Happy Halloween!

Tonight finds me in southwest Missouri - Springfield to be exact!     I am at my friend Cathy's house and believe it or not, we had not seen each other in about 30 years!   We went to high school together and reconnected on facebook and just really seemed like kindred spirits leading similar lives so have kept in touch a lot and when she heard about my trip, she invited me to come.  What the heck - what's 30 years?!

It was an interesting drive as I ventured further south through Illinois and into Missouri.  For starters, I have to find out what that store was about an hour on the other side of St. Louis that had a big Paul Bunyon, what looked like an old Tastee Freeze stand and all kinds of HUGE things out front!!  I have to go back!   Then as I got further into Missouri, I could tell the wildlife had changed a bit when I saw billboards tauting the evils of feral hogs and what to do if you saw them!!   Really?  Power to the smart ones who got out to escape slaughter I guess!  And must admit that I am not using to seeing roadkill armadillo in Utah either!  There were the usual "repent for your sins" and "attend the church of your choice this Sunday" billboards which are to be expected in the Bible Belt.  And not far from Springfield I saw a billboard that taunted me and made me stop  ...... "World's Largest Gift Store"!   WHAT?!   I'm in!   Must admit it was a bit of a disappointment - not so much in size but in the offerings for sale.    Kinda felt like a huge garage sale.

So on a beautiful, sunny day with a temperature of 75 degrees, I arrived at the home of my fellow PHS Class of '79 grad and we picked up right where we left off.  She and her husband Jeff are very gracious hosts and we talked the evening away.  It's comforting to know that after all these years, connections you had back then can be quickly brought back to life!   She's also a great cook and made a wonderful dinner so I am stuffed and happy as I end my day.  However I am beginning to think that I may need to go shopping for some new pants by the time this trip is over as everyone seems to want to feed me!!

It's Halloween too, but since she kind of lives in the country there were no trick or treaters here (or at home in Salt Lake City, Brad said).   I thought I ought to have a holiday appropriate song for this day so had to choose between two.   Went with John Prine's "Daddy's Little Pumpkin" - maybe not so much about real pumpkins or Halloween but it's a song I love by an artist I love, so it's great to find a way to get him in here!  The other contender was a song by Florence and the Machine called "My Boy Builds Coffins".  Love that one too - thanks for introducing me to her Matt!    Could have also gone with something like "Saturday Night Fever" or "My Sharona" since they were hits that year too  - but in reality my musical tastes at that point in my life were more Carpenters and Janis Ian!

So on that note, ..... take it away John!

Bulldogs win 48-0!

Woke up to a perfect fall day - sunny and cool.  Perfect football weather!  My "good deed" for the day was to provide half-time nourishment to the Butler Bulldogs, so I came with about 30 pounds of bananas and several bags full of protein bars and granola bars!   While I can't stake a claim to a share in the victory, it must have worked since they trounced the Valparaiso Crusaders 48-0!  (disclaimer: a different set of parents provide half time stuff to the team each game, so I cannot take credit for any past victories - only this one! )    Hee hee!   Missed having Brad there beside me but I kept him abreast of the action by text messaging. 

I made a comment in the first day's blog about happy surprises and while I haven't addressed them each day, there have been some.   Today's happy surprise was that Jeff got to be a  team captain today because he had such a good game last week!   He didn't even tell me - I found out from another mother!!    The boy is humble!   He had another good game and managed to stay healthy!

I got to spend a little bit of time with him after the game and then hit the highway again, this time heading southwest towards my old stomping grounds.    Tomorrow night and Monday night I will spend with a high school friend in Springfield, MO and then it's on to Pittsburg, KS to Mom's house!  Both stops should be great!   Tonight finds me in Springfield, Illinois (I can't help but think of Brad since I am in the heart of Abraham Lincoln land!!!).

I do have to share one other happy surprise, though perhaps you are all learning way more about my eating habits than I should confess to!  Driving this evening, I was thinking it was about time to get some dinner and wondering what I could have that was halfway healthy.   It's not been a good day so far, but honestly - is there every ANYTHING  that you can find at a football game that is good for you?!   I spotted a sign with several restaurants listed at the next exit so turned off.   Turns out it's one of those where you have to travel a couple of miles into a dusty town to actually find the restaurants, but I was getting hungry and it was time, so I went for it.   I don't know the name of the town but it was obviously a farming town as the grandest feature was some HUGE silo's in the heart of the town.  Not too many options so thought I would get a salad at McDonald's.   I walked in - and much to my surprise - the McRib is back!!!   Screw the salad - give me a McRib!   I know, I know, it's probably not even really meat or at least it's unidentifiable meat, but man I like it!    It was so much fun to sit at my booth, eating my obscene processed pork product (as Brad called it!) and listening to the four old men who were obviously local farmers discussing world politics!   Gotta love small towns!

