Cory, Blake, and I did this. More details are forthcoming. 

New York Sour Disel

I'm not very great in discribing, great road trips. So i will relate our trip to New York through visuals.



















We had the best time, probably spent to much money, but who cares! we are rebels of the economy. I would recommend walking everywhere in NYC, your legs may hurt but your spirits will soar.
and it smells bad.

virginia be-otch

marni and i were thrilled when my stepmom asked us tuesday morning if we'd be willing to take my little sister to virginia beach for the weekend when she arrived here. we've just been getting into the routine of things out here in the district and were ready for some excitement to change things up. the rest of the two days of the week went by freakishly slow for me because i was full of anticipation for the three day weekend ahead. thursday night finally came and when we got home from work i hurriedly packed up all the necessities for a weekend trip at the beach: a couple swimsuits, flip flops, shorts, and the polaroid camera.
we got on the road as the sun was setting and enjoyed watching the sky change colors and listening to road trip tunes. as we drove, i reminisced on many memories i've had in virginia beach. i spent many childhood days there and have been back almost every summer since i was 10 years old. i remembered inside jokes from the last summer i spent there, tubing on the bay in my grandma's backyard, night swimming, odd balls in the singles branch, extreme pillow fights, funny failed romances, and living at the beach. in the car, marni, lindsey and i sang along with songs and ate our snacks.. white cheddar popcorn, m&ms, and some nasty pastry that marni picked out.
we finally arrived about three and a half hours later and i was comforted crashing on the couches at my grandma jane's house, something not unfamiliar to me. between all the grandkids having parties there, i think just about every person in virginia beach between the ages of 15 and 24 has slept on the couches in her front room, and that night was no exception. we were woken up in the middle of the night by some of my cousin's friends who had been out partying and came to crash on the couches as well.
we woke up at around 7:30. the whole front of the house is made of windows pretty much and the sunlight came peering in. i looked around, looked out the window at the sun coming up over the bay, looked at all the couches and the floor to see the random people sleeping on them, and then smiled. i knew that it would be a good day.
grandma jane is notorious for not having food at her house, so the gang and i went to wendy's to try out their breakfast, and then went to farm fresh to pick up some goodies for the beach and for the rest of the weekend. we were out the door and ready for the beach by 10 o'clock in the morning which is perfect to get good parking. we went to the "local" beach at about 71st street, rather than the crowded "touristy" beach at the boardwalk, and were the first ones there.
i can't describe the feeling i get when i go to the beach here. it's a million different feelings at once, nostalgia, peaceful, content, delighted, giddy, carefree and just plain happy. i can honestly say that virginia beach-not disneyland- is that happiest place on earth to me. i enjoyed the feeling of the sand in between my toes, the smell of the salt water, the cool breeze, the sound of the waves crashing on the shore. i was in heaven. we spent nearly five hours there, laying out catching the sun rays, body surfing the waves, and maybe skinny dipping.. but you didn't hear it from me.
the rest of the trip was filled with seeing old friends, family, hanging out, laughter, and aloe vera for our monster sunburns. on the trip home we decided to take the scenic back roads and were very thrilled that we did. the east coast is much greener and prettier than i'm used to back in utah and we enjoyed driving through the quaint farm towns and thicks of trees with the windows down, and stopping in a cute little town on the bay near historic yorktown for lunch. marni and i made plans for future road trips, talked about people and things we missed back home, and found a new fascination with speaking like hillbillies. it was a very fun, relaxing, and much needed weekend getaway. thanks for reading, blog world. i hope you all take some real great trips soon!

favorite quote of the weekend: "i reckon i knowed that real good!"

polaroids to come soon, maybe.

hopefully it's not too confusing, writing this way with breaks. if it is, i'll just redo the time stamps so it's all in order. vote for your favorite. 

