Doubling up in Vegas

often when i go to write
these blogs
i have stories i want to share
then finally get a chance to write
i forget the stories

two days ago
i had a story about how
one stereotype seemed true
while at ventura beach
i overheard three conversations

waiting to cross a light
a dude was on the phone
sweet talking a guy to be his record producer

at lunch
these dorky people at the next table
discussed their screenplay of their movie
and how could they get the old lady playing the old lady
to allow them to have the guy playing her husband grope her

then on the pier two joggers
one says you have to audition
well says the other i need to read the treatment
to see if i am right for it

then yesterday my bartender said acting paid her bills

my concert wasnt til 930
so i killed time watching baseball
when it was 1-0 yankees i said to this guy
i hope the yanks go up 6-0 and the red sox lead all game
then the rays comeback and the sox blow it

i didnt get to relish my moment
i saw the hr to tie the game with two outs
but i had to leave for my concert
while the red sox were still in a rain delay

joe purdy is my favorite singer
the club was the size of the richland
i sat 18 dead center from the front of the stage
he was directly in front of me

either his dad or older brother sat to my left
i often wondered why he isnt a bigger star
they played his songs on lost and greys
they have been in national commericals
how come no one knows who he is

well he shed some light on that
he doesnt really care

it was awesome
but he kept forgetting the words to some of his songs
the dad/bro made the sign to his friends it was because of weed
well that and alcohol

it was charming during the show
he is so awesome you didnt care
only after did i resent it a little
but hey thats rock and roll right

drove most the night to get to vegas
slept maybe two hours
right when i got there and fell asleep
did liz my broinlaw and rochelle all pick that 15 min to text
it was kind of funny

picked my dad up at the airport
mr moneybags
bought two 36 dollar all you can ate all day buffets for us
and 14 a piece rollercoaster rides
tomorrow we are dropping 71 a piece to walk over the grand canyon

i got a room at excaliber
the pool was nice
and i saw lots of indians fans and one browns fan here

watched the bartman doc on espn
bill buckner made me cry

tried to map out possible routes to cleveland
man am i still far away from home
well guess i should be after 21 days on the road

decided to skip arches and utah
going to head to the petrified forest in arizona instead
want to go to carlsbad caverns but doubt we will
it is a major out of the way
think the route will be abq/santa fe to rocky mountains
then a coin flip of 70 80 or 90
i dont really have any desire to enter texas

i think it is going to be a lot harder
for two people in a small car to drive so far
and try to sleep in it
plus you can get away with being a pig when you are alone

want to get back in less than week
rather than two

plus i need to figure out how to quickly get
a passport card
so i can go to canada in late oct/early nov
cant really do that until i get home

Hollywood

drove to the hollywood sign this morning
it is pretty steep ride to get close
even still you cant get to the sign
i mean i am sure you could
but i didnt know how

ate lunch at the le brea tar pits
bought it from a food truck
talked to dree for almost a half hour
which was good

walked the walk of fame
took a few pics
sent reese witherspoon to dree
and debate sending bogart to chris
instead asked him who he wanted
half hour later
he replied boagart
score

at a bar eating wings and drinking 34 oz beers
a block from my concert

bit concerned since there is no boxoffice
where the concert is
walked around the whole place

thought it was at 8
turns out is is 930
there is a concert before
but my ticket is no good for that one

if i would have realized that
would have went to the beach
but already paid 10 bucks to park for the night
and cash is getting low

i have four hours to kill

Beaches

i woke up alongside the ocean at 530 am
drove to malibu

walked around the pier
then played in the ocean

it was cold but waves are awesome

for lunch i finally got in and out burger
there must have been 15 cars maybe more
in the drive thru line
it blocked up the entire mini mall parking lot
they had a dude in the parking lot taking orders

i ate inside
ordered it animal style
it was a good burger but the fries were awful

then drove to ventura beach
found a lot of sand dollars

talked to chris on the phone
for a while which was good

drove to mcdonalds to use the internet
this one had its insides gutted
so i had to use it from my car

i was so sandy
and it was hot
it was cool on the beach
but really hot just a few blocks away

was tempted to get a cheap hotel
near the walk of fame
in hollywood
not too far from my concert
i could leave the car and walk around all day

the few hotels in the area with a pool
had horrible reviews online

considered a japanese hotel with all this weird stuff for 99 bucks
but you had to pay 30 bucks more to park your car

bookit.com had a mystery hotel for $64

i called and asked the guy if the pool was open
he said yes
i asked how far it was from the address of my concert
he said 21 minutes

i booked it
the ride from where i was said it was a 24 minute drive
well thanks to la rush hour traffic
i got there an hour later

and saw the sign that said from may 2011 to nov 2011
there was no pool because of construction
in fact this morning at 9
hammers will wake me up

i was not happy
wasnt the hotels fault
i called it book it

it was on the phone was over 45 minutes
once on hold for over 20 min
i sent an email from the customer service website
and i think that is the only reason i was picked up
because i got email back from them about the time they answered
saying oh we see you were being helped

in the end they took 15 bucks off
and 25 off my next booked hotel

but this is what has me ticked
i asked the lady at the hotel what there normal price was
she said 62 dollars

lying stinking evil book it.com
what a bunch of bastards

it does feel good to have the stink and salt washed off me
would have been nicer to swim a little

so tomorrows plan is to find my venue
find a place to park
and spend the day bumming around the walk of fame

Santa Barbara

so sunday i made a bit of a tactial error
the bar i watched the browns game at
was not a good one
the service was inattentive at best

as the game went on
more and more packer fans came in for the second game
it got crowded and they could care less you had been there
for hours watching the browns

as soon as it was over
i got out of there
just the giants were getting ready to play down the street

i fled and headed south
now there was a big concert in golden gate park
so i knew that was a no go
and ended up leaving sf
i should have pulled over and found a park to chill

instead of ended up driving
ended up spending the night in salinas mall
when i got there it was too early to sleep
and the beach was too far
the highway was backed up
so it hanging around time
with nothing to do
sf would have been much much better

set up to sleep at 10
and was woken up by a cop at midnight and told to move
mind you the internet said it was a good place and there were no signs
but i moved
he had me go to the rodeo grounds

in the morning
i checked out where cannery row used to be
and headed towards warmer weather

santa barbara has no sleeping in car laws
and it has been a big to do
so i called city hall to see where it was ok
after a transfer or two i was told to call this christian group
that group told me since i wasnt homeless i could stay in their safe parking lot
she told me to sleep at the beach
wasnt that what started the issue
i called the cops and the woman who answered
said just find a safe place
no one will bother you
ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm ok

when i got there
i ate both a fish and shrimp taco on the beach
and walked around the surf

after driving around town
i found a more isolate beach
walked it watching the sunset
eventually i parked by that beach
the surf was loud
slept well and moved on

i woke around 430 so i figured i should get
most of the la drive out of the way

i am now at a mcdonalds near the malibu beach
it is just after 7
trying to replenish both my computer and phone
risking losing one of the few free parking spaces by the beach

plan is hang here
then head to either santa monica or venice beach in the afternoon

