it may be october, but it's always haunted here

     after leaving boston, it was not a far drive to salem, massachusetts.  based on a recommendation from jenn for a reputable tarot reader, i went to visit rick.  now i would say that in general i'm not one to search out various fortune or life path tellers, but i have always found the art of it interesting...i just never can tell who's a hoax or what, and then maybe what really the difference is.  but any who.

     i was told some personalish things, but what i really took from it was the recommendation to start my own business, that i could of gone into hand modeling, that i'm doing something good not only for myself but for the people that i run into through my road trip, and that i will be returning to where i came from [ now living or born? ].  afterwards, i did a little bit of walking around.  the streets lined with artist, artisian workers, and costumes.  and lucky for me, i was there just two weeks before halloween so the city was brimming with spirit [ and i don't mean steaming pots brimming or spirits roaming about.  or perhaps they were, but i just don't read life that way...haven't tapped into my para-normal ].  i didn't really spend much time because it was so busy and i didn't want to wait around to take the witch trial tours or haunted house hoop-la. though,  i did enjoy taking pictures of the houses all dressed up and this little beauty:

  i've never seen a state so concerned, and rightly so, for the various abilities of the citizens of the community.  with a rain cloud in the sky and drops hitting the streets, it was just the right amount of atmosphere and history to illicit a romantic feeling about the town and thus the desire for a return trip.  i guess i was just feeling a little anxious to spend some extra time with jenn and probably, mainly, being by myself for the first time in over a couple of weeks, i didn't quite have my adventure shoes on.  i mean, i was dressed properly, but i had regained my tentative nature about solo tripping that i had overcome already once in the trip.  but here we are back at square one, but really somewhere around mile 12,000.
     getting into rhode island, providence specifically, jenn and i headed out dinner at a mediterranian/mexican mix complete with sangaria!  there was a nice walk home from the restaurant and some tiramisu to ensure that we have the proper sugar plum fairies dancing in our head for a sound night's sleep.

     the next day, i was to have the honor of jenn's company all day long!  and we started out right with a trip to the gym to get our bodies into tip-top shape.  throughout the rest of the day she was going to treat me to the sights and legends along the road from providence to the shore of cape cod.  next stop was not the house [ and now inn where you can spend a night in the actual bloody memory murder, and there's a wait to get into that, room ] but instead to the accused's gravesite...lizzie borden.  there were arrows painted on the car travel roads to make it easier to find, but why travel the road most, well traveled.  we instead snuck in the back way and then walked around for awhile.  after leaving we made our way to mattapoiset, ma to visit a HUGE seahorse.  photo op!  we then made our way east, heave-ho...

and of course had to be funny and stop for a sandwich in sandwich.  yes that's right, we enjoyed a delicious seafood sandwich just minutes from the water, amongst the trees and historic new england at the sandwich, ma sign.  tee hee.  we made an additional stop at the salt pond visitors center and learned a little about local wild-life before moving on to the marconi station site.  it was interesting when we visited, but it was even more so after reading 'thunderstuck' by erik larson and the tale of marconi and the beginning of wireless communication.  i mean, how different would our world be right now if he hadn't of been a fanatic in the early 1900's?

we ended up in provincetown, which is where you end up when taking highway 6 out to the cape because that's where the land runs into the ocean...and i don't know about you, but that's not anywhere were jenn and i are willing to try to drive a car.  walked around a little bit as the night and evening chill feel upon us, and then much like many towns on the west, the beach towns of the east tend to be quiet during the fall months and much more heavily populated during the summer ones.  though provincetown is different, perhaps, than other beach towns in that it has a grand homo-sexual population and visitor base.  so we grabbed dinner at the post office cafe, background music compliments of lady gaga and two days before the 'naked boys singing' review.  darn on you opportunities missed.  finished dinner, headed back home to providence, rhode island.

the next day consisted of jenn getting some work done and me catching up on my some sleeping, blogging, journaling, and laundry.  that night was awesome because jenn's work, the roger williams zoo is home to the east coast's largest jack-o-lantern spectacular.  all designed and hand cut by a single family, they are true works of art.  really, its beautiful. 












the night got finished off with a band concert of an artist that neither of us had really heard of, but ended up that both loved to dance too and wanted to add to our at home music librarys.  i love sharing music with jenn, i mean really love it with everybody, but i guess because we don't get to live near each other its nice to have something that i can listen to and remember that we shared it the same place. 

random aside, but to conclude, the night finished there...    

wicked ah-wesome, fun in bah-ston

in boston two days, for this part of the trip, i'm just gonna give it to you in a numbered sequential progression with story exaggerations after each highlight...cuz otherwise, i'm not sure how we'd all get through this.