kyle drove through all of oregon and most of washington. i turned on the goonies somewhere in oregon, and after about half an hour i was the only awake passenger. i had never seen it, so i guess it was good to get myself some pop culture street cred. after the movie ended i fell asleep for a while and woke up outside yakima. both kyle and i were falling asleep, but neither of the girls knew how to drive a manual, so i bought an energy drink and took the wheel to get us into seattle. 

nina's parents met us at a gas station in redmond, and we transferred her to their car before taking off in the opposite direction to try and find austin's place. nobody had gps, and our printed off google map was not helpful, so we drove the same stretch of road about five times before calling austin and asking for his help. with a few missteps, we found his complex, and soon dropped off our bags. i went with mckenna to park the car in a nearby grocery store parking lot because the spots at the complex were all full. the night air was thick and sweet, and walking in it was more pleasant than anything i had felt in a long time. the clear sky revealed stars, obscured by tall evergreens in every direction. at that moment, i was glad that we had come. the fatigue that comes with sitting for nine hundred miles melted away as i breathed in that air. 

 "what are you guys doing tonight?"

the guy had been following us on a bike from the time that we walked through the gate. it felt vaguely creepy, and i was walking fast while still trying to keep myself between mckenna and this stranger. it's a weird instinct, but for some reason it seemed right.

"nothing, really. we just got into town and are gonna go to bed i think"

"oh really, where from?"

"utah, we drove all day, just got here."

"oh, well we're gonna play poker over at my place, you guys should come."

i noticed the guy checking mckenna out, and he probably had about 50 pounds on me, if not more. we walked a little faster, he biked a little faster

"thanks man, i think we're just gonna hit the sack though, we're way tired."

"ok"

even after i said this, he kept riding behind us, which was weird. we got to austin's door and let ourselves in as if we lived there. i felt relieved but didn't really want to show it. i had gone so quickly from refreshed and at peace to worried and protective, my brain's ability to switch gears showcased dramatically. i off-handedly told kyle and austin what had happened. austin was wearing a red and white "killington, vermont" pom-pom adorned beanie and athletic shorts, and still hadn't changed for bed. or maybe he was changed for bed. he dragged his mattress into the living room , and lay on the floor, offering the mattress to mckenna, who gladly accepted. we soon turned off the lights, but kept talking for quite some time, until either austin or i fell asleep mid sentence and only woke up at ten on saturday morning. kyle was mostly zoned out and fell asleep first, i think. 

a blessed journey

after the oil change I got home, and had no sooner opened the car door when kyle called to tell me that he was ready, because he had skipped his arabic class. i also had a long and complicated voicemail from mckenna in my inbox, detailing where her keys and bags were so that we could pick them up on our way to picking her up. we organized logistics with nina, kyle and mckenna's friend, and orchestrated our rendezvous with mckenna on campus at one. 

kyle, nina and i got to campus right at one, and i felt satisfaction at having planned the time out perfectly, one of my favorite things to succeed at. mckenna was stuck in a meeting, so i got a veggie sub at subway, and by the time i was returning to the car to eat it, kyle and mckenna were walking between the buildings toward my car, ready for the road. 

i looked at the clock, looked at my zeroed trip odometer, and we were off on the crowded utah highway, full of people leaving the city or the state for the weekend, even though it was so early in the afternoon. traffic was unpleasant until we had gotten past the northern end of the wasatch front, but the music and the conversation more than made up for the less than ideal road congestion. there's a comfort in driving, passengers falling asleep in shifts, trusting you with their lives enough that they don't need to see what you are doing. it feels peaceful, driving along and seeing all the closed eyes and relaxed bodies, sleeping away the boredom of western plains and rainstorms. 