San Francisco

i have been to san francisco three times before
in 1998 as part of the road trip with josh dave and jeremy
i think we were there maybe four hours at night
visited dave in 2004 and 2005
really liked it both times
just took the bart everywhere

san francisco isnt quite as fun with a car
a lot more stressful
but it worked out

when i got to the golden gate bridge
it was mostly obscured by the fog
i walked up to it
and got some pretty great photos
it is amazing how good some of the pics
i have taken with a camera phone
they have come a long way

after i left the bridge
i looked back and the fog lifted
at first i was disappointed
but i think it was cooler with the fog

it took a while but i found a parking spot
near fishermans wharf
it was after 6
so i only had to pay for a half hour as the meters
are free after 7
the parking lots are by the hour with maxs of 24 and 36
depending on the lot

ate a sourdough bread bowl
found the sea lions
i was here in september both times with dave
and there was a ton of sea lions
yesterday there was just a handful
and they were mostly silent
i remember them being really loud

i knew finding a place to sleep would be tough
it is illegal to habitate in your car between 10pm and 6am
in the city

drove to ocean beach and thought i had a great spot
but just after 10
a cop came with a loudspeaker threatening everyone
said he would begin ticketing soon
there were a lot of people enjoying the beach
and he cleared it out

saw a spot on the road where they were motor homes
but there was sign prohibiting overnight
i was tired and didnt want to roused again

dave mentioned a spot in a text
but the hotel name and location
were different then what i found
by the name found a spot
but there were so many cars buzzing by
the car would shake
and i was worried i would half asleep
step out into traffic
so i gave up and drove south on highway 1
put in the gps of a mall and went 10-15 min

saw a mcdonalds and safeway in pacifica
so i got off
prepared to sleep in the safeway
but there was a shady guy two spots away
drove around the block
and pulled up behind a rv

i could hear the ocean but not see it
it was crashing just over the fence

it went well
woke up a few times
finally at 530 i went to the mcdonalds
to wait for sunrise
turned out it wasnt until 7

found the two browns bars
made maps
then went down the road

apparently there was a fog festival in town
so i had to skip that beach and go more south

there i found a beach with a taco bell
right on the beach

it was a cool beach
there were houses on hill overlooking the beach
surfers were everywhere

added pacifica to the list with red lodge
as places to live when i win the lottery

now a the "browns" bar but
i think they claim to be a every team bar
i dont think there will be sound
this might be costly

found a parking spot so hesitate to try the other bar

Fresno

if you ever find yourself anywhere near fresno
i highly recommend staying at hotel mcmillian

nice clean comfortable room with a big bed and lots of pillows
great view of the pool
with private bathroom and shower

john even bought me breakfast
where i had some unbelievable pork and eggs
wrapped up in tortilla things
mmmmmmmmmmm

rebecca and john were very kind
and it was very nice of them to let me
stay on very short notice

nearly to san francisco
trying to plot out the next two days
really going to have to wing it
to find a place to sleep
we will see

Yosemite ends up in Fresno

woke up around 530am
it was still dark out

started to head up the mountain to yosemite
but i talked myself out of it
who wants to drive up a mountain in the dark

i turned back and went looking for a spot
my aunt carol told me about south tufa

it wasnt on my gpa
as i drove down in the predawn
it seemed as no one was around for 50 miles
so of course when i found it
the parking lot was full of photographers
well four photographers and a wife

i followed them
it was cold
later my car said 36
it wasnt that cold in the town

i smartly put on jeans and sneakers with a hoodie
so it was tolerable

you will have to see the photos
since i am too tired to describe south tufa
but these "stone" things come out of the water
pretty sweet

shot a ton of photos at yosemite
didnt understand the big deal about half dome
until like eight hours in when i saw the other side

nothing like driving all day on the side of cliffs
with idiot germans thinking it was the auto ban
six inches off your bumper
while you try to avoid ramming head on to
the poor bastard dad driving a rented rv for the first time
while his wife whines about watching the middle line
and the kids beat the shit out of each other in the back

i saw a coyote on the road
could stop because of german on the tailpipe

which reminded me i almost hit a coyote on the way to the grand canyon
and yesterday on a long open stretch in nevada
i had to slow down because a herd of cows
were in the road
they got across before i got there
but there were being herded by a real mexican cowboy
first time i have ever seen someone wear a sombero
for practial purposes instead of irony or being humilated for work

thought of taking his pic
but i thought if i was working in 100 degree heat
and some asshole took my pic i wouldnt like it

i took so many pics
i bet i backed up facebook

talked to both boyle and my bro today
josh mentioned i should call jmac
who lives in fresno

i didnt want to put him or his wife out
so i wasnt going to
i headed up to sf exit
but changed my mind turned around to see the big trees
and called josh

jmac wasted little time and said i had to come to fresno
jmac and his wife went to a movie and should be done by 9 or so

he had me drive to the dog house
which is a mad house
so girl is constantly yelling out to go orders

i ordered everything
figured its a free night

just put on the card
sign whatever
wont notice the difference between all the gas i bought

Edge of Yosemite

it was over 90 by 9am

it was also a day of backtracking

first i went all the way around and past the z point
to go to dantes view
it was pretty good view
the last part was a 15 degree incline

at the ranger station in the middle
gas was 5.50 for the cheap stuff
and since i had plenty i passed

headed for scottys castle
thinking there was gas there
only well after i left the 5.50 station
did a sign say there was no gas at scottys
so for the rest of the day the song
scotty doenst know from eurotrip was stuck in my head
this sign would show up over and over but never did it say where there was gas

before scottys
i cut up to see a crater
i really need to remember bring the maps with me
when i write
it was called ubehebe crater or something close
no one was there
it was pretty awesome
i did what i think anyone would do alone
at the top of crater
yes i peed into it

then to scottys
scottys was a rip off
not only did they want you to pay for a tour
there was an upstairs tour and basement tour

closest gas according the lady at scottys
was 124 miles away
my car said 122 to e
but i know my car lies and is always short
so i had to drive 55 backwards to buy gas
then drive back where i came from

called my aunt carol and where to head to
since i could not find an internet connection
to make a map

i am now in the town of lee vining
sipping ice tea out of a mason jar in a coffee shop
only place i could find the internet

drove by mono lake to get here
a lot of the forest around it burned down in 2001


talked to a ranger in lee vining
which is just outside yosemite

the primitive campground is a few hours away
thinking of eating dinner here somewhere
finding a place to waste time
and then try to find somewhere to sleep

the ranger said no overnight at the station
but i could sleep a few hours
may crash there until someone makes me move

may not get internet for a while
at one point today i think i had over 40 fb photos waiting to upload
not sure how many through
phone reception is spotty at best

plan is yosemite tomorrow
maybe saturday see how things go
find somewhere to watch the browns in the bay area on sunday
then down the coast