I.     leave rhode island and arrive at the hilton in dedham, ma.  southwest side of boston to check
       in.
II.   drive towards the samual adams brewery in boston and find ourselves with 3pm tour tickets. 
       kill some time at the ula cafe with a snack and a card game of war
III.   sam adams tour guide jesse is in her first week; clever, personable, but still a little nervous. 
        she feeds us beer, we don't complain.  in our tasting are the boston ale, a speciality don
        tiburon, and the octoberfest.  plus we get a free little glass out of the deal.

4.     head the infamous 'quincy market'
        for some shopping...only to find
        that anouk's iphone has taken us
        the a corner market that is
        actually located in quincey;
        not THE quincey market.
V.    take ourselves into the city proper
        and treat ourselves to a mini
        walked red-line tour of the city's
        nightlife.  end up at the
        reproduction cheer's bar on
        beacon street.  make friends
        with pearse who recommends a
        couple of other stops while in
        town and some bars to help us get from place to place.
F.    head along a tapped line in route to a comedy show at the improv asylum.  in a section
       where they ask the crowd for place recommendations, we were able to get mianus on the
       floor.  however they kept referring to it as 'your anus', so it wasn't nearly as funny.
       laughable though still.

VII.  after the asylum and before bedtime there
        was the closing of a couple more bars...
        a lot of them with live music, which was
        fantasic.  and there was even a door guy
        at one of them that recognized the old man,
        cali native, folk singer named white buffalo
        from a shirt that doug was wearing. 
         talk about a small world.
8.     next day, being a saturday and daylight and
         not rainy, misty, east coast fall weather; we
         hit the town for some history.  made it to the
         granery cemetery where sam adams and john
         hancock are entombed.
IX.    hoped on the grey line trolley for a city tour
         with a guide and ended up getting a free ride
         to THE quincy market.  i guess that somehow
         we got on around stop number 6 and the
         guide just said to pay later.  when we got off
        at stop 1, the beginning and the end of the
        tour. he asked us if we wanted to finish
        [ by visiting stops 2-5 ].   we said nah, we were cool and dropped a tip in his basket. 
        he just let us know that if we want further rides to pay some guy in a booth. 
        otherwise, walk off and have a great day.  we can do that...
ten.  walked around THE market, which is basically one huge food stand.  the markets flanking
        it's sides are full of tourist collection items and a two story, bazillion christmas ornaments
        store.  they literally had a decoration for anything...even hannukah, which i didn't know
        had trees.  there was some cool colonial demonstrations of soldiers marching to drums;
        in wigs.
XI.   deciding that non of us need to get measured for a new bra at the victoria's secret
        promotional bus, we take ourselves west in search of the top of the hub skyline bar and
        and fenway park...the bleacher bar to be exact.  quite an amazing idea.  in the outfield,
        field level, is a huge metal gate that give patrons full view of the game [ if only a game
        were going on while we were there.  well, actually thankfully not.  because otherwise
        we probably wouldn't of been able to make it in the door. ]  the top of the hub was a bit
        of a let down.  not only because the bar and restuarant areas were full so there was not
        much of a chance for us to make ourselves at home.  and not only because to grab a beer
        would of been $10.  but also because, to find the dang-darn thing was a pain in the butt. 
         it's at the top of a hotel, which also happens to have a huge shopping area on the main
        floor.  we ended up at the back side of the food court, with locked doors where
        someone kindly let us in.  swaying back and forth through the crowds and round-a-bout
        placement of shops we finally find the elevators.  maybe we were just not amused,
        because we were cold.  but perhaps we were not amused because we had just
        observed the slow motion fall of a ninty + year old woman.  walking on the sidewalk,
        passing a gathering for some political cause, there just happened to be a small step were
        she was standing and as she moved closer to the street, she just crumbled to the ground. 
        but the sweet part of it to me was that her husband was immediately there to try to help. 
        unfortunately though, he didn't notice the step either, so down he goes!  they created
        quite a pile. 
aside: throughout the day, we were having quite a time trying to knock items off of doug's
         life list...going to a hockey game.  it had been in the possiblities since the beginning of
         planning, but nothing had been set in stone.  well, as the day finally awoke, we decided
         that yes.  yes indeed, we must go to the hockey game.  well unluckily for us, we didn't
         know how hard that would be to do the day of the game.  and it took until just hours
         before the puck drops for us [ meaning anouk, thanks again  :) ] to obtain tickets...

         but we did it!    



L.   hit up the paradise, fairly dive, bar for a pre-game drink and then next door to the B.U. vs U Mass game.  hockey fans are wicked awesome crazy!  got ourselves a couple of fights and found a player with the last name 'megan'.  so essentially, i could become a meghann megan...but i don't really think that i'm into that.    

13.  headed to beantown [ which did not get a rave review from our driving guide of the grey line ], but when you're hungry and it's near the car, you go for what's near.  after food we headed back to the hotel.

n.  the next morning was full of the delivering of goods:  taking anouk to the airport for her flight back to california and then doug to amtrak for is further adventures on the eastcoast with his family.  so sad to loose my travel buddies, but it left me with extra room to collect trinkets in my car!