So there you have it - two happy surprises in one day!!!   Today was one of those days that was just a happy day all day long so I decided the song of the day deserved to be a peppy one.   Perhaps it should be my theme song for the whole trip, but the song of the day today is "Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane.    Bring on the miles!!!

Farewell to Wisconsin

My time in Wisconsin has drawn to a close and I find myself in a hotel room in Valparaiso, Indiana tonight as I write this. Woke this morning to the sound of the monastery bells at Holy Wisdom Monastery in Madison.   After I ate my breakfast and packed my car for the departure later in the day, I met Paul, the groundskeeper for monastery.  A quiet man with a very calm presence, he introduced me to the prairie there and showed me several of the flowers that had now finished blooming and gone to seed.  Part of his work there is overseeing the 135 acres that has been converted back into prairie after it was used as farm land.   One way they do that is to harvest seed from the spent flowers and redistribute them in other areas.  So after my tutorial I was given a large trash can and clippers and went out into the field to harvest seed.   I have to admit that it was a wonderful experience...... the early morning cool air (28 degrees when I woke up!), no one around and surrounded by nature.   Plus, when we first got to the field, we were greeted by a HUGE flock of geese flying overhead, announcing their arrival by the loud honking, long before they came into sight.  It was almost breathtaking to see so many fly directly over us!

Besides my seed gathering task, I was given the task of filling a few more bins with sticks and twigs that had fallen in and around the road.  Slightly confused, I asked Paul why he didn't just use a blower.  He seemed a bit surprised and said something about he didn't like them but he did have one.  So away Paul went in the truck to work on something else, telling me he would be back in about an hour.   My time clipping the plants for seeds was very enjoyable but I still remained confused about the whole "picking up the sticks" thing.....   Was this a test of my patience?    Was there something I was supposed to learn by doing this?   But I did what I was told and filled both bins and even had a huge pile on the roadside. (They had a big windstorm so there were a lot of small branches!)  While I am still not completely sure why I was given this task, I did find that after a while I didn't mind even this menial task and enjoyed the solitude.   And I got to thinking about how they frown upon the use of any kind of devises that create a nuisance like televisions and radios, so I guess that leaf blowers would sure fit that category too!

Once Paul came back, we drove to another part of the grounds and picked some spots to scatter the seeds.  He showed me the best way to shake them loose and how to crumple them up and spread them around.   I must admit that there was a moment of pride when I thought about if I were to return in a few years, perhaps I could look at this field in bloom and know that I did make a difference for at least this one day and helped to get that flower to grow there!   The rest of the morning was filled with some leaf raking at one of the houses that the sisters live in, but I was happy to help since Paul has way too much work to do! 

Then it was time for lunch.  I had opted to have lunch at the monastery for a small charge and had read that eating together was very much a part of the life there for them - part of their community fellowship.   There were only six of us for lunch - four sisters, one other visitor and myself.  The sisters wear "real clothes" and could even talk football with me, so again, it was not what you typically think of as a monastery!!   The food was wonderful - chicken stew, salad, fresh fruit and freshly baked scones, with apple cider to drink. It was an interesting meal and the women were all very nice, though I must admit to feeling very much  like an "outsider" or impostor as I sat with them.  They talked about a meeting they had had the night before at the Islamic Center and other things in their life.  Nothing profound and nothing extraordinarily unusual.

So after lunch I snapped a few photos since the sun was out and the view across Lake Mendota over to the capital building was pretty amazing.  Then it was time to head on  tothe next leg of the journey and I must admit that after 24 hours there it felt a little jarring to deal with the hustle and bustle of every day life.

With the car pointed south, I bid farewell to Wisconsin and headed to Valparaiso,Indiana where tomorrow the Butler Bulldogs will take on Valparaiso University in an annual game called the Hoosier Helmet.   Bragging rights are at stake and we have to defend last year's win!

Today's song is in honor of my time at the monastery.   The song I really wanted to use is a song called "All My Angels" sung by The Refugees.  I heard it on my iPod today as I traveled and it really struck a chord for me.   But alas, I could not find it on grooveshark so have to pick an alternate!   (For anyone who would like to hear it, this is a link that should take you to a site where you can hear it:    http://ilike.myspacecdn.com/play#Refugees:All+My+Angels:101653935:s40959594.10908139.5175303.0.2.50%2Cstd_8a289685b76a47a49373cdf7445e59e9

In it's place, the song for today is "One of Us" by Joan Osborne.   If you listen to the lyrics, there is a lot in this song that mirrors the beliefs of the Benedictine Women of the monastery there.  I quote from a paper that I got there ..... "Benedictine spirituality is rooted in the Rule of Benedict, which fosters listening, hospitality, humility, embracing change, respect for people, learning, prayer and work.   It promotes a sense of balance and provides a basis upon which faith can be strengthened in the ordinary circumstances of everyday life."   There is another part that says that "Living in community, Benedictines strive to see Christ in each person".    I am still not sure exactly WHAT  or WHO I believe in, but I do believe in something.  