Death Valley

at some point in the next few hours
there is going to be crisis

but right now is pretty awesome
i am at a camp spot called emigrant
somewhere in death valley

in just the few seconds
the above words were typed
my screen has been swarmed by bugs

it is an eight spot campground
was lined up to be number eight
but turned a few feet too soon
a car rode up behind me and took the last spot
but made my own right next to them
a few more cars pulled up after me

just a big area
and people setting up tents behind their cars

am sitting the chair that was threatened
with goodwill abdanoment
glad that i waited
am not in my car because it is still 105 out
there is a breeze
maybe will move to the back seat in a few hours
i have the car windows all open

just across the way is mr knowitall
i can hear him correcting people
how there are no falling stars

after I checked out this morning
headed to the hoover dam
it was pretty cool
drove over it and took photos from both sides
but couldn’t stop ontop of it
because there was nowhere to park
and it was way too hot to walk where i could

stopped at walmart to get more granola
and a case of water just in case

stopped in parumph
which is the site the aliens attack in mars attack

got a “bobby” sub at place called c- something
will have to look it up in the morning
but it started in Delaware
basically a day after thanksgiving sub

debated at staying at the walmart there
but it was so early and hot

so i headed on
good thing filled up because gas is over $5 here

with the sun getting ready to set
decided to go to z-something point
rather than badwater
didn’t want to get caught in the dark with no clue

right before the z-point
stopped to pee
and saw my first people in an hour
asked if they were headed to z
and they said sure why not
they were from great britain
asked where I was from
said cleveland
asked what I was doing out here
said
quit my job and wanted to see what I haven’t seen
this excited them
o cool that’s awesome
people keep saying that
quitting a job in this economy
is not to be celebrated

anyway we drove the short ride to z
and out of nowhere
there was 70 people there
watching the sunset
it was pretty cool
video taped the sunset
and it just so happened my alarm went off
so during the video
always look on the bright side of life
the song sung by eric idle as he is being crucified
in life of brian
is playing

wont be able to post this obviously til who know when
doubt there any many mcdonalds in death valley and yosemite
saw the high was expected to be 111 today in death valley
while yosemite has lows of 30 all week
bugs are starting to eat me
gonna spray again

next day edit
sleeping outside would have been perfect
for two things
germans are everywhere
they are loud and they dont shut up
and the wind picked up
and my chair wouldnt stay upright

the back seat of the car was brutal hot
even with every window open
one time i sat up startled and when i put my head back down
the pillow was so wet
it was like i put it in the shower

but i made it through the night
without having to poop
in the pitch black desert
so that was a plus

More Las Vegas

so the palms charges 15 bucks a day
for the internet so i havent been able to post

on sunday i was so tired
i nearly fell asleep in the sports book
during the second half of the browns game

finally got my room
took my first shower in over a complete week
and went to the pool

i should have known better than to stay the palms
the pool was a bad rap video
it was around 4 on a sunday
a dj was blasting music
it was unavoidable misery

i almost went to my room but i didnt want to sleep away the day
after a while the music while still crappy
was at least less bassy
and then the pool closed at 6
which seemed silly

showered and decided to use my "free drink"
its not really free the palms charges a 15 a day resort fee
but you get a 20 drink coupon

my cousin dave texted about having a everclear smoothie
i asked around and while the concierge admitted it sounded tasty
there was no everclear in the palms bars but maybe one of the attached
private resturants or bars might have on

i went to the 9
and the hostess said no way

i made my way to one of the smaller bars
no one else was there
and asked the bartender to make me something unique
she asked what i liked and said anything but no purple no green no redbull
she seemed perplexed and i thought what a waste
but she came back with this green thing
that turned out to have seven alcohols in it
it was rather strong
another one of us
and wandered back to my hotel room
somehow obtaining dim sum on the way
it was tasty and i was asleep as soon
as my head hit the pillow

i woke up once thinking there was an earthquake
and went right back to sleep

it was my first bed in a week as well
and i slept for nearly 11 hours

monday i was in the pool from about 930 until 6pm
it was a little better
there was no dj at first then when he showed up
there speakers on one side of the pool were off
so it was tolerable

the pool is designed to take advantage of the towers
half the pool is in shade at sometime
in fact despite being close to triple digits
it is cold in spots outside the pool
i found this out when i walked across the pool area to the bathroom
burnt my feet and worked up a sweat walking a few hundred feet

at night i drove to the hard rock cafe
and ordered the $7.77 no longer listed on the menu steak shrimp special

it was awesome
awesome
perfectly cooked
awesome

on tuesday
i went back to the pool before checkout
without having the internet
i havent been able to plan

so i checked in to terribles hotel
for just 30 bucks including taxes

shouldve moved on

sitting still is not good
but i was thinking one more night without sleeping in the car

i got grumpy
then got rewarded for it
with a free steak

it wasnt a good steak
but it was comp'd

talked to dree on the phone
hadnt even gotten a text from her in six days
with her in hawaii and me on the road
we havent talked much about her getting engaged
so it was good to talk to her

the only gambling i have really done
is trying my luck at the wheel of fortune machines
it is what my grandmother played
the first three times i played
i lost 10 or 20 at a time without even a dollar winner
all i wanted is one free spin
i loved when my grandmother got free spins
she would get so excited
once josh and i took her to a casino in atlantic city
after he was like how did you do
i said i have 250 more than i started with
he was like awesome what did you win
oh i told him
i didnt play anything
grandma kept winning and handing me money
so i put it in my pocket

yesterday at 8am i played and lost at a machine
and this asian lady had her stuff on it
she put a chait on the middle one
and asked me to watch her stuff
so i played my 10 and lost
she wasnt there
and i had recently watched curb with larry leaving
after asking to watch someones stuff
so i lost 20 more
waiting
and again nothing
she came back finally

i figured that was the lucky machine
gma always said there was one lucky machine

at 8pm that night the lady was still at the same machine
she had a stack of printed out winners

at 11pm she was gone but the chair was propped
and the casino person said i couldnt play it
because it was propped

the terrible pool was terrible
cold and dirty
so after my free steak
i drove back to the palm
to swim the last hour before it closed

i got there and the pool was closed early for a private party
i went back to the lucky machine
it was open
just as i put in my cash
a fight broke out 25 feet away

lost 18 dollars of cash i had in my wallet
there would not be one last free spin

debating whether to just stay in my room
and out of trouble
or wander around

was supposed to go to hoover dam tomorrow
then drive to death valley
but the high is 111 and the low 85
thought it got cold in the desert at night
not sure i will be able to sleep in my car
if it is that hot out