6teen. i finished up my time in boston with a drive to visit a highschool friend tara at red bones in somerville.  that of course was after learning to drive the 'bah-ston' way...which includes the necessity of u-turns to get going your desired direction, needing to drive down a one way street for a block to make a turn, or just all the one way streets so that three rights make a left.  red bones was a cajun style lunch-in that served amazing fried okra.

next it was off to salem and some more time with jenn in providence.

notable massachusetts:

     1.  there are a lot of drive in movie theatres

     2.   'deaf child' signs.  posted in areas where there are deaf children living.  which i think is a great idea, but it was an interesting sign to see for the first time.

     3.   town names printed on signs placed on each bridge.  i guess so you know where you are in case you feel lost.

      4.  there are signs for town lines, not for the city limits.

how far out of the way would YOU drive, just for a joke?

here within will lie the conclusion to the lingering karow family recommendation.  but let's lead into it first...don't worry, you'll know it when it comes.

finishing airport exchanges in the mid afternoon, left the three of us [ now doug, anouk, and myself ] with loads of time to put some miles behind us before we called it a day.  it was to be an ann arbor michigan morning, so there was plenty to cover.  we didn't really find ourselves needing to stop all that often along the trip.  only pausing to take the required 'state border' photos and then keep on keeping on.  it wasn't until around [ well technically in ] battle creek, mi that we decided to stop for some grub.  ending us at the arcadia brewery and grille.  much of the town, all located on one main street, seemed to be closed, but we had hit the jackpot here since the kitchen was open for another thirty minutes.  anouk and doug got a beer sampler to share, 10 different house brewed blends...myself a plate of bbq'd chicken, 'a' with a salad, and 'd' with a bbq'd meat variety plate.  too much food, too much excitement, and too much lay before us to linger.  we pulled into the lamp post inn in ann arbor around one in the morning, snuggled in, and wait for the daylight to break.

the morning greated us with a tinge of a chill and a childlike aww from anouk to travel around the town, this being the location of some younger years spent.  pass an attened elementary school, the home of her living, and into the downtown-main campus area for some walking around...but mainly souviner shopping for her dad.  parking being what it is in many small towns and especailly one populated by college kids that have 'no respect for rules or laws', i pull into a thirty minute zone and check my watch.  we do the obligatory school bookstore stop and decide that it doesn't look busy enough to necessitate moving the car, we'll just do a small bit more of walking around.  one thing leads to another, t-shirt stop after post card stop after hot dog stop, and an hour plus has passed.  walking back to the car we hear some men mutter about a 'misouri' license plate and 'should know better than to be there for to long'; 'you can get double tickets parked there'.  well low and behold, there was a ticket.  flippen' 45 bucks!  and for what?  taking a little extra time to commerce your town?  fou-wee i say.  [ the ticket is still not paid.  what are they going to do...arrest me the next time i'm driving around in michigan for an unpaid parking ticket?  sorry parentals, i'm sure that's not the right choice... ]

this event did put a small damper on the mood of the day, but we fully blaimed doug...him being male and thus obviously a bad influence for the luck.  traveling on.  we headed to cleveland, ohio and the rock n' roll hall of fame.  quite a interesting site if you're looking to check out memorialbilia, but if [ to me ] you're really intrigued by the history of it all: how it came about, who started what, where, with whom, and how; this doesn't seem to be the place.  and you can't take pictures inside anywhere.  even without a flash!  bummer.

there was a lot to see though, which made us hungry.  from the food network show 'the best thing i ever ate', i had come acrossed a recommendation for lolita's in southern cleveland for fried brussel sprouts.  heck, let's give them a try.  it ended up being in this really nicely decorated and mid-upscale restaurant in the middle of the nowhere ghetto area of town.  reluctant to leave the car unattended but curious more about the food, we entered.  and i must say, those sprouts were amazing.  they had capers, anchovies, olive oil, and garlic in them and you can tattoo your name on my forehead if i don't testify that they quite frankly tasted like onion rings.  soupy oily [ :( ] but splendidly delightful to the taste buds.  this dinner was also called to order not only to satisfy our bellies, but to decide on the plan of attack for the next day.  original original plan [ being pre-doug ] was to drive through canada and get to niagara falls for some glory.  but him traveling with us and without a passport lead us to the next original plan, which was to drive the u.s. side to niagara falls for some glory.  but after my time spent with the karow's, another options was thrown into the mix.  it would be to visit connecticut and a small town named...wait for it...wait for it...mianus.  honestly and truly there was at least an hour long debate about which option was the right choice.  pro's and con's.  how long and in what direction we would be driving for the rest of tonight.  and what we could do and see in each of the places.  and wouldn't you know what we chose...

