Burnout setting in?

Or am I just depressed because the y button on my laptop just went caput on me....now what? my short-lived blogging career halted overnight?!  So we're back in CO and I've received a real tongue lashing for not posting anything about the race early enough.  This is tough work, there is really an ethical principal that we must uphold if we put ourselves out there.  Yesterday was our longest driving day yet.  Boise to Fort Collins. That would be 751 miles.  We didn't leave until about 10AM, and we stopped once for dinner/lunch and various rest areas, gas stations.  The entirety of a corner of Idaho, a corner of Utah,

and practically the whole width of Wyoming,

then down to Colorado.  Phew!!!!  I'm starting to get a little tired of driving, but really, I feel sort of sad that I'm going to leave all of these beautiful vast open spaces behind.  I'm trying to soak up the scenery before returning to IL, but really, that's a challenge.

I like the nothingness of driving and driving and thinking and thinking and listening to music.  Ashby was busy, playing with Barbies, reading, looking out the window, talking to her new bear,

flower

talking to me, and on.  She didn't sleep until about 9:00PM.  There was a gentleman who we met who was riding his slick yellow bike from Boise to CO Springs.

He wanted to give Ashby a green bear.  Sure, why not?  She instantly fell in love with it, and what do I care, one more object?

We finally pulled into Rock Springs after about a million hours of driving.  Time for dinner/lunch, whatever.  I needed to stop moving and it's always good to feed a child something besides gatorade, and caramels.   At the gas station, we noticed, of course, the closed down, ubiquitous:

photos by Ashby

Given the fact that we were in Wyoming, listening to David Sedaris (here's another bad parent award, which I will jointly accept blame with peter, because he GAVE me the book on tape).  So there we are listening to Sedaris and the first sit down joint we see is called Thad's.  I'm about to insist we eat there on principal alone, but the Taco Time sign down the road beckons (faster, easier, and, well, they give out TOYS).  We pull into the parking lot (of the brand new taco time) and what do we see?  Lo and Behold a Real Mexican restaurant.  It took a little twist of the arm, but Ashby finally agreed that toys aren't all that important.  As soon as we walked in and she realized she could watch a telenovela, well, deal done.  Great meal, fabulous wonderful service from the sweetest guy in Wyoming (that I know).

yeah, yeah, but it's made with Real Sugar

"but i look horrible in pictures!"

girl knows how to eat a proper taco

All three meals!

seen in eastern WA

So our trip East finally begins.  Sometime during the day we crossed a highway that would lead us north towards Penticton, so that was a bit discouraging, but now we're in Idaho and I can see progress. We are coming home, after all, if for no other reason than everything in the states between Seattle and Chicago (except our little stop in CO) scares me.  So I've become one of those tricoastal urban/suburbanites who is terrified of the people watching fox news in the motel, wearing "freedom isn't free" t-shirts, and sporting bumper stickers such as: "nobama".  Sigh.


We followed this US mail truck for a minute.  I have seen thousands of fed ex trucks on my east-west trip. This was the first (of two) US mail trucks that I saw.

beautiful Northwestern mountain forests

 At about 5:00 I told Ashby that we'd drive for a few more hours, then pull into Boise and find a motel and a restaurant for dinner.  Her reply?  "Good. all three meals."  I didn't know what she was talking about, but apparently, she found cause for celebration in the fact that we would eat three meals in one day, rather than snacking on skittles and gatorade all day long, which is how we've managed to cover so many miles in so little time.  Yes, there's a bad mother award out there for this behavior....

greasy spoon

yes...the car with the bumper stickers is mine...

When we left the classic eatery, Ashby said: "No wonder there's no road food anymore, i didn't like that food."  And so it goes.  We can hope and nostalgiaze, but everything is horrible "out there."  Give me the Depot. 

a little more Oregon..far Northeastern corner

videos: name that tune.....?


And finally to Boise for dinner and motel.  Ashby wanted Thai, which I thought was unlikely, but we found a perfect restaurant:

Seattle

We dropped Nan at the ferry in Edmonds, and then continued to crawl south on I-5 towards the center of Seattle to visit friends for the night.  Many of our friends at school will be thrilled to see the kids & family, who wanted to send messages of good will back to our community.

quintessential '60s seattle...

walk down to the lake

"look, it's OUR state!!!"

more '60s PNW

everything dies, baby that's a fact....

name that tune....?

our most controversial sticker yet....

goodbye, CA

old school

two less people, but look at all this cargo!!!!

last stop

red rooster winery

last glimpse of lake okanaga from back seat.

Our last day in Naramata

sniff...sniff...but on to more good stuff!

old style stuff is also fun, right mom?

Ironwoman, times 5

OK OK. Another way in which other places are simple superior....

I'm lucky to have Nan with me on the last day or I'd pull out my visa card and ask Kathy for another week, no problem.  I haven't visited a single winery, I need a lot of sleep, I've only purchased one bumper sticker and there are more beach days in the future. Alas. It's on to Seattle we go.

jaegermobile, naramata style

bumper sticker: organic farming, bc

Hansel and Gretel

Well, it's Saturday morning, and as much as I'd like to continue this work through tomorrow evening, i think my bread crumbs may run out and we might not be heard of from a little while.  That said, here are a few observations from last nights street party that Penticton hosts for community and athletes in celebration of Ironman.  Did I say that I love it here?

Am I having enough fun, yet? 

Eh!

henna

tattoos

If you look for the guy in beige shorts and brown shirt, it's Peter dancing around to the Kelt-clad musicians.