Las Vegas

the ride into vegas was interesting
i saw a sign that said no services for 50 miles
then 10 miles later another that said no services for 50 miles
i stopped at that one
which was a mistake for gas it was 40 cents more than it would have been in vegas
and i had enough to get there but
you dont want to make a mistake in the desert
however that exit happened to be route 66
so now i can say i took a dump on route 66

about an hour from vegas
i was exhausted
but there was nowhere to stop
not even a rest stop

thought about stopping at the hoover dam to sleep
but i figure they are tough on security there
once i got to boulder city
there was supposed to be a rest stop
but the construction kept me from it

finally pulled over to a mcdonalds
and rested for 15 minutes

the traffic in vegas was insane
i got there around midnight

my hotel is the palms
but my reservations are for sun and mon

i parked in the palms parking garage
found a spot in the corner overlooking the city
a light was burned out overhead

i set everything up and went in the hotel

madness
i forgot mayweather fought that night
and i would find out late diddy had his after party
at the rain bar

i did a lap
thought i am out of my element
got back to my car to try to sleep

it was the best tent i had made
but i made it too well
it was stifiling hot
even with the fan on my stomach
it was brutal
i had all four windows opened at the top

eventaully i had to ditch the tent
to get some air

drunks and car alarms kept me from sleeping well
fell asleep eventually but was woke up after 3
the party people cleared out
and the parking garage cleaners were blasting shitty music

put my contacts in and drove off
found a walmart
there were no campers and i had read
overnight were not welcomed
but it was a 24
so i parked in the middle row midway down
didnt bother with the tent
rolled the back windows down a quarter way
and tried to angle the pillow to avoid the light

slept until 630
then got up and checked out the potential browns backer bars
the first was in a strip mall across from a casino
no internet
no big screen
there was strippers in there eating breakfast

the second one was called kooper keg west
it was a little after seven
dude had to buzz me in
it had browns stuff all over the walls

went back to the palms
couldnt get the room until 3
but did all the paperwork
got a free breakfas buffet
yes i ate crab legs at 8am
and just about everything else
i wasted more food than i ate the last week

the dude next me had 5 glasses of free champagne
considered skipping the browns bar
and watching it at the sports book loaded on free booze
but figured i would be asleep by the end of the first quarter

i am now at kooper keg awaiting kickoff
there must be 50 browns fans here
every tv is on the game
that doesnt even happen in some places in lakewood

guy said most everyone was originally from cleveland
but then he mentioned he was from canton
and well...

Grand Canyon

didnt sleep the first four hours
but was able to stay nine and half hours
in the overnight parking space i found

it was almost too hot
i made my tent in the backseat and it was pretty dark

i was in shorts and tshirt with no sheet
but just couldnt fall asleep
took a long time
but cant remember last time i tried to go to sleep
at 8pm

it was dark when i headed for the grand canyon
didnt really get to see sunrise because
the canyon walls blocked it

early on almost hit a coyote running across the highway

got to the park
and first stop was the watchtower
which wasnt opened yet

hung around
call my niece abby for her 6th birthday
but since i gave her drums last saturday
i guess she didnt feel to need to talk to me
sis said she was nodding her head to my questions
kids are weird
there are other times she wont stop talking

if someone else was ever going to go out west
and see everything
i would suggest seeing the grand canyon first
then the parks in utah wyoming and montana

dont get me wrong
it is breathtaking
and pretty awesome
the scale is great

but the character is different
if you are not a hiker
it is less interactive

you walk or bus
to looking at the same grand thing

i am seen some pretty awesome stuff
so after a while pretty awesome stuff seems normal
maybe one at a time
would be more powerful

debating whether to stick around
to watch sunset
or head to vegas area

as cool it would be see the sunset
it is four more hours
and then i would have to drive the four and half hours
to las vegas in the dark

it seems a simpler drive than the past ones
but i dont want to push it

if i leave now i can find somewhere halfway
eat and relax

the food choices in the park is limited
and there really isnt anything to do but look at the canyon
could go for another hike
but dont want to get more tired for driving

plus there is a skywalk operated by the Hualapai Nation
it is five hours from this spot in the grand canyone
so vegas is closer
but the skywalk is just two hours from vegas
so maybe tuesday when i check out i will swing back
two hours is nothing now
to think i complained about a half hour one way commute to work
the one problem with the skyway i dont know the price
every page on their website but that one works
cant call because my phone is dead
from all the photos i took

maybe i will look at grand canyon map and
find a quiet spot somewhere to wait

we will see

Bryce Canyon Utah

so yesterday was tough
i slept more overnight
mostly out of exhaustion

spending the morning at a mcdonalds
and booking hotel in vegas
gave a light to the end of the tunnel

but then driving through utah started
to suck away that motivation

blew past salt lake city without noticing
thought about turning back
but the intersate is a mess
expanding lanes i guess
every off ramp was a mess as well

nowhere to turn off
and if you left the interstate
it was a pain to get back on

couldnt decide where to go
zion and bryce were on the list

but i just kept driving and driving and driving
my ass hurt
and the road just kept going

i heard good things about bryce
but the weather report there was bad
it sounded better at zion

my aunt carol said i had to go to bryce
i even called her
and she convinced to go bad weather or not

i stopped at mcdonalds
got an ice cream cone in town close
to where i had to make a choice

decided to skip zion and go to bryce

one reason i wasnt going to go to yellowstone
was i knew the drive through wyoming and utah (and idaho it turns out)
would mostly suck
and i was right
but yellowstone and beartooth were worth it
and bryce most certaintly worth it

again got the cliffs note version of the part
was only there two hours or so
but damn it was awesome just being on the edges

my one regret of going to yellowstone was
driving up and over the rockies
so if i ever go back home
figured i could hit zion and maybe arches
on the way to boulder/denver

still four hours from the grand canyon
so a bit of a hike in the morning
we will see how long i sleep

decided to go to south rim
which is the touristy one
so i can spend the day hopefully
riding buses
resting the car
for the drive into vegas
i have a date to watch the browns at 11 am on sunday
and then at least two nights of swimming pools
showers and hotel beds

Idaho was not on the schedule

so i took off from jackson hole
tired and hungry

i had planned to give the car
the day off but now i was driving to salt lake city

the snake river lived up to its name
i drove over it a dozen times

at one point the gps had me exit
so i blindly followed
made a turn
and i was on back road to nowhere
uh..............

i made the left it asked
and a sign said welcome to idaho

the next sign said no gas or services 55 miles
uh..............