And like the song says ........ what if God was one of us?

Well, I must admit that this is one day I have come to the end of and I am not really sure about what I want to write.   It's been  a busy, and in some ways, emotional day for me.  So full that I am not quite sure where to start........

I left Kenosha this morning and headed west (and slightly north) to Madison.   I arrived in time to help serve lunch at the West Madison Senior Center   Met some very lovely people - both participants in the meal and the people and volunteers who work there.   I knew it would be a good day when the first woman I met greeted me with a hug rather than a handshake!  They also had their Halloween party right after the meal so I helped out with that and got to be a judge for the costume contest.   I also got to spend about a half hour talking with the woman who was my initial contact when I sent out the first "is anyone out there?" e-mail   Thank you for responding and making me feel so welcome Diane!

After lunch I headed to the Holy Wisdom Monastery here in Madison where I am staying tonight and will be volunteering tomorrow morning.  It's probably not what you think of when you think "monastery" as it is very new and modern and is actually an LEED certified platinum building, complete with solar energy, their own water supply, and as much use of renewable resources as possible.   When they did the demolition of the old building they recycled everything they could, including things like all of the concrete which they used to build berms and other things on the land.   They have an older building that they left intact and converted to a Guest House and Retreat space with 19 guest rooms. When I pulled into the parking lot tonight after being out this evening, there was only one other car in the parking lot, so to say that it's quiet and peaceful is an understatement!  Accommodations are spartan but that is fitting with the purpose and feel of the place.  It is not meant as a getaway place but as a quiet place for contemplation and introspection.

The reason that I came to Madison in the first place happened this evening as well:  I got to see The Weepies in concert!!!   It was at a small venue here in Madison called The High Noon Saloon.  I got there early and managed to get a seat at a table in the balcony so I didn't have to stand the whole night.   It was great and I even liked the opening act as well, so more new music to check out!  The Weepies are a charming couple - rather soft spoken and appear to be humble, but I love their music so it was a genuine treat to get to hear them in person.

And this is where my dilemma starts...... just how much do I want to share on this blog and just how transparent do I want to make my life to those of you who actually read it?   There is a certain joy in getting to share it, but also a fear of sharing too much.   As I think many of you have deduced at this point, this journey is not just a physical one but also a bit of an emotional one as well.   It's about realizing that my life got too comfortable and I rarely stretched my limits to reach outside of my own comfort zone.   And if I did reach outside, would I still feel tethered to the things I felt so comfortable with?   Would I find a new sense of security at being able to do this on my own - to show up in a town where I knew no one, reach out to others and explore on my own and at the end of the day find my way back to myself?

I've learned quite a few things today.  

I've learned that there are a lot of good people in this world who do a lot of good work for people in need, and many of them live here in Madison, Wisconsin.   Everyone I encountered who either worked for or volunteered at the Senior Center seemed to truly enjoy being there, doing what they were doing.

I've learned that you can show up in a town as a stranger and manage to start conversations with a few people along the way who genuinely seem interested in your story - Denise and Jim (forgive me if I messed up your names!) at High Noon Saloon who sat next to me and let me share my story with them.   And the young lady whose name I did not get at the restaurant bar where I ate dinner who told me a couple of musical groups I should check out when she learned of my music tastes.  (I made up some business cards with my blog address on it so I could share it with people when they asked and have managed to hand out a few!).

I've learned that yes, if your base is strong enough, you can feel lost during the day from time to time and still find your way back to yourself at the end of the day.   And that sometimes you are stronger than you think you are.

I also learned how intertwined music is in my life with Brad, and no matter how much I love the music, it's just not the same without getting to share it with him.  He is the other half of the soundtrack of my life - and early on, was the source of most of my knowledge and discovery.  He took me to my first concert and has shared hours and hours of his musical tastes with me at home  (some I like, some I don't!)   He and I kept texting before it started and at one point I had to actually tell him I had to stop because everything he kept saying made me cry.   And I am thankful that the venue was rather dark because there was more than one song they sang that brought tears to my eyes tonight because I felt like they wrote them for me to express how I feel to him.  It is hard to pick just one tonight, but I have chosen "Gotta Have You" by the Weepies and it's for Brad.  I really don't mean to make this blog a sappy love letter to my husband, but there are just those moments that overwhelm you and tonight was one of them.  I would be lost without you.

So now I am exhausted in every sense of the word and need to head to bed.   I will enjoy the quiet solitude and see what tomorrow brings.   Could be another interesting day ....... organized religion and I have a complicated relationship!

One week on the road!

Hard to believe that it's been a week since I left Salt Lake City!  The time has actually flown by!