mianus was just a blip on the map, an unheard of destination up until two weeks prior, and about eight hours in the opposite planned direction, but somehow it won out over the falls of niagara [ probably because you can no longer ride in a wooden barrel down them.  just kidding ].  pronounced mya-noos by a local, we found out that there was indeed no town named such, that it was just a river.  until we found a street sign!  then there was a totem pole...in mianus.  we found a moose head...in mianus.  found a sign for slow kids playing...in mianus.  the options seriously endless, as well as the laughs.  it never got old, and frankly i don't see the hilarity slowing down any time soon...in minanus.  :)  we easily killed four hours plus goofing off and wandering around.  trying to find other awkward sayings referring to the referred to place.  having spent the night in bloombery, pennsylvania, already six hours into driving, and finding ourselves running on sleep caught between 3 a.m. and 8 a.m., the six additional hours to boston seemed just a stretch too much.  so i called long time best buddy ol' pal jenn in providence and we crashed her pad.  it wasn't no big deal.  we just went out to eat at julian's where there dessert menu has a picture of kiss on it and you can drink a bee sting.  some kind of gin drink, i didn't even try to go near it.  honey, lemon, something, something...there might be a third something too.  i don't remember.  the night carried on late with some games and enjoyment, the next days would be bitter sweet as our trio's travels had but two days remaining and i, having grown accustomed to the companions, would definitely be sad.

notable michigan:

     1.  much of this was noted from constructions zones, because it seemed as if much of the state's road were underconstruction.  any-who, they have straight flashing lights for when there is a lane closed and cones set out to block it.  it's not any kind of move over indicator.  these signs are miles into a project...suppose they are just there to remind you. 

     2.  and secondly in construction areas, how to word this?  imagine three lane traffic heading in both directions.  well the north bound lanes want to do some repair, so they close down two lanes, leaving one, but then also take the south bound down to two, and use one for north traffic.  thus the split one direction of travel, but leave all of the roads in complimentary numbers.  it was quite strange the first time to cross the median with cars still traveling beside me...but so far away.

     3.  noted by anouk and doug, the highways are littered with adult stores.  so many.

notable pennsylvania:

     1.  they paint dots on the road so that you know the minimum distance you should be behind someone.  no tailgating.

     2.  there were all kinds of detour signs, each with their own colored arrow.  i'm guessing perminent detours, but i didn't really get it.

     3.  noted doug:  random port-a-potties along the highways.

notable connecticut:

     1.  astro turf lawns.

     2.  lemons in the diet drinks [ learned that it's a new england thing.  along with leaving a bit of straw wrapper on the top of the straw but placing the straw in the drink, instead of just handing you a completely wrapped straw to open on your own.

     3.  'reduced salt use' signs for the winter time [ also new england common ].

big cities, big fun!

where to start?  what to say about the first night in chicago [ or come to experience, any night any chicago with crazy kristen and crazier anouk ]?  from the hotel's guide book, we looked up a couple of catchy and close by bars and nightlife to cap the night, but first things first was the recommendation to go to kingston mines.  a live jazz, bar, and better than bar food club located a couple stops north off the blue line subway.  jazz?  food?  travel?...i'm in!  the atmosphere local and familliar, most people not scared to dance and 'feel the music'.  especially when mrs holly the maxwell got on stage and sang with what her momma gave her.

after finishing some time at the mines, we decided to go to a game bar closer to the hotel.  with 'game' i am suggesting the use of boards and cards, not mind games.  we got there, guessing, probably around midnight...the place seemed pretty empty so we headed to the bar.  got a beverage, but let the games go when the conversations started.  kristen and i with each other.  anouk with an enthusiatic regular, as her son was one of the bar tenders.  this woman soon absorbed the rest of the night.  and i'm not exactly sure about how anouk got stuck with her other than she's a warm person, easy to talk to, and likes to talk to others.  i guess sometimes that combo works in your favor and sometimes you get what's about to happen next. 

elvira [ her real name we didn't find out until the end, is paulina ] started by educating us in the art of finding the cheapest beers in the city.  which hagen daz vs. another, or bar happy hour's where a hoax or the real deal.  she even got into a five minute debate with her husband about whether the price was $2.50 or $2.75...seems like splitting hairs, eh?  once that topic got too heated and exhausted, she moved on to her next trick.  i mean knowledgable category: auditioning for america's got talent as the one and only u.s. female baritone.  she then proceeded to seranade us with 'good night sweet heart' and some 'om-bopa, om-bop' elvira theme song, endeding with a crowd search for a third song; as she was sure that she would make it into the third round [ purely on the entertainment factor.  dressed as elvira ( she's been practicing for years from a cardboard cut out).  but sure that the third round was up in the air and that she wouldn't make it to the top 40 or how many make it to the big show round. ]