i was going almost ninety around some trucks when i saw the black and white charger going the other way on the interstate. i hit my brakes, he hit his, and i knew that i was going to be pulled over. he took an emergency turnaround, and soon flashed his lights and siren in my rearview mirror. i stopped, and he was brusque in telling me that i was speeding and did i know that not having proof of insurance was an offense that could revoke my license in idaho (this was silly posturing), and finished his stop by accusing me of being tired and suggesting that we change drivers. i looked at him, and wanted to say "no, i'm not tired, i'm pissed that you gave me a ticket, they're different looks." but i just smiled and said "no, officer, i'm fine." soon we were off again, only a few hundred miles out of boise. 

it took just over five hours to get to boise, including the run-in with the law. we filled up at a chevron and kyle had a great conversation with the attendant- she was not originally from boise, but had been living there for about a year, working at the service station. kyle waxed poetic about the people that you meet working gas stations, and i bought an energy drink. We ate Bajio for dinner, and Kyle didn't get anything, letting us on to his strategy at burritos joints: don't get anything, because nobody ever finishes theirs. it's a smart ploy, but one that everyone cannot subscribe to. 

i gave kyle the keys when we left the restaurant, and sat in the passenger seat to dj for the next couple of hours. 

breaking new ground

in retrospect, not telling austin that we were coming to washington was probably not the greatest idea that we ever had, but it seemed really awesome at the time. it was eleven o'clock our time, and we had just crossed into washington from oregon when i called his cell phone. 

"hey austin, do you know any good places in redmond that i could stay a night?"

"well yeah, i just might," he answered sardonically, "when are you thinking of coming?"

"um, we might have just crossed into the great state of washington..."

"WHAT! YOU'RE KIDDING!" 

unless you know how loud and awesome austin can be when he hears something outrageous, you can't appreciate the noise that he made after this. it would be difficult for me to describe in a just manner.  imagine a worked up walter cronkite and you might get the picture. i confirmed that yes, we would be arriving in seattle in about three hours, and yes, we really did want to sleep on his floor, could we? he heartily agreed, and welcomed us when we arrived. 

mckenna, kyle and i had been sitting in my living room doing homework and watching lost at about ten o'clock the night before when kyle said,

"ok, if you guys want to go to washington tomorrow, i'll come."

i had essentially given up hope that we would go, because kyle had backed out a few days earlier, and after a lot of phone calls i hadn't found anyone else that was willing to take off to the pacific northwest for memorial day weekend. i had never been, and was obviously excited when kyle made his offer. we hastily worked out schedules and found another rider. i once again had that feeling of anxiety to leave, ready to feel the open road under my wheels, the thrill of new landscapes and skylines. 

once we made the decision to go, the trip seemed blessed. i woke up at nine on friday morning with a list of errands in my mind. first, i went to get my snow tires changed to my summer treads. i forked over the money for the change, and the tire guy came out after a few minutes to tell me that my old tires were worn out, and did i want to buy new ones. i told him quickly and honestly that i really didn't have money for new tires, but thanks, just put on the old ones and i'll get new ones soon. he returned to the shop and came back with an invoice for me to sign. i looked at it, confused. 

"i couldn't put those old tires on in good conscience, so i put some good used ones on there for you. i won't charge you anything, but tell your friends, ok?" 

i was surprised at his kindness, and thanked him profusely. by the way, discount tire in south provo off university is great. i left surprised and happy with my luck. i went from there to the auto parts store, and bought a new air filter. when i changed it, there was enough junk in the filter box to make me believe that it had never been changed before. at the oil change place, they made a silly mistake in rolling down my unrolldownable driver's side window and i threw a fit until they gave me a refund for the oil change. 

we're back

after a brief bout with google over the veracity of our blog, we're back online. get ready for some great trip posts real soon

welcome

bem-vindo

bienvenue

bienvenido

wilkommen.

this is the trip log blog. the more we write about our various journeys in life, the more we appreciate them later. if you go on a trip, and want to remember all the great parts of it, write it down, preferably here. if you'd like to contribute, send me an email, and i'll invite you. it doesn't matter if it's a two paragraph summary or a ten thousand word essay, we'd love to hear about your trip.