Busy day today.   Went on a run this morning, even though the winds were still pretty strong - much nicer going south and east than it was either north or west!   Then my sister Wren and I got her new windscreen put up.  Looks pretty nice - see the pictures that I posted on here this afternoon.  (They should be just to the right of this on my blog)    Finished up by changing a few old, dated electrical outlets out for her and then it was time to get things packed up for the next round of adventures on the trip - off to Madison tomorrow!

But tonight we actually went to a fundraiser at the Milwaukee Zoo, called Zoo Brew.  (My reputation proceeds me!)  It was a great event and we had a great time, sampling beers from about 7 different breweries, along with all kind of foods from local restaurants and a whole dessert section too.  (Note to the Salt Lake City Zoo who had their first Zoo Brew this year too - this one was WAY better!!)   Think my favorites were a Raspberry Saison by Stevens Point Brewery and one called Naughty Scot Scotch Ale by Rock Bottom.   Tasty!   But how could you not love a brewery called Horny Goat!!!  Great food too - everything from stuffed mushrooms and sliders to French bread with artichoke spread to Red Velvet cupcakes!!

So now as I take my full belly to bed to dream of heading west to Madison, I leave you with my song of the day, which is "Rehab" by Amy Winehouse.  Okay, maybe I am really not THAT far gone, but I am noticing that wherever I go, people have beer waiting for me......... should I be concerned?!

Found the perfect song for the Tooth Fairy Disclosure Day!!!!

I know I don't usually do multiple postings in one day so that I don't bore you all, but as I was out running this morning a song came on my iPod that was PERFECT for the day the little guy disclosed the truth about the Tooth Fairy in the first grade classroom!   And since it's my blog and I can do whatever I want, I am choosing a song retroactively and have added it to my music player and will make it a "half day" song of the day today!  It's a song I like anyway so it's nice to find a way to add it in!

Have fun!!!   The name of this song is "King of Anything" by Sara Bareilles!!!  (And yes, as my sister pointed out as I made her listen to this song when I got back ...... I am having a lot of fun picking the songs!!)

I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house down!

Greetings from windy Kenosha, Wisconsin!  Today brought a change in plans as we woke to high winds and pummeling rains.   So much for the hike!   There was actually a tornado that touched down in Racine, which is just 8 miles from here!  Tore the roof off the the Case tractor plant and did some other damage but no major injuries thank gosh.  It was a good day to have no major travel plans.

So after going back to sleep when I heard the rain on the window, the agenda for today was pretty relaxed.  Went and got an oil change and tire rotation (I know, I know - it's a pretty glamorous life I am living but it was due!) and then picked up some lunch.  After lunch Wren and I worked on staining all of the wood for her windscreen project in the garage, did a little laundry and then we just sort of hung out.  In one sense I was glad to embrace the quietness of today as I know that there may not be too many of them down the road!

So in honor of my lazy day and the crazy weather in Wisconsin, the song for today is "Blowing in the Wind"!  Just going with the whimsy of the day!

The Day the Tooth Fairy Died

Another warm, beautiful day in southern Wisconsin!  Who knew that I would be here where the temperature is in the mid-70's and back home in Utah they got their first dusting of snow!  Lucky for me I left just before the huge Ash tree in my front yard dropped all of her leaves!   Have fun Brad and Matt!

Today I went to Prairie Lane Elementary School and visited the 1st grade classroom of Sandy Moskopf!  I got to be there for their "stations", which meant that they rotate between four different small groups and work on different things in each group.  Many thanks to my sister's friend Reona who is a retired teacher and took me today and did her own group as well.  I got to read "Mousekin's Golden House" four times!   It's a story about a mouse who finds a discarded jack-o-lantern in the woods after Halloween and turns it into his his winter home.  I apparently did okay since I wasn't asked to leave and there were no temper tantrums when the kids had to come to my station!  And only one kid made a comment about "Isn't it time to change stations yet?"!!!!

There was one rather traumatic experience today though and that I am afraid that perhaps the illusion of the Tooth Fairy was shattered for the kids in the red group!   As 1st graders are prone to do, the story shifted from little Mousekin finding the pumpkin to "Hey, I lost a tooth!", to which I of course asked if the Tooth Fairy came. About this time the little cynic in the group loudly pronounced that "There is no such thing as the Tooth Fairy!  It's your parents!".  Horror struck, I went back to the story but this little guy wouldn't let it go!   After he brought it up again, I pulled him close and whispered in his ear that it's okay to let her believe if she wants to ..... at which point he looked at me and rolled his eyes.   Thank gosh for the little girl who then proudly pronounced that it WAS true because she had put her tooth on her desk one night and when she woke up in the morning, there was glitter on her desk and a note that said "I love you" that was signed by the tooth fairy!!   You go girl!!   We warned the teacher afterwards that it happened but hopefully there won't be too much fallout from it all!   Hate to ruin it for future volunteers who might shatter other childhood illusions!