and as we were so politely trying to leave, really having had enough of the day, she wanted to extend to us her wonderful picture taking abilities [ being that she is half asian, and they can have some magic  behind the lens ].  then it came time for her husband, a 60's something 'still dang good looking' gentleman to have his turn so that she could be IN a picture.  as he's about to push the button, he says ' you're all dark.'  to which she replys ' it's cuz you got your finger over it dumby.'  all in all, she was interesting, fun, and well intentioned, but jeez...what a welcome to the city.  :)  we then trekked it home, tucked in, and looked forward to another day of who knows what kind of characters.  we tried an early rise, actually making it out the door some where around ten, and headed down to the navy pier, on a sunny but not extremely warm day, to check skyline boat tours and the like.  we noted the times of the day for the tours and i having been in contact with russelle [ a high school and current buddy that i was wanting to see ] for a lunch plan, we were left just putzing about until we met up at the original billy goat tavern.  'cheezeborger, cheezeborger, cheezeborger.  no pepsi, coke!'

lunch was fast, good, and great to see russelle.  so much so, that we decided to meet up again for dinner and us three travelers were left to our own devices for the rest of the afternoon.  did some millinium park, 'the bean', harris theatre, and the art institute of chicago museum walking.  the city is amazing.  from just the few times that i have been there, i want to go back again everytime.  it's got such an easy feeling.  pretty easy to get around in, and freindly in the un-pretencious ways that some cities can start to take on.  getting on to around four o'clock, we headed back to the pier to catch a boat and some history and views of the city in a different way.  a different way it would be, because directly and approximately the second that we stepped on the boat...the city got fogged out.

it was quite ironic the timing, because as we were listening to the story of a large fire and the burning down of almost the entire city, we were seeing a white screen in front of us...and it got cold.  briskly windy and just plain dreary.  we finished out our hour long tour by sitting in the inside hull of the boat and deciding what we would like to do for the rest of the evening, being that the planned trip up the hancock tower to see the view was now out of the picture.  when we got back to the pier, we did some walking around the shops and found ourselves in the middle of quite an impressive stained glass exhibit. tiffany stained glass that is, real old.  then booked it back to the hotel, spruced ourselves up, and decided on a fondue place for dinner [ kristen was feeling a little adventurous ].  dinner was awesome, with plenty of laughs and russelle, her partner jenny, and there friend kat as joiners too.  it's nice to get to hang out with people that you haven't seen in quite a few years and everything just seems to fall back into place.  i like it!

after dinner was a night out in wrigleville..which we didn't realize would be so quiet.  i guess with the cubs not playing and it getting into football season, the area can get a little quite.  not to mention the monday night aspect of it all.  we did some bar hopping until we finally came across a little gem [ and by gem i  mean some other people to hang out with ] at mullen's bar.  there were three guys chillin', havine a guy night, that seemed like a good group to introduce ourselves too.  consisting of dale [ a chicago-ian, thus nicknamed 'chicago' ], trevor [ from boston, nicknamed 'tre-vah' or 'bah-ston' ], and dustin [ from chicago and going through a break-up, so sorry to say, but nicknamed 'depressing'.  he just was not enjoying himself. ]  we closed down mullen's bar, but weren't feeling the need to take the train home yet, so we popped over to an open later night bar.  ended up just sitting around and chatting for a-good-nother hour or so until we indeed, closed down another bar.  we're getting on to 3, eh pressing 4 in the morning.  decide that it's time to read the writing on the wall and call it a night.  but jeez, those boys were funny.  we even got dale to put on anouk's heels and try to walk the couple blocks between the bars.  needless to say, i think that he'll have sympathy for a woman in the future if she says that her feet hurt and wants to walk slower.

the next day seemed to go by far too fast.  we did some walking around michigan avenue, made a stop at the lego store to build ourselves men, and grabbed a stuffed pizza at giordano's on rush.  now the time had come, the very sad moment, when kristen was to fly back to kansas city after some of our most wonderful time together.  see you later, gator!  but happiness would soon show it's head as anouk and i still had many miles to travel, and we would also be joined by another

slo-cal, dougie fresh. 

notable illinios:

     1.  the use of fractions on mileage signs.  as in 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, etc. 

     2.  anouk made the acute observation that they have a billion and a half bowling alleys.  we didn't know if this was because when the weather gets cold, it's nice to have something to do.  if it was because as a total city, they idolize the movie king pin. or if it's just a noticed coinsidence.

    3.  accident roll out sites on no shoulder highways.

