The Movers and The Drive

(I know it's customary for posts to blogs to be a "daily diary" arrangement, but since I'm starting this a few days later than I ideally should have, this first post will cover several days. For pictures, visit http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AYsnLlozZN37g&notag=1)

July 28

The movers came this morning at around 7:50a. A couple of thoughts came into my head as they went to work: 1) It's weird to think that basically all of our earthly possessions will easily fit into just half of a semi-trailer, and 2) MAN! I really hope I packed that Steelers mug nice and securely.

At 7:35p, the movers finally left. That's right... nearly 12 hours to load up our house! Aargh!!! They were nice and all, but terms like "glacial," "snail's pace," and "molasses in January" come to mind. To say the least, I was pretty frustrated with how long things took. So, on the way up to my parents (the place KnPnCnC would call home for a couple of days) I relied on the musical stylings of System of the Down, Tool, and Rammstein to ease away the stress. (If you don't know these groups, trust me, you won't considerate it time well spent if you go looking for samples of their music.) See ya' later Richboro.


July 31 - Wagons, Ho!
With our belongings packed and rations nearby (and after a side trip to Indiana, PA), we set off for the West. "Giddy-up, Honda! Giddy-up, Ford!"

Upon leaving the Allegheny Mtns. and northern Ohio River Valley, we quickly entered the Grain Belt. Man, we couldn't believe the size of some of the cornfields in IN and IL! For nearly 5 hours, I had to fight the urge to unnecessarily floss my teeth.

After 10 hours, 584 miles and parts of 5 states (PA, WV, OH, IN and IL), we ended today's segment in Effingham, IL (known as The Crossroads of Opportunity and home to a giant cross). The EconoLodge was great... accepts pets, close to take-out restaurants, and best of all, a pool for Chloe to burn off some energy.


August 1 - More Breadbasket and The Ol' Man
We moseyed out of Effingham at 7:30a and continued to be amazed by the grain fields along the interstate. As we approached St. Louis, Peg chimed in on the 2-way radio wondering how much out of the way it is to see The Arch. I knew it wasn't too far out of the way, but I couldn't tell which way to go to go out of the way by looking at a small GPS screen. So, I dialed up good friend Mike Drew (a former Show Me stater) for advice. Like Moses and the Israelites, he guided us through the desert (actually, East St. Louis, but by the looks of it, I would have preferred to be in the desert.)

After a few miles and our fair share of abrupt lane changes, we found ourselves on a bridge crossing the Mississippi River (say it with me "That there's the Mississippi. The Mighty Mississip. The Old Miss. The Ol' Man... Deep River. My home is over Jordan") with a beautiful view of The Arch. (Kudos on the directions Mike! If the FAA thing goes south, perhaps a career at AAA awaits!) With Chamberlain in the car we couldn't get out to walk around and in it, but it was a nice and easy little detour.

With today's excitement over, we continued on through Missouri (a state with more hills than I anticipated) and into Kansas (which was some beautiful prairies in the east) and our first look at The Great Plains.

Today's overnight stop, after 532 miles and parts of just 3 states, was in Salina, KS. Salina, by the way, is home to the biggest grain elevator I ever saw. (Here are the specs.) The America's Best Value Inn was so-so... it did have a pool but it was in complete sun and the temps were in the mid 90s. To stay cool, PnCnC hung out in the AC, and I went to the DQ. The heat pretty much confined us to our room, but we made the most of it. For example: we knew that once we got there we wanted to do things that Boulderites do. Furthermore, we also knew today was the 1st day for single game seats to go on sale for University of Colorado football. So I made a call and got us tix to see them play Texas in October. I'm interested in the game; Peg and Chloe more so in the live buffalo that runs onto the field during pregame festivities.

August 2 - The New Home Home Stretch
Knowing (hoping, too) that today's the last leg of our trip, we got another early jump (7:35a departure). Less there be any doubt, Kansas — and not just Oklahoma — also has winds sweeping down the plains. For several miles before and after Ellsworth, KS we drove past a huge wind farm — somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 windmills were there, all spinning in the 20-30 mph wind. And when we got out at a rest stop, we found out those winds can be hot... temps today danced around 100 degrees.

There were probably some during the previous two days, but we noticed some interesting signs along today's route. For example:
- Russell, KS is the boyhood home for both Sens. Bob Dole and Arlen Specter.
- Somewhere off of Exit 70 is the World's Largest Prairie Dog
- And somewhere in the vicinity of that wonder of the world is another... a 6-legged steer.

I don't recall when we reached the KS/CO state line but it was probably around 11a. Though unofficially known as the Rocky Mountain State, eastern Colorado is anything but mountainous. Geographically speaking, the eastern Plains were both blah and amazing at the same time. "Blah" because there's not much there. "Amazing" because of how far one can see and not see much. Even with that contradiction, Peggy and I kinda enjoyed that stretch... we found it refreshing to see such openness, especially having come from the congested northeast US. Zipping long at 80 mph was nice, too.

After 453 miles (and parts of just 2 states) we arrived at our home in Boulder shortly after 2p. Yee-haw!