Thinking of Life on the Road (A lot of Pictures)

Poor A.

Her weekend camping trip was worse than I thought. We didn't have much time to talk; mostly she was filling me in via text. You know how texting is...you don't get the entire description or the mood of the situation. 

When she walked in the house, I immediately could tell she was steaming. We hurried to get her mom's stuff loaded into her car all the time listening to the psycho mutt screech in our back yard. A couldn't hurry her out of here quick enough! Seems like they had quite the blow-up on the 4 hour drive home today. I'm so proud of her though since she really gave her mom an earful. Years ago she would have never; she would have simply clamped her mouth shut. For so many years A has been apologizing for her sexuality and today she stood up for who she is and told her mother she is not ashamed-take it or leave it! Ha!

We always joke that I'm the little devil who sits on her shoulder and whispers, say this, do that. Today apparently I was.

Well at least we have some weekend trips planned over the next couple months. Looks like the state of Minnesota has reopened the majority of the state parks so we don't have to cancel anything. I feel bad that A had such a shitty waste of a weekend but I couldn't help but be envious of her too. Instead I was stuck here at home looking at pictures and longing for our next road trip.

When A installed the new stereo, she put it all the way over by the steering wheel.

No matter, I'm still in control with the mp3 played and remote in my lap. I truly have to have things my way...and messing with the stereo is distracted driving anyway. 

The most common question we get when out in the RV is "What's it like to travel with all those dogs?" What can I say other than it's like living with them at home but in a much smaller space. 

We have all types of people approach us but some of the nicest are the truckers. They come over motivated by loneliness for their pets left at home while they spend weeks...sometimes months on the road. We listen patiently as tell us about their own dogs. We often find ourselves staying longer at a stop than expected just because we hate to cut them off.

I admit that our first few road trips were a learning experience but this year we really have it down.

We all try to be safe and stick together. If someone leaves the pack, everyone anxiously keeps watch until their return.

And if you don't behave, you can ride in the crate on the hitch rack, also known as "The Dinky Seat" (from National Lampoon's Vacation).

The old man grass-rolls at every stop.

And he rides in his stroller parked between the seats.

But Tim, being the jealous bastard he is, has to try out Giz's special seat every chance he gets.

Sia and Cassie spend a lot of time breathing down my neck. (Phew!)

And barking at people when we stop for gas.

And attempting the challenge to get up into the front seat to be with mama at any cost.

We encounter informative wall art. I wonder just how many people are named "Tabby" in that small town? My guess, not many and Tabby knows who she is.

And judgement along the interstate.

We really had to laugh that the one doing the condemning can't spell.

We travel on a scary, demonic road the superstitious may want to avoid.

And find historical roadsigns too. A trail marker and S-shaped bridge on the National Road, commissioned by Thomas Jefferson and one of the earliest roads west. It was supposed to go to Missouri but they ran out of money in Illinois. See our government had financial problems then too.

I wish we would have stopped here for breakfast. I just loved the name and it reminded me of Ms. Moon.

Our final stop on our return trip form Ohio-The Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa where Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and the Big Bopper played their final show.
See what wild times we have on the road? *laugh*

Happy Belated Pride and Roadtrip Part 1

A built a fire for us in the back yard tonight. We sat out there for the longest time not even talking, but just staring into the flames. Earlier we had dogs out there with us. That was until Jill decided to try to crawl under the fire pit (yes while a fire was burning). Luckily the only damage she sustained was scorched hair on the back of her neck. 


It was Pride weekend in the Twin Cities but we chose to stay home. Now hearing about all the fun makes we wish we would have went even for a little while. A friend took this great picture of the I-35 bridge in Minneapolis all lit up for the occasion. 
We've been home from vacation 2 weeks...TWO WEEKS! It seems like forever already. Let me give you some highlights of our adventure.


We left Minnesota on the one day this year that summer decided to show up. We had planned to leave early afternoon but with a 95+ degree temp and humidity, we delayed for a few hours. We headed south getting pushed all over the road by a strong west wind. 


We had plans to meet Leeza's adopters at a truck stop in Bloomington, IL before 8am. That meant pushing through the night and arriving there after 4am. I have to say that the state of Illinois is full of fucking weirdos! There is one point on I-74 where there is 57 miles without an exit and right in the middle of that area, at 2:30am there was a woman walking along the side of the interstate. She scared the shit out of us since she was dressed in black and we saw her literally as we were passing her. 
Leeza's family showed up around 7am and although she was nervous, she was giving her new mama kisses by the time they left with her. 