    

traveling genes

after spending a day in kansas city for the second time in a week to rest and catch up on some photo updating and friends hang-ing-out-ing, my sister and i caught an early morning, and hit the road.  our nights goal was to make it to our half brother and his family [ wife and two sons...i'm an aunt! ]'s house in roberts, wisconsin.  so for our point A to point B we drove the straight and two laned interstate directly through iowa with our first detour to the bridges of madison county    [ actually in madison county, a movie actually filmed in madison county, but a cinema that i have never vidied ].  that left kristen the expert analyist for the structures and her accute conclusion was that 'they all look the same'.  covered bridges, covered in personal messages about 'being here' and 'peeing here'.  we moved up the road to wintersett, the birthplace of john wayne.  stopped in the museum center, but decided to not go for the tour when we realized that it was $15 for a 20 min tour of an approximately 1000 square foot home.  you could get a general floor plan from the outside perspective...moving on.

up the road, meaning north, was a stop in ames for lunch at the pizza ranch.  it may be a chain, but its homeland is in iowa and that's really where most of them are located [ a couple here and there in south dakota ].  they offer a lunch buffet with multiple and rotating styles of pizza, a chicken wing/mashed potato/corn area, salad and soup bar, and a dessert center.  quite a bit of food to choose from.  next along the route was the carousel museum in story, iowa.  however this lovely indoor carousel with ornate and majestic horses was closed...noooo!  back in the car, back on the road, 

  and back in time with a stop at the surf ballroom, the last performance of buddy holly, near clear lake, iowa.  this ballroom is still a concert hall and the hallways are lined with the many faces and autographs of the stars.  hundreds and hundreds of them.  from alan jackson to los lobos.  hillary clinton [ probably not for vocal appearance ] to brett michaels.  it's just a small raised wood stage with an open dancing floor, some tables around the floor area, and pineapple wallpaper on the walls. 

                                                                                          but enough with iowa already, let's

                                                                                          get to minnesota and wisconsin.

having not of taken a road trip with my sister in nine years [ the first one was in 2001 when i was 18 and she was 15 and we drove from kansas city to san luis obispo to move me west for college.  she sleep most of the time and i was just trying to get there already ], this was the most pleasent surprise of getting along and sharing; being that we had never really had time as two adults to get past and learn from our childhoods together.  and from the realization that you're meeting your sibling in a new place for the first time, i was completing the circle by meeting my brother for maybe the fifth time in my life...and it was wonderful.  the whole weekend of the three of us was great.  guess it's a little test of nature vs. nurture in action, because it didn't seem as though we had any problem finding ourselves with inside jokes, get alongs, and quirk exposures.

days filled with the pumpkin patch, animal petting zoo, and hay rides.  corn hole in the garage and going out to dinner.  and the older nephew was so smart, clever, and a gentleman.  the little tike a smile fest when mom and dad are around, a bit fussy any other time.  the weekend passed by quickly and i very much look forward for the return visit and getting to see everyone grow, but kristen and i's fun was not over...no, no, no, i was just about to being.  we had a california friend to pick up and a chicago to see!  with hugs and goodbyes, and mostly see you soons, we began our eight hour drive through wisconsin; cheeseland! 

we didn't really take much time to do anything touristy on our drive, but we did search out the u.s.'s largest 'M' located in platteville, wisconsin.  it is a concrete poured slab that measures 241 feet by 241 feet.  we couldn't really figure out how to get very close to it, so we just positioned ourselves else where for the kill [ please also note the horse and buggie reserved parking spot... ].  we also found a restaurant in platteville named the pioneer.  it wasn't until we got to the door and noticed the bowling pins etched into the glass that we also found ourselves at a bowling alley.  alright, we can handle eating lunch at a bowling alley greasey counter.  and i decided to eat out side the box: i order the montana burger.  1/3 lb of beef with a fried egg, ham slices, tomato, onion, cheese, and lettuce.  we also got a side of cheese churds as an appetizer, all of which was pretty delicious, though my stomach did have a moment of pause while digesting. 

the end of the day ended not so much as planned.  we found ourselves in more traffic than planned, late to pick up anouk at the airport by an hour, so schedule re-configured to just meet at the hotel instead.  at approximately and exactly 5:56pm on october 10th, 2010 we, the three of us laying our bags around the intercontinental hotel on michigan avenue, pushed the start button on our chicago adventure-land...and the start of the next entry too.

notable iowa:

1.     lots of dvds for sale in their gas station convience stores.

2.     'H.E.L.P.' :  highway emergency long distance phone

3.     it's a state where every one waves to strangers  :D

4.     they not only have rest areas, they have 'modern rest areas'...whatever the difference is

5.     bike parking full of bmx trickster bikes and scooters with orange flags

notable minnesota:

1.     trees painted on their water towers

2.     they have two off ramps splitting from just one highway exit.  so it's an A and B situation from one lane, versus the difference of a quarter of a mile and two completely different exit ramps

notable wisconsin:

1.     veterns memorial highway

2.     double drive thrus, with one window on each side of the building

3.     HO CHUNK ELDERS reserved parking at the gas station

4.     instead of turn lanes on a two lane highway, they add an additonal outside passing lane for the traffic to pass by

home away from home...traveling towards home

after a morning stroll around knoxville, i hit the road taking interstate 74 north and was into kentucky in no time.  reading that berea was an artist driven community with a free college for those that are focused in the liberal arts, a stop became a must.  much of the town is brick buildings with white columned two storey porches...beautiful.  the artist shops were not, as i had believed, of scholars to the school but instead of local more established non-collegiates.  i happened to walk into a metal working jewelry gallery were a couple started to explain more about their work and questioned where i was from.  when i said missouri, it just so happened that   ken [ the husband ] had grown up in the area too!  we reminisced about some of the things that were around when we were groing up, he being some three decades older than me, we had little in common, but shared no the less.

after peeling out of me my architecture major, they concurred that a trip to white hall, the restored home of cassius clay [ not the stinging bee boxer, a civil war politician ] was a must see...so there i drove.  the home was closed, but set amoungst beautiful green acreage, multiple stable homes or what could of been slaves quarters, and lots of white wooden fences.  after this was the search for the world's largest skateboard in wilmington, ohio before reaching a night's bed in lewis center.  the skateboard was built by the city college but was not familiar to the town locals, as i asked in a couple of markets and gas stations about it's location, only to be responded with blank stares and recommendation of a billboard sized painting on a building...no, no, no.  off i go.

so due to the title, perhaps by now, the question has been raised as to exactly where it is that i consider home...let me put that question to bed with an answer...we'll get to that answer soon...it's just around the corner...the judges are just about done...ok, ok, but really ' i don't know.'  i definitely believe in the home is where the heart is, but i couldn't even answer that with one place [ sorry guys ].  i feel at home everywhere that i find myself with people that put me at ease and make me want to be better.  so let this then be the introduction to one of my many second families; the karow's in columbus ohio. 

we've been splashing around the kiddie pool [ not meant to be punny ] since i was assigned to be jenn's right hand in third grade because she slipped and fell in the swimteam's locker room.  they then moved from kansas city to lewis center, ohio when jenn and i were in 8th grade which is when jenn and i became determined  that we were not about to loose each other's friendship and have now being causing caos together for the last twenty years.  needless to say even though jenn no longer lives in ohio with them, they were a necessary stop along the trip.  :)

in search for entertainment amoungst my return trip towards kansas city and with an extensive road traveling resume of their own, i took heed to the stop recommendations and found myself in dublin, ohio [ at a concrete corn field ], fairfield, ohio just outside of cincinnati [ at jungle jim's foodie land; seriously the largest collection of edible goodies that you could ever imagine!  they have so much stuff that in addition to 'cheese, wine, meat' sections...they have country sections.  its crazy.  over 1400 types of hot sauces alone  :) ], and a third to be mentioned later, but well worth the wait...

after the finish of my ohio stops, i fell just bellow the border into covington, kentucky and upon the door steps of the saint mary's cathedral basilica modelled after the church of notre dame.  it's stained glass work was amazing and you could grab book about it all for only $30.  they were very open to letting me take photos and the church was complete with not only one, but two pipe organs and the photoed holy water dispensor.  me not being overly religious, the gentleman host was getting a little talkative so i decided that it would be time for me to make my next stop...well why not make it the kentucky distillery bourbon trail.  perfect after a blessing huh?

much to my delight, the area of the trail that the distilleries were located in was extremely beautiful, but much to my timing dismay, they were on long and winding roads that would just not allow me to expidite my adventure.  so i only got to stop at one of the six listed destination before they all closed, but really that's okay because:
1. i am by myself
2. that leaves me as the driver...and 
3. drinking with others is the way that this should happen

so it has now been put on the list for a 're-visit' and there will be more to learn, share, and photo-a-lize about later.  fyi:  the one that i did make it too was the woodford reserve distillery where they gave me a shot, i couldn't handle the smell of it, sipped it, and poured the rest out so that i could take home my souviner glass [ for those noting the drinking and driving of this...all is well ].  the end of the trail dropped me into louisville, ky; a city that i was looking very forward to.  although it became quickly apparent that the time had not yet come for us to meet when upon arriving and driving by the science center/sluggerville area, there was a woman crying on the side of the street as one man ran away and another was crossing and stopping traffic to get to her after a domestic disturbance.   next, navigating the blocks to get back to the highway, there was a man thrown off his bike laying in the middle of an intersection after getting hit by a car, but the finale was a semi pulled over in the middle lane of a three-fer highway for a traffic violation...just a little bit too much to make feel comfortable to stop.  so that also goes on the re-visit list.

the departure of this city lead me directly into indiana and well, what do you do in indiana?  first was to satisfy my stomach and that would be done after noticing a sign for an amish style family restaurant.  i had a chicken pot pie filling with a biscut, chicken stuffing, and mash potatoes and gravy.  the food was satisfying, but rather on the bland side...not a whole lot of additives or spices.  afterwards, i found myself exploring santa claus.  not the jolly old man, but the city.  a christmas land pretty much year round.  there is an amusement park, rudolph's RV park, and a north pole post office.  but it was a little depressing while i was there being that it was the beginning of october when thankfully i'm not yet into the holiday spirit [ as i am a firm believer in the right for each holiday to have it's own and complete month...no infultrating ] but also because of the timing, the city was just about all empty.  and because my night was to be spent in kansas city, and in my mind there was no choice but to forge forward, it trudged on...landing me to bed at 2:47 in the morning. 