the sun was starting to set
i figured it would be gone around half way

it was the scariest drive of my life
the car rumbled
if it broke
i would be hours from anyone
and no one knew where i was

i figured should call someone
and at that moment i looked at my phone
and it went from a bar to no signal

it is weird what pops into your head at that moment
not sure why but i heard my cousin marks wife angie laugh

i think he had just posted something so maybe that why
but i could hear saying oh dude you are screwed

the road was a constant curve
there were no straighaways

for the first 20 minutes i saw no cars
maybe one house

signs said either
stock crossing
or game crossing

guess it is so you know if you have to pay for it
if you hit an animal

while beartooth was an adventure this was terror
whenever car came from the other way
maybe a dozen the whole hour
i freaked a little on the turn
slowing way down

the two times a car came behind
i begged it to pass quickly

the whole hour
maybe three houses total
no stores
nothing

i finished reliefed
thinking real highway here we come
nope
but the next road had two lanes each way mostly
and maybe 10 houses
now i was driving up and down mountains

that was highway 30
i got a signal briefly
didnt want to freak parents
so called boyle and of course
he didnt answer
so i left my location as a starting point
when i disappeared

eventually interstate 15 showed up
and that was better
i had googgled a walmart and called to see if they allowed overnights
back in jackson

when i got there
with about five to spare
before i got dangerous to drive
the gps took me to an airforce base instead
regpsed and it took me farther down the road
where it was walmart grocry store only
they sent me to the superstore
it took longer than expected
and being tired it was tough

found it
ate at del taco
hoping i would not regret in the middle of the night
and set up in the parking lot

while yellowstone was cold
i mostly ok unless i tried to move
and my body left the blanket
here it was in the 60s and it was too hot
couldnt get the blankets to tent right
so it was bright
i had the fan on full blast
but i was tired
and slept for 4 hours

i woke up because in my "dream"
someone said dummy they towed your car while you slept
so i though this for about a minute after i woke
got out checked the car for damaged
realized i was still where i started
opened the windows a little furhter
and thankfully went back to sleep for three more hours

got up around 630
and felt compelled to drive
the highway was packed for rushhour i guess
got off the first exit
saying where are you going

eventually found this mcdonalds
where i have been for almost three hours
typing these posts and making plans

debating whether to get a hotel room and crash
or kept drving
i havent showered since sunday morning
my body could use one and a bed where i unbend my legs
while i sleep

there are several cool national parks in utah
decided two are too far out of the way right now
it is supposed to rain all day in one
and just be cold in another
so check those out on the way to arizona

booked a hotel room in vegas for sunday and monday
it was a mystery resort
56 a night plus 12 resort fee

turns out to be the palms
that price is cheaper than nearly all available rooms
in salt lake city
and three times cheaper than jackson hole

having my second coffee in two days
may never sleep again

from my perch at mcdonalds
i can see an in and out burger
i wonder when they open

so the plan is check out the utah national parks on the way
there is walmart but not a 24 hour one in page arizona
just over the border
about two hours and 45 minutes from the grand canyon
being it will be saturday
debated to go to north side with less crowds
but i think it might be good
to park and get on the buses with the tourists
and just go with the flow
can always wander another time

just saw a guy with a steelers jersey
thought about it but didnt flick him off
thats progress right

Yellowstone Day Two

thursday was the toughest day

it started with the message of the damaged chip
which cost me all of my videos and pics
not just of the trip but everything
including my sisters kids

it also got below 30
didnt sleep well

ran into the same older couple while waiting
for the grand geyser

turns out they were from maine
always wanted to go to maine
they offered to email photos of the geysers
which was cool

grand was worth the long wait

i think if my parents ever went to yellowstone
the geysers by old faithful
would be their favorite part
there are all of these geyser gazers
they have notebooks and walkie talkies
and let each other know the signs of when a geyser may blow
it is like a game
trying to catch all of them
me getting to see giantess was unique
one guy said regular yearly visitors have never seen it

i can picture my dad taking notes
and living it chasing geysers

being tired and hungry for real food
i was a bit grumpy
and not having access to my phone camera
put me a little on tilt

being able to send and post videos and pics
instantly has kept me connected
the instant feedback doesnt make you feel alone

at the general store at old faithful
i meet paul a tawainese worker
if he had 10 minutes i know
he would have my phone problem
he got excited when i was directed to him
he was obviously working beneath his skills
likely a chump job to see america
there are a lot of young forgien kids working
at national parks
likely a cool gig

anyway paul started giving me options
but a large midwest woman wanted ice cream
i told him i would wait
but he said he would rather help me
but he got yelled at three times
about needing to serve ice cream
so while not solved
he gave me options

i drove out of the park
guerllia tourism
i got my dads camera to work
so every three minutes
i pulled over and took a great photo

stopped once by a big lake
pulled out the overside chair that spreads out
that has been taking up way too much room
in the trunk

opened it
then fell over on my ass
got back up and it started to rain

there may be a donation to goodwill in the near future
with mom getting a new one for some holiday

on the way out
west thumb was cool
there are these awesome pools
they say early fisherman would catch a trout
leave it on the pool and drop it into a pool
and cook it instantly

got some cool pics but cant post em
cause they are on the camera

drove through the grand tetons
wow
great views
took a while i stopped so much
if you were hiking inclined
it might be better than yellowstone
no entrance fee
and less tourists

the drive to jackson hole was scenic to say the least
great big ranches
then mountains in the distance

jackson hole itself
sucked

it is like the opposite of red lodge
stuffed full of tourists
while red lodge had that folksy feel
jackson hole felt like a money pit
this will say it all
one of the radio stations in the area is a red sox radio affilate

i did however buy a new card for my phone
so i can take photos
realized i also lost all the songs i downloaded
so when there are no radio stations
that sucks
and it means my ringtones are gone
that will take a lot of work to replace
as i had individual tones for both calls and texts
for almost every person in my phone

so likely unwisely
i left jackson hole
hungry and tired

i avoided the quickest route
because it didnt want to drive off a cliff in the direct
and i didnt take another route because it was an extra hour

i thought i took the safest route
well...
i will make that different post

Overnight in Yellowstone

Overnight

knew it would be cold
had nice system
with blanker over the front seats to block light
and a second blanket stretching front seat to back seat
making a tent
underneath had sheet and thick fleece laying on top
of a sleeping bag if I needed it
at one point took off sweatshirt

the front windows were slightly down
as they say to do
didnt use the fan because it was cold but i was warm


but couldnt fall asleep
or think i couldnt fall asleep

so heard people walking by
drunks
and then what sounded like a security guard

could hear someone walk around the car
stop
flash a light
thought heard him say
someone is sleeping in there

laid as still as could be
for as long as could be
it was freaking me out he wouldnt leave

finally jumped up and no one was there
figured maybe it was in my head

didnt hear him for some time

hours later
i heard two guys talking
one saying someone is sleeping in there
could sense the light

at one point was like kick me out already
they left
still could not sleep
got real cold
poked my head up
there werent many cars
no one around

it was like 3:30 am
the window had frost on it
started the car

and here was when i got bad news
now the phone was dying
but it said damaged external SD card

all of my pics and videos are gone
not just from the trip
but of the kids
and everything since march