Back on the road by to be in Indianapolis by noon. When we arrived it was over 90 degrees again and the only spot of shade at the meeting place was at the end of a Home Depot parking lot. It was insane the number of people who pulled up and shouted out "How much?" They didn't say hi, ask what kind of dogs they were, nothing but how much do they cost. A was trying to be pleasant and explain but I had lost all patience and finally just told people they're ours, we're on vacation. The End.
Chantelle's adopter was so excited to finally get her hands on her newest baby. I felt like I was handing a mother her newborn for the first time. She's going to be one very spoiled little girl.

Shortly after leaving Indianapolis, we hit a snag. We ended up parked on the interstate in 95+ degree temps with no AC for nearly a hour. We were getting worried for the dogs, I was behind the wheel and A was rubbing them down with ice/water. When we finally got moving again, I was at the point of not being able to handle anything anymore. I had been awake for 35+ hours (with a couple short naps) and A was not much better. She finally said what the hell are we doing this for and we pulled into the next campground we found. I swear that KOA outside of Dayton was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen! We cooled off, showered, slept and ate. Now this is when vacation really starts. 


The next morning we enjoyed breakfast and then traveled eastward to our final camping spot. 

The KOA offered an all-you-can-eat breakfast for $5. You can't beat that.

Very happy to have my waffle.

My favorite part when returning home is driving from the flatland into the hills. It's hard to describe because even though it's not home anymore, at that moment I realize how much I miss the landscape. Our campground was up on a hill overlooking the river. Since we were there mostly during the week, it was quiet and we had a spot away from everyone else. 

Mist rising out of the hills just before sunrise.

Our campsite.

We reserved a rental car for getting around. Enterprise was too busy to pick us up in the morning so we called the local cab company to get a ride. Now that was an experience! At 9am she pulled up in front of the campground office. She was large, stinking of BO and cigarettes, greasy hair, sores on her arms and nursing her breakfast of Bugles and Diet Pepsi. We got in the cab and found the seats dirty and covered with cigarette burns. Packs of Pall Malls stacked on the dash of the car. Thankfully it was a short ride but not much better than the Tijuana taxi we took one time. At the rental place, they had no cars left so they gave me a Dodge Dakota truck. It was a nice vehicle but I had hoping for something with good gas milage after driving the gas whore over 900 miles.

It was hot everyday but we didn't care. In the mornings, A would make coffee and we would sit outside and smell the sweetness of the honeysuckle while eating breakfast. A was very interested in those plants since the honeysuckle she  knew growing up in northern MN is very different and hardly has any scent. 

After breakfast we would take the dogs walking on the trail and then come back and go for a swim in the heated saltwater pool. In the afternoon/evening we went out exploring and visiting with family and friends. 

Where else can you get a grilled cheese and fries for under $5 then have a huge bowl of ice cream.

Mmm, homemade peanut butter pie.

One day we spent in West Virginia. I just picked out a route on the map and we went on a road trip on secondary roads and through small towns. We stopped at a couple state parks and a nature reserve and went out hiking around. We stopped in small diners and listened to bluegrass music on the radio and just enjoyed being together; no schedules, no plans, no dogs, just us. 

I almost believe it.

Ohio River

 On Thursday morning I went to visit Dad and wrote about that in my previous post. On Thursday evening though I had the privilege to meet a fellow blogger; the one and only Sarcastic Bastard. We left one side of Buttfuck Ohio to drive to the other side of Buttfuck Ohio to meet her fabulousness for dinner and drinks. She brought along her Moms (you know a person must be safe when meeting people from the internet) and we had a wonderful evening together. We arrived 1/2 hour late because we got stuck in traffic/road construction in Columbus and I was praying she had not left thinking we had stood her up. It didn't help that I really didn't know what she looked like, except for a glance at a picture she had posted for a short time. Luckily A and I have pictures posted everywhere so we were recognizable. We walked into the restaurant, looked around anxiously and then SB was there hugging us. 


It is so seldom that I meet someone that I'm instantly comfortable with. I'm usually so shy and quiet with new people but we felt like old friends...well more like family. You know the real family that you enjoy spending time with because you love so much not because you're required to. :) The evening went by too quickly; SB had to work in the morning, A and I had a 2 hour drive home to our campsite. Pictures were taken (but will not be shared), hugs and good-byes were exchanged. I wish we would have had another day. I know this will not be our last trip to Buttfuck Ohio and next trip maybe we will take the moms up on her offer and plug in for a few days at her house. 
To be continued...