It reminded me of when my oldest son, Matt, found out "the truth".  I had been out with friends that night and something had come on the television that somehow lead him to ask Brad if there really was a tooth fairy.  Not wanting to lie to his children, he tried to gently break it to him that yes, that was the truth,   At which point Matt's little mind kicked in and within a few minutes he asked Brad about the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus and every other childhood fantasy he could think of.   Party over!   You're all grown up now Matt!   My understanding is that Matt sat in his lap and cried for a half hour!   Sorry I wasn't there to share the burden.

Had lunch from a famous Italian market here in Kenosha - Tenuta's - where we had muffalottas and then came home and helped Wren dismantle an old windbreak at her house that we are rebuilding.   Got to go to a new hardware store we don't have back home called Menard's.  I'm in love with this place - think Home Depot on steroids!   Biggest lumber yard I have ever seen!!!   Then dinner at an Irish Pub and Restaurant down on Lake Michigan.

The plan for tomorrow was for a hike but looks like it's going to be raining and incredibly windy so we will have to come up with a plan B.  Sleeping in for starters!   Yeah!    And I suppose if time allows I can look for more kids to crush their dreams!   Let's see ....... Halloween is coming.......... maybe I can tell them it's been cancelled!

The song of the day today is called "Better People" by India Arie.  It's just a really nice uplifting song about everyone talking to everyone else and how it would make us all better.   Great message!   See you tomorrow!

State number 7 - Wisconsin!

Well I am now in the state of Wisconsin - arriving after about a four and a half hour drive from Indianapolis.  Mother Nature gave me a free car wash on the way so I was able to wash off six states of road grime and state insects!  I am staying at my oldest sister's house in Kenosha for a few days now.   The skies cleared as I drove and it was a beautiful 70 degrees when I arrived.

It was strange waking up this morning knowing that I wouldn't see Brad for two weeks and that between his going and coming back there was bound to be a lot happen,  But one thing that this trip has already taught me is to not make expectations and assumptions.   It is here that I will confess that I had been pretty teary eyed in the last few days leading up to today.  It didn't take much to make a few of them sneak from the corner of my eye when I thought of him leaving and the two weeks on my own.  I made the assumption that I would be a basket case today, but happily I wasn't!    Perhaps the anticipation was the worst part.  Truth be told, I was in a pretty good mood all day!

On the drive up here, I got to thinking about family and my sisters.  For those of you who don't know, I have 5 of them .... and 3 brothers as well.  It's a yours-mine-and-ours family, blending two families of four kids and along came me to make kid number 9.   So I guess in reality I only have half-siblings, but I have never thought of it that way because it's all I've ever known. My dad had three girls and a boy and my mother had given birth to two boys and two girls, so I was her third daughter by birth.  My oldest sister - the one I am visiting - is named Wren and Mom's other one is named Robin.   Birds!   Cool!

I've often wondered why I didn't get a cool bird name.   Instead I got Constance!  No disrespect to my Dad since I was supposed to be Conrad Junior (heaven help me!), and it was changed to Constance.   Tough name for a little tomboy!!  Most of my life I have been Connie - though there was that awful phase when friends would call the house and ask for Connie, only to be asked "Big Connie or Little Connie?"   Ugh!

So what should my bird name be?   I can't be Wren or Robin..... so maybe Lark?   I can't think of too many options so maybe that's why they stopped with the bird names, but it sure would be cool to have one!   So in honor of my sister Wren who is so gracious as to host me for a few days (and you too Robin), today's song is called "I Was a Bird" by Mary Chapin Carpenter.   We saw her in concert this summer at the Botanical Garden and it was a great concert.  She is such a bright woman and a gifted artist and singer.

Also forgot to mention that if you miss a day and don't know what the song of the day is, there is now another music option on my blog.  On the right hand side there is a player that will accumulate songs as I go so that by the end you will have my complete road trip soundtrack!   Enjoy!

Now I have to rest up as tomorrow morning is my first adventure!   I get to read to 1st graders at a local elementary school!   Time for bed since I have school tomorrow!!!  (Haven't said that in a long time!)

Love,    

Lark

Butler Homecoming weekend

Spent most of the day with the football fans of the Butler Bulldogs.   It was Homecoming weekend and was great to see lots of old friends and spend some time with other parents - and with Jeff after the game.   Unfortunately the Bulldogs weren't able to pull out a win, losing by one point on a field goal the other team kicked with 11 seconds left in the game.   So frustrating for these boys!   Last year it seemed like we got all of the lucky breaks and this year the ball keeps bouncing the other way.  Tough season on the turf for my boy!   He did manage to get a sack and a few tackles but since he knows it's all about the team, he's pretty frustrated.