now my dad camera had failed
earlier in the day
thought we put new batteries in
and at mt rushmore it was dead
so I put in new ones
and those are already dead
must not be connecting
plus every photo is 3x too bright
spent so much time trying to change that
and couldn’t figure it out

so this sucks

right now
iam in hallway
of a hotel
charging my phone
and typing this
going to try to play with chip
once it is juiced up
but it looks bad

guessing it will be expensive
to get a new one
and who knows where or when
can find a radio shack or best buy

the internet doesnt work here
on my phone i could facebook but not google
and the computer cant connect

not sure if I will keep my promise of not
using the car
but it better warm up

Yellowstone

Yellowstone

quickly adopted the attitude
of seeing what was in front of me
the park is so big
not going to see everything so
not going worry about it
just see what was in front of me

which happened to be buffalo
right along the road
which was cool
later in the day traffic stopped
as one walked down the middle of the road
video taped it
he walked right past
could have touched him

did not worry about names of places
could not stop every turn off
sometimes it was packed
people pulled over hanging over the side pointing
but without binoculars skipped those

saw plains
drove up and down a mountain
saw rivers and falls
remains of burnt forest
something different constantly

this one place
my new limitations bothered me a bit
as a writer
can still pull off game stories
because it happens
i take notes
and can capture it quickly

since didnt stop to write yesterday
a lot is lost
my short term is toast

cant tell you how many times
stopped went to my trunk
got started back up and realized
forgot to get what was wanted

kept meaning to recheck oil
and kept forgetting
finally did and it was slightly short
added a little more
hours later when finally remembered
it seemed a little over

midway realized
needed to get to old faithful
just so when people asked
it would be like going to dc
and not seeing the washington momumnet
might be more impressive things to see
what you need to see it

got there around 6
and just missed it
people were clapping and then everyone left
sat to wait for 90 min
when overheard someone say
a big one was erupting that only happened three times a year

a nice old lady who worked for the park
seemed to think a hike there was possible
to get back for faithful

turned out it wasnt long at all
would have walked right past it
if it wasnt for a nice couple
at bench with a video camera
you could actually see old faithful behind it

they reminded me of my parents
they were nice
there was young couple headed to uc santa barbara there was well
thought maybe i jinxed it
because it would not blow

it was call giantess
my phone blew up at this point
as it finally worked
all the messages sent all day finally sent
and i heard from a lot of people in reply

so facebook a bunch but not all of my photos
this will turn out to be important

finally the young couple left
and instantly it launced
it was awesome
got great video

then walked around park
geysers everywhere

got back to old faithful
to watch the one in the dark
the young couple was there
and we talked for a while
waiting
thought maybe we broke old faithful
because it was late

the young couple was driving at night
they were taking turns sleeping
headed to salt lake then vegas before school
personally i was afraid to drive in the park at night
who knows where there is a buffalo in the road
and some of the turns were scary in daylight

one interesting thing about the couple
they were hauling a lawn mower from minnesota to cali
for an uncle for something

and i thought colin wilson was the only person
crazy enough to haul a lawn mower across state lines
on a vacation

one disappointment was it was cloudy
so the stars were on par with cleveland
really want to see a lot of stars

there were no hotels or camps ground available
in the park or hour outside of it

decided to sleep in old faithful hotel parking
and if they didnt send me away
would try not to drive the car for 24 hours
it has been taking a beating
would explore the geysers around faithful
maybe find a place to sit

can see joe boyle and mancinis need to explore
if i ever came back
i would come back in shape
and with friends

yet at the same time
i love how they have dumbed down yellowstone
sure you daring souls can risk your life with grizzlies
climb things and jump over things
whatever

but everyone else can see the highlights
mostly safe
you stop when everyone else stops
take pictures and move on at your own pace

that is america

Beartooth

so much happened on wednesday
i will have to break it into parts
when in billings
the cabelas had no overnight parking sign
ended up at walmart
there were two buses there
at 3am the parking lot cleaner parked behind my car
for at least five minutes
brutal
so i got up and started on

fornuately the next town also had a walmart
and that lot was packed with overnighters
got another hour and half sleep and started for red lodge


the car went over 10,000 since bought in march
and 2,000 for the trip
the check oil light went on
hoping from the factory
went to check and for the life of me
could not find the dip stick
total blank
had to call my dad
it was tucked up front
it seemed a little short and added half a bottle
dad stressed waiting 10 minutes

you could see the fog up on the mountain
it was around 9am and none of the shops opened til 10

talked to a ranger and she said it wouldn’t hurt to wait some
after a hour and the shops opened
the really nice guys at an outfitters store
said no go
it should open up on top

the beartooth was amazing
winding road up a mountain
sharp turns
limited guard rails
tight lines
there was several scary moments
but man was it beautiful

the fog broke quick
but near the top it came back
for what seemed like forever
a thick fog came in
could see may three-four car lengths in front

it broke on the other side
wish you could see the views on a sunny day
but it was intense and awesome

it was one way for a while
so traffic got stopped

was one of the last cars
so turned off to look at the view
and let everyone ahead
these two guys from oregon
had the same idea

and we talked at a couple stops
it was breaktaking at those two overlooks
the ride down was pretty fun

big thanks to tyler for suggesting that route
could only imagine how chris petta would have drive that road
it would be really fun or really dead

Billings, MT

the afternoon got off to an frustrating start
i wanted to find a national park
relax and maybe take a nap
and do some reading

i got to sheridan wy
where a national forest was supposed to
i knew something was up
when five miles out
there were no trees

the address was for the rangers hq
which was in one of those unfinished corporate parks
apparently the mountain was a hour away
whatever

i was tired and ready to sleep
i parked in hotel parking lot
and found the address to a city park
that promised a buffalo reserve

i got there and there was nothing

so i figured to look for a used box store
or a thrift store as i need a belt

my jeans were falling off my ass
all around devils tower

found a thrift store
and they had 150 belts for $1
apparently only children midgets and 85 pound girls
donate used belts

the only one that fit
i could not wear
in case the wind pushed my shirt up
just couldnt do it

so i looked up a walmart
put the address in the gps
and it produced a nine hour drive
what the f

found the walmart
couldnt pull the trigger on a 12 belt

manned up and headed for montana
as i wanted out of sheridan

tyler is a guy i have met a few times in pittsburgh
as he is dating drees friend liz
he offered to show me around yellowstone
but alas he leaves on wed for the next nine days to work
he was available after that
but it conflicted with the joe purdy tickets i have in la

he has been helpful
as in less than 24 i have texted more
than likely all but maybe three people in the whole world

gps wanted the easy way into yellowstone
and its alternate was through the north gate

tyler is having me take beartooth highway
he seemed excited that i was going to take it

i made it to billings an hour before sunset
and thought about driving to red lodge
try to find a place to sleep
and take beartooth in the morning

but i am tired
and there is a cabelas here
so i figured i would sleep here
and not push my luck

