit (where he works), and gave us the run of his apartment. Matthew/Sid is the son of one of Don's coworkers (hi, Sylvia!), and a really nice guy. We bought him something to repay his hospitality...if his mother is reading this, it was beer; if his father is reading this, it was textbooks.

So here we are, using Sid/Matthew's computer to update our blog. Tomorrow we'll hang around Ann Arbor for a while, then be off westward.

-Don

Starting Out

Location: Meerkat Meade, Baltimore, MD
Miles: 0

Eurovan is loaded, we've said our goodbyes to Rob & the hamster, and soon we will be off!

Further bulletins as events warrant.

-Don

Six Days and Counting

Less than a week to go before departure, and we've been making arragnements.

Many thanks to our friend Rob, who will be house-sitting for us while we're away.

We purchased a digital camera (a Canon Powershot A410) for taking pictures on the trip; with any luck, you'll see some of them in later posts.

We've also been looking at our tentative route. There are a couple of things that we definitely want to see, other than that we'll be playing it by ear and wandering where fancy takes us. Among the definites on our list are (a) the Minnesota Twineball, (b) Mount Rushmore/South Dakota Badlands, (c) Yellowstone, (d) the Grand Canyon, and (e) Barringer Meteor Crater. Otherwise, we're going to try to hit as many states as possible and see as many kewl things as we can during 10 days out and 7 days back.

Stay tuned....