Vacation Withdrawls

We've been home for days and have too easily slipped into the same old routine. That's so frustrating after having such a nice relaxing vacation. I don't want to be pulled back into reality. I don't want to live on a schedule. I want to have A back; have her all to myself and we can cruise around exploring and meeting new/old friends and sing along with the radio at the top of our lungs and dance by the campfire and flirt and play and just do whatever we want. Is that too much to ask?

When we pulled up in front of our house Sunday afternoon the dogs went crazy. They knew they were home and for the next 3 hours proceeded to run through the house and backyard until I was wishing I would have dropped a couple of them out along the interstate. Within 2 hours, A and I had the RV almost completely cleaned out and I had already washed two loads of laundry. Not bad since we spent a week packing and lived in there for 9 days.

We arrived home to find our flower beds in bloom; full of lilies, roses and daisies. There were only a few iris left after the heavy rain. We missed the lilacs but I was thrilled that we didn't miss the peonies since those are my favorites of the summer. The three older bushes were collapsing under the weight of the blooms and this year we had two newer bushes produce just one flower each. 

They are all different varieties and the scents differ but when I cut those glorious blooms, I had enough to fill 2 large vases and in one smaller vase I added a few daisies and iris (FYI: I never claimed to have any talent for flower arrangement). When I brought them inside the scent filled our house.

As I sit here, I can smell them even though they are past their prime. I suppose by tomorrow I'll have to take them out to compost.

I wrote a little about our trip almost everyday, but I need to go through and fill in some things and add pictures. Meanwhile, I'm getting around to catching up on reading blogs and my email was overflowing.

Not a lot of substance but a whole lot of pictures.

One of my favorite Christmas gifts this year was a new negative/slide scanner. I've been scanning old negatives/pictures but my old machine was so slow. With this one I was able to scan over 2800 negatives in just a few hours over a few weekends. It has certainly been a walk down memory lane. There are the big vacations and special occasions that you remember pretty well. I have many of those pictures displayed around the house as well as photo albums full. The most fun part was finding all the forgotten moments; weekend getaways, day trips, nights out and just goofy times around the house. I mean, really what is the point of this picture.

I found a lot of pictures of us right before and in the beginning of our relationship. I look at my 23/24 year old self and remember all the turmoil of that time. Really, when we started dating I was a wreck...just felt lost, confused, unfocused and mostly alone. I was doing all the things I was "supposed" to do; working and going to school but then feeling like I was just floating along with no goal in sight. When I met A I found my other half as well as the person who became the rock of my life. For once this was a person that didn't "need" me to take care of them. I found a person I could totally relax with, let down my guard, not build walls. Honestly, that's what I do best. I have people in my life, but I find myself always keeping then at arms length; always a safe distance, never fully trusting or allowing myself to truly be known. I realize I do this. I'm always working to change these behaviors but I struggle with it often. I think I know the reasons why. Maybe it's just my nature.  With A those behaviors don't exist. She sees me as I truly am; moody, bitchy, bossy, no makeup, vomiting, crying and for some crazy reason she loves me anyway.

So here's a bunch of pictures of us taken in the early days on one of our first trips together. We had been together less than a year when we took the trip that was the real test of our compatibility - a 10 day camping/hiking trip. We slept in a tent, I fell down a hill, we almost got bit by a rattlesnake, A almost passed out while climbing, we froze our butts sleeping on the ground when it was 36 degrees and we had a blast. We didn't have even one argument...I would never make it through that now without getting a little bitchy.

Getting chased by a greedy "wild" donkey. 

Mt. Coolidge

Badlands of South Dakota

Mt. Rushmore

Waiting for dinner.

My nasty horse Eli. He constantly tried to bite me.

A's birthday decorations...

...and birthday cake.

Sylvan Lake

Top of Harney Peak-highest point in U.S. east of the Rockies.

Climbing the base of Devil's Tower

It's official that Miss Nifty has a new home in Boston. After living with us for 7 months, tonight is the last night she will spend here. Tomorrow afternoon she starts her journey east to her forever home. I didn't cry as much this time...maybe I got it all out last time I thought she was leaving. Yeah right! Who the fuck am I fooling. Tomorrow when I drop her off I'll cry like a baby when I say goodbye. When I'm home, this is typical Nifty behavior; always on my lap and giving kisses. Her new mama is going to be smitten when she finally meets her new baby.