As the minutes tick by as I get ready for bed, I am realizing that the journey really begins for me tomorrow.  Brad flies home early in the morning and I will work my way north to my sister's house.   I have spent a lot of time and energy getting ready for this trip, but I guess the next few days will tell me how well I prepared.  Not just in a material way (did I pack the right clothes, is the car ready to go....) but perhaps in more of a mental way.  Several people asked me if everything was okay when I told them about this trip - as if I had to have been diagnosed with something to choose to do this.  That is not the case, but I do think part of it for me is the mental and emotional challenge that some parts of this trip will entail.   To challenge myself and step up to and beyond my line of comfort. 

Let the games begin..... 

The song for today is another Weepies song (you will all be sick of The Weepies by the time I finish!) and it's called "This is Not Your Year".   It kind of sums up the Bulldogs season so far but there is always next year!

1,528 miles later ........

Well, after 1,528 miles we have arrived in Indianapolis, Indiana!  Brad and I are still speaking (I think - you might need to ask him!) and other than the millions of bugs we seem to have acquired smashed up against the grill of the truck along the way, we are unscathed!  Like any journey of that length, it was filled with some fun moments, lots of music, good conversation and a fair amount of monotony. 

I feel like I need in one sense to apologize for yesterday's entry.  Turns out I was really tired and cranky after a second full day in the car and was easily frustrated by day's end.  In looking back at yesterday today, I realized it wasn't such a bad day after all - just one that perhaps my expectations started out to high one after a great day one.  Brad kind of "talked me down" and it made me realize how much I will miss him when he heads home and what a calming influence he is on me.   I will try to channel him once he leaves!

He used the term "happy surprise" once today and I realized that was a phrase I had to take more to heart during this adventure.  Leave myself open to the happy surprises I find along the way.   One of them was dinner last night.   Who would have known that in Iowa City, Iowa I would be able to find an Ethiopian restaurant to have dinner in?!   A happy surprise!   Not the best Ethiopian I have had, but good enough!  And on the run this morning, I loved looking down at the sidewalk and seeing the implanted art in the concrete, the statues we came across and even the chill in the air.   And do you know what the happiest surprise of all was?   Iowa rest stops ROCK!!   They are the nicest ones I have ever seen!

And while it wasn't a surprise - just merely a "happy" - it was great to get here and be able to take my son Jeff and his girlfriend Michelle out for dinner.   It made me realize that Brad and I "done good" with our boys and are  blessed with two happy, healthy young men who are good people.  So in honor of both Jeff and his big brother Matt, today's song is "Beautiful Boy" by John Lennon.   I think the one I found is a cover of it, but it sounds a lot like John and I love the sentiment.

So here's to my beautiful boys - and may the youngest go out and kick a little football butt tomorrow!   Go Butler Bulldogs!    Love you #52!

Day 2

Greetings from Iowa City, Iowa!  Another long day of driving, though not as much as yesterday.   Total is about 1150 miles so far.  My tour guide (aka: husband) has found us a place near the University of Iowa campus and has planned an early morning run through campus before we hit the road for the final leg to Indianapolis.  Tomorrow should be a piece of cake - only about 350 miles!

Must admit to no great revelations today and nothing leaping out at me about what to write.  I guess some days will be like that - just like 'real life' is like that some days!   Napped in the car when I wasn't driving and just really tired tonight so think I will make this short and go enjoy my bed and a good night's sleep!    I promise to try to have something more exciting to write about tomorrow!

Also, for some reason the hotel computer is not letting me change my song of the day on their computer and I don't feel like paying the $9.95 they want to charge me to use my own, so you are stuck with Jack and Diane until tomorrow when I can change the song!

Good night everyone!

Addedum 2

Okay, Brad and I just tested it out. It appears that there is a "reply" and a "reply all" button so just make sure you click the one you want.   If you have an questions just shoot me an e-mail.

Addendum

Okay, thank you everyone who responded to my post last night!   Your words were very touching.  In trying to create a link where people are notified when I post, it appears that the setting was on where if you wrote me a note, the whole group got it!  Sorry!  I have changed that now and if you hit reply to leave comments, it SHOULD just come to me.  If you want to leave a message for anyone to see, feel free to leave it on the blog itself!   Now off for a quick run before we hit the road again.  More tonight!

Full Moon over North Platte, Nebraska

Day one and 650 miles later the journey has begun.   Not much glamorous about a day in the car, but hanging out with the love of my life in a captive environment does equal a win!  Left home about 7:30 and headed east on Interstate 80.  Utah .... Wyoming.... western Nebraska.... North Platte to be exact.   There is a beautiful full moon out tonight.  The skies are clear, the bugs have been scraped from the windshield and the tank is full and ready for departure in the morning.   Thank you Fairfield Inn for the comfy bed and the internet connection!