just looked up and the bearstooth is closed 8pm to 8am anyway

dont know if i will get internet anywhere in yellowstone
so i dont know if i will be able to post
planning to spend a night or two if i can there
we will see

i saw seen so much and driven so far in the last few days
it seems longer

not in the car but i think i am close to 2,000 miles
not there yet but close

oh i almost forgot
wyoming and montana are gorgeous
it is crazy that these places exist
just big wide open spaces
with incredible landscapes

i took a brief detour to little bighorn
a weird place if there was ever one
too tired to debate myself now

hopefully i will be refreshed and ready for the bearstooth
in the morning

Devils Tower

slept somewhat better
i ditched the curtains
i put the front window shield up
then draped over the previously needless headrests in the back seat
a blanket across the back seat to over the front seat headrests
blocked out everything
i have small battery fan
and it worked well
i slept in shorts and tshirt
and barely needed a sheet
it worked a little too well
when i farted and i had to come up for fresh air

may have slept longer than five hours
if my need for nature hadnt woken me up

i went to put my contacts in
and the case which i left on the dash
was empty
seems i started to take them out and then didnt
need to remember to do that
to rest my eyes


the early start got me on the road by 6am
decided to venture off 80 to go to deadwood

it was rather empty at 7am
i walked the main street
there are signs where wild bill did his last everything

one disappointment was there was no plaque
where the gem and swearing al stood
the new casino/hotel had steakhouse called the gem
but i couldnt find a plaque
i put one buck in a wheel of fortune for grandma
played three quarters and when i lost saved the ticket

i then drove to devils tower
which is pretty cool
i have pics on fb

there were a few guys climbing it
in different spots
i settled for walking around it

for a while i lost the tour bus germans
who love to talk loud
and got to enjoy some peaceful moments
but then i started playing words with friends
and they caught up

i checked words like four times last night and no one played
turned out i had five moves to make
as it just didnt get picked up
the aliens in the tower must have helped

the food offerings here suck
so i am venturing back on the highway
towards yellowstone
i hope i find gas in the next 60 miles

plan to find a forest and cool place to nap outside
then maybe read if my eyes arent hurting

i like the feedback people are texting

Rapid City, SD

i began my morning at the corn palace
it is actually made of corn
the outside and the inside is designed every year using corn
high schools and college actually play basketball inside
seems like it would be a great atmosphere

i asked if there were any local used bookstores
but there werent
i am ashamed to admit i have never read
steinbecks travels with charley
and want to pick up a copy

i left mitchell and head out on 90
the billboards are out of control
i was so distracted i almost missed it
when the scenery changed

i got off the exit
to bighorn
and then miscaluclated
i misunderstood the badlands loop
and instead got back on 90
and drove to wall drug
because i was hungry
as soon as i got there
two buses of seniors were in the cafe line
so i got a personal pizza across the street
got back on the computer and realized my mistake
i drove through the badlands
and ended up where i should have started
i only wasted time and money
which whatever but i had to see all those damn signs again
as i drove past wall drug again

the first stop in the badlands from the west
which should have been my last stop
was almost worth the 80 pass i bought itself
i even saw in the distance a lone buffalo
it was far enough that i start to think it was a bench
but it was definitly a buffalo

from there i drove to crazy horse
i didnt go in though
the reviews of what you get nickel and dimed for
didnt seem worth it
i saw it from the entrance
then drove to mt rushmore
so i could spend more time there

i was able to relax a little
and stayed for the light ceremony
which seemed like an old school red hymnal church service
so naturally i got up and stood in the back
mostly because my back tightened up
i came back to the amptitheater over an hour early
but all the seats with backs were reserved by people
putting their coats and blankets there
didnt seem all that manifest destiny to me

i found another cabelas to sleep in for tonight
and i am calling my first audible
rather than driving to boulder then santa fe

i am going north
devils tower on my way to the grand tetons and yellowstone

why not right

sorry these suck
i am tired
hope i sleep better
might have to buy a tent

my plan was to hustle to vegas then the beach
and lay around and read books

but i am here
so i might as well see our national parks

Mitchell, South Dakota

well the browns plan didnt work out
the direct tv froze and the game was never shown

i meet guys from rocky river ohio
in the past we have gotten drunk with the same people
just not at the same time

i brought in my laptop to try and get the game
one guy said he had a direct tv password
but no luck

i got the browns game radiocast from thier official site
so i took it to my car to listen
and remember as soon as i drove
i would lose the signal

i listened in a mcdonalds parking
for the second browns td
i just couldnt get it to work from the same site
on my phone
i have cords to listen to both my computer and phone
through my speakers but no luck

wmms on the phone was playing music
but i found the bengals broadcast
and listened to that through wisconsin

of course the browns lost
but i couldnt get that mad
because the mississippi was 10 feet away

later i raced the sun
and got to blue earth minnesota
and got there in time
to take pics of the jolly green giant

tired
going to try to sleep
in a carabella's parking lot

Waukesha Part 2

slept well
so when one of the kids started screaming
around 8 am
it was alright

i didnt get the freakout
on abby opening the drums
because i am pretty sure
rachel the soon to be 9 year old
peeked and spilled the beans

abby seemed happy though
she said i did good
but i forgot to get a stool
i told her she asked for drums with a cymbal
there was no mention of a stool

last year i bought abby and marcus
pillow pets for their birthdays
i thought rachel was too old
she said she was done with princesses
and pink
but she was jealous she didnt get one

so i bought her frog pillow pet
at borders for 50 percent off
could have waited two days to get even more off
she seemed happy

i got marcus
two warrior robots on wheels
he liked em
bet he never touches them again after today though

we played charades
that was fun

well in the next hour
everything gets real

no more family to see
i took a shower
i have no idea when i will be able to do that again

last night i slept in a bed
who knows when i will do that again

next stop madison wisconsin
to meet up with a browns backers group

Waukesha

after a brief detour in chicago
where i drove along the lake
but couldnt go left because of mexican independence parade
i made it to my sisters

i walked in the house and all of the kids
were in the basement watching a movie

i went to the fridge to get some water
and abby who will be turning six next week
walked upstairs and saw me

she got this weirded out look on her face
she race to the window and looked in the driveway
then said
how did you get here

i said i drove
she said who else is here
just me
oh

i brought her a present in a big box
and two small ones for rachel and marcus

they didnt get to open them
because their dad didnt like how they were at dinner
so they are all in bad
and the presents are just sitting there
which is a bummer

marcus is convinced that i bought abby luggage
he kept telling me
oh i know its luggage

i told abby it might just be a big box
with a tootsie roll in it
she said she was be really disappointed
if that happened

a few weeks ago
the kids were in ohio
and we were talking about birthday presents
marcus turned four last monday
i got him a metal tee ball bat
its pretty sweet

