The story plus some.

Saturday 10pm – well Michigan time at least. It’s 8pm local time but we change our clocks back tonight so that makes it 9pm – right? This trip won’t be messing our clocks up at all. The bar is definitely not a “non-smoking” facility. The guys next to us just got some cigars – I think out of a vending machine somewhere – and Jeff’s standing the middle of the room watching the game. MSU is down by 7 points now. The KOA we’re at is nice – the cabin has a heater that actually works and the host gave us the wireless scratch off card. You can buy the time like phone minutes. Getting to camp early and actually cooking (well hot dogs if you call that cooking) was nice. It felt like vacation rather than traveling balls-out across the country. I’m looking forward to better scenery on the drive starting tomorrow…. Well at least until we reach Montana. I did have a cop cut through the median ahead of me while driving today… Jeff immediately asked if I was speeding – but the limit is 75 mph and with the wind and our little car there was no way I was even close to being over the limit. I think the cop just wanted to scare the semi that passed me. That wind today was crazy! Every time we went over a bridge it was like being on ice…. There would always be a bump in the road and then the wind would wip as well. Jeff asked how I was able to be the passenger, with me getting motion sick so easily. Luckily I had already taken my Dramamine. Lots of Koun-try music around here. That and news stories of the Pope dying. We let the radio channels scan one time and 4 in a row were the exact same story on the pope.

The plan for tomorrow is to head to Wind Cave National Park then up to Mt. Rushmore. I read there’s an Alpine Slide outside of Mt. Rushmore so we’ll see if I can make a stop there as well. And Devils Tower is near the interstate in Wyoming….maybe I can make that a pit stop as well. I did get a late start to the whole trip. When I drove through the Wisconsin Dells last night the resort of the Kalahari Dessert was all lit up. It s a giant indoor water park. Why didn’t I make plans to stop there as well? I tried to talk alisha into it last trip but hadn’t left enough time…. If going around Chicago was more efficient it would make it easier. But the water park looked WAY cool. Although a bunch of Midwestern folks with their pasty winter skin probably’s a bit shocking. Once we get past Devils Tower though… no stops from there on out. Just getting to Bellevue. Rumor’s getting around Jeff’s old school that he’ll be in town and kids wondering if he’ll be stopping by. I told Jeff he should “unleash” the rumor that he’s returning to Sammamish and maybe it’ll help things out.

MSU down’s by 15 points now. Not looking good.

JEFF: She thinks she needs to update the score…. Like you don’t already know it if you’re reading this.

JO: Shhh… behave Jeff. Just trying to let everyone know what we’re up to RIGHT now. Even if they are reading this hours or days later.

JEFF: (best case scenario)

JO: Whatever! I’ve become addicted to thinking up and writing “blogs”. I’ve been having tons of fun with it. Although who knows how interesting it is to actually read. But I guess if you’re sitting at work or late at night it’s something new to read. I know I usually started every day by checking my friends blogs or picture pages.

JEFF: How ‘bout something interesting to read? I know clothes absorb smoke, does a computer? Rough!!
Anyway…. I don’t know if you are aware but we are about a day behind on our travels due to a little mishap. I just want to preface this with by stating that I have been chronicly deprived of sleep and for the last few days have been zombie like.
So we are all ready to leave Friday morning, the usual high ambition of 5:30 am. Not realistic in the most ideal of situations but this would prove to be far less than ideal! Everything was packed except my bag and being a guy I figured it would take all of 5 min. to pack. However, I realized that I had not made provisions for the fish to be fed while I was gone. After some phone calls, our friend Jen said she could do it but she would need us to bring the car over cuz hers is in the shop. I told her it would be no problem and Jo and I got ready to leave. I suddenly realized that I could not find my keys. No problem though because Jo had a key to both cars. Our trip gave us an opportunity to check out the car rack in use. We were worried about the bike because it seemed a little unstable but luckily, no problems. We got part way there and realized that Jen would also need our house key but so would we if we hoped to get back in the house. We went back to the apartment and started a frantic search for the keys, nowhere to be found.
I decided that they couldn’t be in the house and in a Clark Griswaldian attempt to resolve a frustrating problem I would use the car lights to search the parking lot. I jumped into the silver car in a fit of angered and frustration and pulled the car around to angle the lights under some of the other cars in the lot. Failing to find the lost keys, I decided to turn around in case I left the keys on the roof and they fell off on the way out of the apartment complex. I had to turn around so I pulled under the carport, perhaps you see the problem already, I unfortunately did not see the problem until I heard a strange sound almost like a tree branch on the roof…. but wait there aren’t any tree branches near the carport…. Oh Shit,,,, Amanda’s bike is on the car rack!!! Yeah, lack of sleep. I jumped out of the car and the bike had been ripped off the front of the rack. I mean twisted and torn metal, it was a mess! I parked the car and went inside. It wasn’t until I told Jo and she ran outside and began inspecting the damage that we realized the roof of the car had been bent in and scratched up like we got in a fight with a grizzly bear. Not a good moment for me!
I’ve rambled on long enough but suffice it to say car racks don’t easily fit on a roof that has been bent to hell!
I’m going to sleep now, been doing a lot of that lately.

JO: Sleeping? Lots? To say the least! My bike ended up being mostly fine… the rack and roof ending up giving before my bike, amazing. So now the bike carrier no longer works, the roof is dented and the car racks no longer actually fits where it belongs because the door frame is now bent in and can’t keep a snug fit. AND still no keys to be found anywhere. We take the canoe & bike off the top and I order Jeff to bed. Next morning I get new car keys made, buy a new car carrier ($90) and we start all over… which is when we realize that the car rack no longer fits properly in the correct spot. And then Jeff figures out that part of the car rack towers are also broken… so we head out to buy new ones ($70) and complete things. We finally do get everything back on the car…. Dents, bumps & scratches. I get to order one of those “AS SEEN ON TV” dent removers – Jeff’s already ok’d it. We took the red car to Jen’s and were finally on our way… at 2pm on Friday. It all did end up working out. Although, one conversation kept coming back to me. When we first starting installing the racks in my parents garage we realized whoever had the car before us also must have had a rack on it because there were a few “wear’ marks on the door frame. I remember saying “well at least we know if we install it properly it doesn’t really damage the car.” Hhhmmm…. Jeff syas in all fairness it had nothing to do with installing it. We did try to “protect” the hood with socks so that the straps didn’t leave rub marks on the hood.. I don’t think it really matter at this point. We have several small to large dents in the roof and one large scratch. And some peeling paint.

Have a goodnight! (or get back to work now!) – amanda & Jeff