I had no expectations of North Platte, but already I can see that this may be 28 days filled with surprises.  One of the many things I love about traveling with Brad is his eternal optimism and sense of adventure and learning!  When we had kind of picked a place to stop for the day, he picked up brochures at the stop before that (World Headquarters of Cabela's  in Sidney,NE - mostly just to stretch our legs) and by the time we arrived in North Platte, he had already told me more about the community than I could have imagined.   True to his nature, he got all excited about a restaurant called  "Whiskey Grill" (imagine a full bar full of various whiskeys and a woodfired oven ...... when in reality, we are in Western Nebraska so its just another restaurant).  

So we drove through the town, checking out both the North and South legs of the Platte River (think about 5 minutes total!) and came across a place called the Depot Grill and Pub.  It was the first pleasant surprise of the trip!!  Fat Tire on tap, a few beers from Colorado and Nebraska that Brad had never tried and good old home cooking, served up to us by our wonderful waitress Diane.

While admitting that I have "packed on " a few pounds since the marathon in May and need to shed them, my best intentions were met with Chicken Fried Steak on the menu!  Food from my childhood!!  How could I pass that up?!   So I didn't and it was wonderful.  Sitting there in the booth eating it brought back a whole onslaught of memories of post-game meals after high school basketball games!   Win or lose, we always seemed to unload the bus at a local diner and more times that I can recall, the meal was something like chicken fried steak.   Sitting there eating that, I felt like a 16 year old again .... hair still wet from the shower and either sulking over a loss or celebrating a win!

But the biggest surprise was our waitress - Diane.   What a wonderful woman!   Before the meal was over, we knew that she had worked at the same restaurant for the last 26 years, loved her job, had three kids, been married for 44 years and had a Pomeranian we were donating Brad's leftover chicken to!   She sat beside me in the booth and told me how her daughter had just moved back to the Omaha area from Iowa, so now it was only a three and a half hour drive instead of an ten and a half hour drive - but that she also suffers from panic attacks on the freeway, so it really wasn't any easier.   I know her husband is disabled from an injury working on the railroad and that her son is an engineer for the railroad, which is the major employer of the town.   I know the history of the restaurant and the fact that the three beers that Brad ended up ordering before it was over were the three least ordered beers in the restaurant (yeah Brad - love that sense of adventure!).    

But mostly what I was reminded of was my Midwestern roots.  Good people with a good work ethic and a willingness to share their lives.  It made me wonder about the hundreds of people she had waited on who had never bothered to look at her name tag, ask her about her day, or give a thought to her life outside of the walls of that restaurant.   I was happy to make her feel like I had connected with her - and I had!  I  can't remember her exact words but she made a comment about me being "a good person" and I just know that it as more than my belly that left full at the end of the night. 

THIS is that this trip is about!!  Making that connection and maybe making one day brighter for one person along the way.   Can't wait for day two!!!


So today's song is "Jack and Diane" by John Mellencamp .... in honor of my new friend Diane!  I didn't get her husband's name but I am guessing that if you listen to the lyrics of this song, you may get a glimpse into her life!

Packed and ready

Not going to write much as I need to head to bed.  I have the truck packed and we hope to head out by 7 a.m. tomorrow morning.   I am working on a way that people can be notified of new posts, so if you get a weird e-mail from me, requesting that you join a google group, that is what that's about.   Not sure if this will work or not but suddenly realized that followers don't get notifications and I am trying to figure out how to do that. Supposedly you can then set how you want to be notified. Let's just hope the whole site doesn't crash and burn!!

Changing the song of the day to "Hummingbird" by the Weepies as it seems to describe how I feel these days!!  Enjoy!

And then there was one .............

One day left in Salt Lake City before I head east!  I feel like things are getting in order but I just had to laugh today when I thought of some of the things on my "to do" list before I head out ...... turn off the sprinkler system for the season, get new furnace filters so that it's ready when Brad has to turn on the heater, get a new blade for my miter saw ......   Wait a minute!    I'm a girl!!!!  I know the list sounds more like the things a person with the XY chromosomes does, but I guess you could say that in our house things are far from the standard.   For years, Brad was a better cook than I was (I like to think we're pretty even these days!) and he used to say that before he met me his tool kit was the yellow pages.   I own all of the power tools in the house and am probably the only wife who has ever come home after a trip to have her husband say to her "something is wrong with the garbage disposal - can you fix it?"!   But it works for us.  We have a routine and we each have our strengths. We compliment each other!  I think that is one thing that hit me today..... while I know Brad will be fine when I am gone, I also realize that there are a few things I am dumping on him.   And he is willingly taking them on.  None of my excitement about this trip would be possible without knowing I have his love and support throughout this whole adventure.   For 27 years he has let me reach and explore and search and play.   And for that I am eternally grateful.

