Metro to Mountain

05AUG10

Fortunately I ran in the morning before the rain. It is still hot, but not as bad as the previous days.

Amy and Rose went to a family reunion in Misery, oops Missouri. It is oppressively hot there. I think they are sleeping in a big tent with good ventilation; but it is still hot.

Jake and I are holding down the fort. We wished we could have gone but I had too much work to do. Jake went to the last reunion; but they enjoy shooting fireworks. Jake is a cautious dog. He does not like big scary sounds.

04AUG10

It is hotter still in Nashville. I think it will break the bulb if it continues.

I ran at lunch, well early afternoon. It was very hot; but curiously enough, it almost seemed as if the heat had taken a little of the humidity out of the air. After the run, we finished the yard work. The shade just didn't cover enough of the yard.

As I was biking to the grocery I saw a man carrying a small dog outside to the front yard. He then placed the dog on the ground. It wasn't as if the dog was going to run away and was therefore having to be carried. Instead I think the dog would not go outside on it's own to do it's business - because of the heat.

HIs neighbor's car tag said, "MR TANGO". Huh.

I did not wear my helmet to ride to the store. It was a choice between safety or green. If I had to wear that helmet, I would not ride - it was just too hot. I know you want to know, yes, I made it home safely. I am such a dare devil.

Rose flew in today. Her baggage didn't make it. I asked if they refunded her money?

03AUG10

It is still hot in Nashville.

I ran at lunch. It was still hotter.

My friend Jon, found and returned a piece of gear I was missing. Thanks. He didn't have to return it, I just wanted to know where it was.

Melissa, Amy's niece, was trying to play with Jake. He normally always wants to play; but she was trying to get his attention while we were eating. He was begging too hard to play. Now, that's hard to believe. After dinner, he resumed his normal non-begging character and any ball that was thrown, he chased. Thanks, Melissa.

Oh, it is still hot in Nashville.

02AUG10

It is still hot in Nashville.

I ran at lunch. It was hot. I forgot how disrespectful drivers are to runners, my memory was quickly refreshed.

We use a small DR battery powered mower. After running, I cut the lawn with the small mower. At one point I thought if I got on all fours and grazed like a cow, it would have probably cut the grass faster. We use the underpowered little mower all for the sake of being green! I agree with Kermit, it's not easy.

Lots of family gatherings. Little time for work.

Oh, it is still hot in Nashville.

01AUG10

It is Sunday and I still had not finished Friday's blog. I worked on it first thing.

Though we unpacked, we still have things everywhere. It will take a few days to get everything back to normal.

In the afternoon we went to Diane's, Amy's mom, for dinner and entertainment. Amy's cousin, Michael and his family were in from California. Amy's sister is in town from Germany. They are fun folks.

Still getting used to the heat.

31JUL10

We woke in Kansas and started packing. A State Trooper stopped to chat. Well, he was one Chatty Cathy as he talked and talked and talked. I didn't want to make him mad, but at the same time we were wasting time. It was time to go.

Not much had changed on the road. Kansas still has a lot of farm land and it looked very green.

We discussed trip notes and ideas for making the trip better.

It was hot and humid in Kansas. Tennessee will have to be even worse than Kansas. One of the reasons we like to go the the mountains every summer is to escape the Tennessee heat and humidity.

Approaching Missouri from Kansas on I-70 there is a sign at the junction to I-670 but the sign does not say where I-670 goes. You have to consult a map.

Rain followed us all the way from Colorado to Tennessee. At times it made driving difficult.

Every time I went by a Stuckey's I wanted to stop and get an ice cream. If Jamie had been with us, I am sure we would have stopped.

To avoid most of Illinois we went south from St Louis to Cape and then crossed the river and south again to Cairo. It is almost a ghost town, very eerie.

The final 150 miles to Nashville took forever. It is a good thing we used the cruise control or we probably would have gotten a ticket.

It was great to see Jake. It was stormy and he wanted to stay in a safe place rather than visit.

Ted, Amy's nephew, did a great job taking care of Jake.

We completely unpacked the car and unfurled anything that needed to dry. Unpacking is just part of the trip, you might as well do it as soon as possible so that you do not ruin any gear.

Wish you were here.

30JUL10

Elks were bugling in the field below the Timber Creek Campground when we awoke.

We spent some time that morning exploring the campground before beginning our pilgrimage across the Park on Trail Ridge Road.

They were naturally doing construction on the road. We were held up one time for about fifteen minutes just because the long construction trucks could not make the sharp curves and stay in their lane.

The Alpine Visitors Center was bustling. It is an amazing place. We had just stopped there a week earlier; but Jon and Laura had not stopped.

We left the Park and headed to Boulder. Stopping by Mark's we were hoping to catch him at home for lunch. He either did not come home, or we missed him.

For lunch we went to Mad Greens, a salad restaurant. Too bad they do not have one in Nashville.

We then showed Jon and Laura the McGuckin Hardware store. If you need it fastened, they have a fastener.

We departed ways. They went on to TN. We went back to Mark's to repack the Element, shower, and get caught up on the internet.

After visiting with Mark for a few minutes we hit the road and drove to western Kansas. We slept in the car at a rest area. We did not stay a single night in a motel for the whole trip.

Wish you were here.