Up late, and slow to start packing. We really didn't expect to leave early but we weren't planning on 15:00. It was tough to leave, I'd thought about just calling off the trip and spending the summer in Boise but that seemed like something I'd regret later. We said good-bye and found our way onto the Green Belt.
One plus to leaving that late was we were there when the care package from Chris Petrell, my friend from the Bay Area, was delivered. He hooked me up with a ton of batteries, a couple of CDs with software for uploading the pictures from my digital camera, and a tiny digital voice recorder.
What at first just seemed like a novel thing to have soon proved to be indispensable (that phrase sounds like it came straight from the mouth of my father). I've been using it primarily to dictate emails that I later write into my Palm. It also works great for keeping track of mileages: record the names of the cities and their mileages and the milepost nearest the sign. I'm totally stoked.
Rain was forecast for Boise and the clouds looked like they were ready to dump on us at any minute. The winds in front of the storms pushed us down the interstate at 15-20 mph. Other than a couple of small showers we managed to avoid the storms. It made for some pretty riding. Clumps of black clouds all around, you could watch them drop down and sort of lower a mist to the ground where they'd be raining. I enjoyed the afternoon, the weather was cool and we didn't have to worry about sunscreen.
I've spent quite a bit of time on the road and there are certain things you
expect to see on the side of the road. Beer bottles, pieces of bungee cord,
remnants from tire blowouts, aluminum cans, old car parts and plastic bottles
half full of urine. Other stuff surprises you, some because it's useful but no
one else picked it up: construction hard hats, a Winnie the Poo chew toy that
plays the song if you press a button, a 1 quart steel bowl with price tag still
attached, fruit and vegetables. You come up with a story to explain how each
thing arrived where it did. Some stuff is just plain discussing: dead animals,
with or without maggots, syringes,
but the single most disturbing thing I've ever seen on the side of the road has
to be the twelve inch transparent pink plastic dildo that was resting beside one
of Interstate 84's off-ramps. It was foul, and I've got a picture to prove it.
andrew
P.S. We just got word from Joe Lane that we aren't drinking enough porter, we'll
try to remedy this. Does Mississippi Mud count as porter?
Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)