Like I said yesterday, the response from friends has been amazing!   The first questions several ask is "Are you okay?" (to which the answer is yes!).  When I got back on Sunday there was a package waiting for me from a neighbor.   He sent me the book "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck!  While I won't have a dog with me on this journey across my portion of America I thought  it was a very poignant choice of a bon voyage gift on his part!   The book was accompanied by an e-mail with one of the best lines I have read from anyone yet :

"Knock me on my rear!  You could have written that you were going to work as a "pole dancer" for a month, and not have hit me any harder. "

That one had me smiling the whole day - and even still!   No plans for any pole dancing on my part, but who knows where this will all lead!!!!   

T Minus 2 Days!

Wow, it suddenly hit me today that I leave in just over 48 hours and I haven't even begun to pack!   Not sure how one packs for a month on the road but if you run across me more than once, don't be surprised if you see me in the same thing again.  Don't worry, I promise I will wash it!  And I do know that those I visit will let me do my laundry.  I think the biggest challenge will be packing for everything from 70's to possibly even running into some snow by the time I get back!   Thank god I have a truck that I can throw all kinds of stuff in!

While there is much to do, my gratitude continues to burst at the seams.  I have gotten so much encouragement from friends and family that it's kind of overwhelming.  Several people have fun things planned when I am there - perhaps I shouldn't divulge them all and make you read each day to find out what I have been doing!

I changed the song up today too.   It's a song called "Before I Go" by a bluegrass group from Alaska.  We discovered them at the Snowbird Mountain Music Festival last year and I fell in love with their music.   This song seemed very appropriate for the days leading up to my departure.   So click on the link above, sit back, relax and enjoy the song!

First Netbook posting

Hi everyone.   This is just a test of my first time of posting to my blog from my netbook -or more appropriately, my friend Kim's netbook!    What amazing friends I have!   Kim offered to loan me her netbook for my trip since I didn't own one or a laptop and her's was just gathering dust.  I have been playing on it for the last week or so and brought it with me to the game this weekend in Indianapolis.  Slowly but surely it's feeling pretty comfortable! 

Home tomorrow morning, which gives me basically three days to pack and load up!    I got an e-mail from the West Madison Senior Coalition in Madison, WI and looks like I get to help serve lunch on the 28th and then help with and attend their Halloween Bash!!!   How fun!   They even told me I could dress up!

Now it's off the Butler Bowl and the Butler Bulldogs versus the Dayton Flyers!   Could be a tough game but I have faith!!

Six days to go!

Just filled out my background check form to make sure I am not a child predator and an application to volunteer at The Haven of Grace in St. Louis. Missouri!   Yeah!   I will still be able to hold some babies and get my baby fix while I am away from the NICU.  Woo hoo!   Then going to have lunch with an old high school friend that same day.  That is one of the joys of this trip too - getting to reconnect with old friends I haven't seen in ages.

Also want to give props to my son, Jeff, who somehow managed to put an mp3 player on here for me when I couldn't figure out how to do it.  Music is sort of a thread that runs through every day of my life and I thought it would be fun to pick a song of the day that you can click on and listen if you want to.   Whether it's a song that explains my thoughts that day or struck a chord in me for whatever reason - or maybe just something that made me smile when I heard it.  I'll try to explain what I pick when I pick it!   The song that is up there now (just above this post) is one of my favorite songs and is truly what I want in life!  

Now off to pack for one more flight to a game in Indianapolis this weekend before the road trip begins!  Go Bulldogs!

A few places I hope to volunteer

 Hey, there is hope for me yet!   I figured out how to make these an actual link so all  you have to do is click below on each one.   More to come!!!

http://www.benedictinewomen.org/care/care_green_building.html

http://www.havenofgracestl.org/a_history.html

http://www.aheinz57.com/

In the batter's box now.......

Hard to believe that my trip starts in just over a week! Time has flown and I am starting to get really excited about it! One of the things that I was most concerned about was how to find places to volunteer but I found a great website called volunteermatch.com and it's been wonderful! So far I have lined up two opportunities in Madison, Wisconsin - one with a group called the West Madison Senior Coalition and the other with Holy Wisdom Monastery, where I will also be staying overnight! I am working on several others and have e-mails out, but other things that are already slated are reading to 1st graders at Prairie Lane Elementary in Kenosha, WI; working with a dog rescue group in Des Moines, Iowa, and another senior project in Lincoln, Nebraska! Looks like another possibility might be doing some babysitting at a home for young pregnant women in St. Louis, Missouri.

So the journey has begun before the key is even turned. I can honestly say that I have been amazed the amount of opportunities out there when you just look. I thought this would be the hardest part but I can see already that I won't have enough time to do it all!

Now to work on this blog..... I am new to all of this, so bear with me. I had wanted to add a song of the day each day since music is a big part of my life, but seem to have run into too many road block for that, so will let that one go. If anyone reading this has any ideas on changes/additions/subtractions to this blog - please feel free to let me know.

I would love to hear from you all during this coming month on the road. While I know it will be full and fulfilling, I know there will be moments when I long for home and familiar faces and places. Keep in touch!