notable kentucky:
1.     street signs warning of a ticket if someone were to pull in front of a semi without leaving them sufficient space.  now to me leaving space just seems like common sense, but i guess that if there is some small way to charge people for not being aware of others and courtesy, then i'm okay with them having to pay for it.
 2.    some of the state highways, and seemingly more like side streets, are number in the 1000's and 2000's...that's a lot of roads.
 3.    just remember: to drive at least 10 mph over the posted speed limit, other wise you're likely to get run over
 4.    wood fences:  natural finish and white paint

notable ohio:
 1.    nicknamed 'slow-hi-o', because unlike their neighbor, they are certainly not in a rush to get anywhere.  abiding speed limits or slower.
 2.    land areas are not only divided by county, but also by townships

notable indiana:
1.     mile marker updates every .2 and .5 miles.  so it goes 1.0, 1.2, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.8, 2.0, etc...
2.     there were a lot of cars parked on the side of the roads in general and specifically on the on and off ramps of highways.  and some of the cars also had what seemed to be people sitting beside the cars enjoying a picnic or moment in the fresh air.  not at all concerned or appearing to be distrested by any kind of trouble.

[ http://worldslargestthings.blogspot.com/2008/11/worlds-largest-skateboard-wilmington.html ]
link to a little bit about the skateboard
   

shaking my pelvis to the sounds of...

ELVIS!  and the 101.1 memphis radio station...i want one of them everywhere i go. 

aright, i'm calming.  breathe in, count to 10, good.  so this little land of grace, is quite the step back in time.  not that i was alive at all in the 70's and not that the brothel didn't make me go 'hmmm', but this place...well let's just say it's a sight.  it's located in the middle of somewhere, not where i would imagine a ranch.  there's a heartbreak hotel next door.  different tour prices depending on if you want to see the cars and airplanes, but man, i just wanted to gawk at the house.  and you don't even get to see the toilet he croaked on!  that's ok, i can respect privacy and all, but shucks.  there is fabric and carpet everywhere.  i don't know how his house never caught on fire.  a pool room with over about a million yards of fabric [ exagerating ], a three tv room with a bar and a horned skull.  recreation/raquet ball room and a shotting range.  but even though it is decorated to the nines, there's still something sad about it all.  something where all the stuff has taken over the life.  and when you're looking through the museum, who has the original copy of a check written in the 1960's?  i don't know.  i loved it, i think that it's great, but there was something not being said that sure was apparent there.

from graceland i caught a bus and rode to the memphis recording service a.k.a. sun records.  started as a little no name, it is now credited as the beginning of rock n roll.  quite an impressive number of names and stars to come from this little [ still operational ] studio.  guess some people just stick to their guns and some people just know when they got it.  the city itself left me feeling a little uneasy.  there were gaurd stands at all of the parking lots and fences around just about as much as they could fence in.  there seemed to be no 'good side' vs 'bad side' of town, which in a way i guess really makes me happy.  i just got a little sad when there didn't feel to be any really even 'in-between side' at all either.  i want to say that i wasn't judging the city based on it's cover, but i'm sure that i was.  and i want to say that it takes a jewel in the rough to know what you got, and i guess that i just need to go back to find my golden moment.  i loved the music history of it, especially being so close to a country mecca.  the sounds that were created and developed here are certainly the ones that are the strongest in my upbringing and current preferences.  ain't nothing like a good tune to make you shake watcha momma gave ya.

the night took some traveling, but it was nice to get to see some family.  dinner and conversations with my aunt and uncle in little rock, arkansas.  i know, i know, a bit of a back track from memphis towards the west, but i'm trying to see everyone i can.  and no hotel costs are very welcomed.  the next day was more or less a straight drive through tennesse and into knoxville to stay with a friend of friend [ i love meeting random people.  especially when they have big, open hearts ] for some dinner, tour guiding around, and a warm couch.  the next day was a light time visit around gay street and the market square.  some of the seemingly newer and trendy areas of the town.  loved seeing the word tennesse on the side of a building.  from here my travels would lead me north through kentucky and into columbus, ohio.



notable tennesse: 

    1.   i already mentioned the radio station, but again 101.1 soul mix was fabulous.

    2.  there are random solid white lines where multiple lanes are headed the same direction for 'no changing lanes' section of highways around curves.

    3.  donks...the car

    4.   many of their highways, although mapped by number, also include names which are the more commonly used notifier.

    5.   wooden crosses are prevalent

    6.   and there are a lot of massive firework retail stores.  they're lightin' up the sky year round!