anyway abby on my parents deck
looked at me and said
uncle i want drums for my birthday
i said bongos i can get you bongos
she got all determined and serious
no she said
i want drums with a cymbal

so i got her pink drums with a cymbal

the kids better be good in the morning
because i really want to see her open the drums

i better get a freak out

North Manchester part 2

after watching jim gaffigan talk about hot pockets on netflix
my brother and i ventured out

north manchester has four bars
and i ended going to all four

started at the mainview
which is owned by my brothers friend scotty and his family

it is a great place
with good food
nice beer selection

it was the site of one of the best nighs ever
when josh won his second championship
cousin dave bought bottles of liquor that had sat on shelves for years
at a bargin discount from scotty
my uncle left to get my dad
it was so icy he fell
when my dad showed up
he asked how far behind he was
and started draining shots
and he never really drinks in public
it was a good time

last night
almost as soon as we walked in
scotty started handing out shots

the whole table
had twitter fever
it is weird how things have changed
so quickly
you go out to a bar
everyone is looking at their phone


after a while
the girls we were with
wanted to move on

the mainview is the only place
my brother feels comfortable
hanging out at
he is the basketball coach at the college
and there is too many students at the rest

josh drove them and me to the timeout
and then he went home
i intended to spend time with him
but he insisted i stay

apparently the state of indiana
has never heard of black haus or any kind
of blackberry brandy so we couldnt do heshes
but must have done every other shot

holly kept asking me
are you really just heading out west
with no real plan
but i never got to answer
because instantly every time
she would get distracted

also whenever i mentioned home or cleveland
she would yell YOU HAVE NO HOME NOW

my brother came back to pick up brandy -who was pretty cool-
to drop her off at her home at one point
but for some reason
left without me again

kelley made me follow her out
and we got in some girls truck
and went to the inn

that place mostly sucked
i couldnt get a beer
kept ordering one
people kept offering to buy me one
but the bartender kept forgetting

eventually i got one
and as soon as i did
kelley was ready to go
to manchesters fourth bar

we cut through an alley
there in the alley
was holly

small towns

i texted josh to figure out
how to walk home

but he misinterpeted
that as i was walking home
and drove to pick me up
a few minutes after three

i just checked on my phone
for the time he texted him
sat the phone down
and it started dialing brandy for some reason
had to quickly hit cancel
but i am sure it rang

oops

onto waukesha
needed to drive through chicago
which is always fun

North Manchester

i have 2011 Ford fiesta
bought it new in march
this morning it was just
three miles short of 8,000 miles.

the sun hasn't shined in cleveland this week
wanted to go on one last bike ride to edgewater
or lay in the hammock one more time
but it never happened

i also had a list to do the following:
- make a key that opens the side door of my car but wont start it
- open a bank account at different bank that doesnt charge atm fees
- buy cleveland tshirts
- a new hat

none of that happened
but not for a lack of trying

turns out
- only a locksmith can make the key and it was cost prohibitive
- pnc will only reemburse 8 bucks a month and that wasnt enough to get me to deal with an evil pittsburgh bank that killed a cleveland bank
- great lakes lake erie monster shirts only came in kid sizes the elliot ness was a puke color and i forgot to go to the melt
- didnt find the hat i wanted

anyway i made it north manchester indiana
mostly smooth sailing
early on the turnpike was briefly a parking lot
i was literally stopped
but it cleared up in 15 minutes

i got here just in time for my brother to go to practice

so i am watching party down on netflicks
typing this

we were going to go to see the indians play in chicago
but choose not to
its two and half hours away and looks like rain

dont worry this will get better
in the next few days

the calm before

so today was my last full day in cleveland
before my adventure begins

my mom left for a sewing convention
so she hugged me like four times

my dad and i bottled our beer
he seemed concerned about how
it will be drunk before going bad
since i am leaving
there were only 23 22 ounce bottles
i told him it would be ok

for lunch my dad and i picked up
my uncle andy
and we ventured east
to hot sauce williams on east 123 and superior

they have a polish boy there
that two television shows have proclaimed
to be 'the' cleveland food
figured i should have one
it was sloppy and good

but what should have been a forty minute round trip
took about two hours
nothing like getting lost in the ghetto

i had dinner with rochelle
at the fairview tavern

it was the first time i have seen her
outside of a bar when she was working

rochelle is a big reason for this trip
she said i was the biggest whiner in the whole world
i asked the whole world
and she admitted she hadnt met everyone in the world
so it was possible someone was a bigger whiner
but she doubted it

i dont really care what most people think of me
i guess the short list would be
my mom
dree
and i suppose for some strange reason
rochelle

rochelle defies stereotypes
guess that is why i like her
that it would be nice to have an age appropriate friend

but i dont like the person
rochelle sees

and there have been times over the last few months
when i didnt like
what my mom and dree envision me as well

when i said i was leaving
but seemed excited that i would do it
but in quieter moments
dree joked i wouldnt make it past indiana
and my mom said i cant see you camping

i want to be someone else
i cant see that changing if i stay

maybe i find what i am looking for on the road

so my plan other than the start to see my siblings
was to make no plans
i made a tentative plan of approach
but no specific dates to be there

however i got a facebook message
that joe purdy is playing in los angeles
on sept 28 at the hotel cafe

i bought a ticket

so i guess the journey will be how i get there
over the next 19 days

oh and the joe purdy buy reminded me
i forgot to give rochelle
the joe purdy cd i made for her

a boring prologue

i am sort of particular

in order to sleep
i need a completely blacked out room
i cover even the vent so not even a hint of light enters the room
a fan needs to running
blowing cold air on my face no matter what season of the year it is
i have a queen sized bed
and i often wake up at a 45 degree angle from where i started
then i usually cant function without a shower in the morning

when a stranger talks to me
i usually shrink away
i dont like to talk to people i dont know
and certainly overact whenever a stranger touches me

i am not an outdoorsman
i hated camping as a kid
and i dont do it as an adult
i dont walk much let alone hike

even though i dont really like most people
i am not good at being alone
i tend to stay close to home

i am terrible driver
in the last year
i totaled my car
dented my dads truck with my moms bumper
majorly scraped the side of my moms car along a pole
backed my new car into my dads truck again
then smashed the front passenger side of my car
when i tried to pull over to watch fireworks

i get road rage a lot
just going to the mall
the other day
i probably said
fuck you
close to a dozen times

i am
impatient
angry
generally unhappy

i dont have many friends
and the majority of that small number
dont even like me that much

i quit my job mostly out of pride
but i was miserable
not with the work
i hated being associated with shitty human beings
but the half hour commute drove me nuts

so it makes perfect sense
that i am packing up my car
and heading west

a long road trip
sleeping in my car
alone
where i know no one
no safety of loving home with loving parents
doing things i am uncomfortable doing

i wasnt always this way
and certainly i dont want to stay this way

i am homesick
but dont know where i am missing