In the summer of 1995, my son and
I drove from Dayton to San Jose (we know the way). Monica and I drove back.
This is
waywest.
or
A cross-country drive that became
the search for a great cup of coffee.
Day One: Nothing compares to
Bucksnort
Adam and I left Dayton at 1:30pm
August 6, 1995
by 7pm tennessee disease of disconnected brain function to speech coordination
missed the exit to I-40 in Nashville in the rain and slick road
don't forget "bucksnort" tn,
home of the bucksnort deli and motel (should be inn)
gotta love that
and the "doublewide" lady at Shoney's salad bar wearing bedsheets
or curtains for a dress
the complex in Jackson outside Memphis where we stayed at the Holiday Inn
that was alot like the area in Chattanooga on that Square D shoot with Greg
Simmons from Graphica complete with hotels and Applebys and bar/restaurants
they were ready to serve Adam a beer-- heck I said he was seventeen to the
HInn deskclerk
two channel sixes on the cable TV and it was Showtime as well
Day Two: Thru Clintonland
from jackson thru memphis...no time to stop for Grace
Land then the Pyramid and the "Big Muddy"
thru the flatlands reminiscing
about the drive in 1970 from Cinci to Austin with Tommy and Greg
listening to G Gordon Liddy on hate radio tell a woman that her husband must
be a bisexual since he had been downloading "gay" men nude photos
thru Prodigy (and he, G Gordon would only download pictures of naked women
and as many as he could of them including the woman he was talking to andysay
anyway
G say her husband was holding a loaded gun to her head.
she has a "problem" because he must be having sex with men which
meant he must have AIDS which meant she was going to DIE!. All this on the
basis of her finding computer files. Maybe G be right but the memorable part
was the woman's adoring helpless voice pleading for help(instead of hype)
as he tells her he wants to see her naked. obviously the callers on these
shows are screened to be appropriate for Mr g Gordon Liddy.
so we arrive in Fayetteville, Arkansas to stay with Aunt Ruth and Uncle Walter.
What
can you say about your own aunt and uncle? That loved you and watched over
you and imprinted your premature cognitive commitments a la deepak chopra.
the piecing of the ancestry puzzle back through generations of old photos
and papers. the albrights back several generations back to Ohio right around
Dayton. 43 Corwin St. where Mumma got a postcard from my greatgrandfather.
only blocks from my current residence.
Day three: The Big Push
on the road by 9 we go due west to OK City. deciding to do a roadside review
of the Shoneys we are eating at. call it the good the bad and the inaccessible
as we can barely get to the one west of OK City Adam wants to know if you
commit a crime at Four Corners will you be tried in all four states.
anywhere u.s.a.
More likely the Bureau of Indian Affairs? He drives most of the way across
Texas thru Amarillo. It's the big push day...we drive til 10pm Mountain time
to get to Albuquerque and stay at the Monterey Motel on Rt 66..Central Ave
near the Rio Grande. Dinner was at Western Sizzler in Tumicari. Good thing
we are NOT reviewing them. Led Zepplin CD get us energized out of there and
we listen to local radio "the edge" coming down into A. We are attacked
by kamikaze bug swarmstorm coming down toward a town 30 minutes east of A.
We're punchy by the time we arrive having been in the car for 14 hours. Signs
for "gusty winds may exist" and "falling birdturds--(rocks).
True Lies on HBO and we collapse into blissful slumber
Day four: reservationland
trip to four corners and Grand Canyon. After breakfast at Pancake House I
awake Adam.
We tool down the road to gallup
and up Rt 666 towards four corners. Desolation road...can suddenly see Shiprock
on the horizon among other giant rock formations jutting up from the dusty
earth. Cross into Arizona and then up to four corners with its native Am stands
and flags and wait in line to take a photo. I buy some earrings for Courtney, Adam buys a ring for his right pinkie
finger. Long drive SW on rt 160 to rt 89 and 89a to get to north rim of grand
canyon. All thru reservation...just when i think the terrain is boring it
changes. Adam sleeps abouttwo hours. It is quite hot. Thru the valley
of buttes/mesas
(nice photo)winding up the plateau
to get to road to the North rim which is slow due to construction. Once there
we are amazed at the scopesize as the sun pops out for a beautiful sunset.
a real altitude/additude
high. Adam at Grand Canyon
Dinner in the lodge (we are seated immediately)and recover from climbing
and walking at 8200 feet. The drive out is quick as we see and almost hit
several deer incl fawns. down from the plateau and north and west to get to
I-15. We drive thru Zion Nat'l Park on rt. 9 lit by the moonlite...see no
people the road is paved red and the mountains loom around us bathed in fullmoonglow.
The road winds and switches..two tunnels...one incredibly long. Finally we
make our way out ... it is now almost midnite. Continuing to try to find I-15
entrance, the road seems to be endless. We are joking and laughing at large
speed limit sign and "coal wash basin". Punchy tired. finally the
freeway ..south to St George...all I want to see is a Hampton Inn sign and
there it is! We check in at 1:30a and crash onto our beds, flip thru the channels
and SLEEP.
Day 5: The architectural joys of Vegas, the road to Bakerfield
Having decided to let adam sleep in this morning i am up a 8:30 to hit the
Hampton continental breakfast of donuts oatmeal and coffee. Then out to the
deck by the pool and make phone calls to Ohio for business. A rainstorm kicks
up, a quick dip in the pool and pack up and yet another Shoneys for breakfast/lunch.
then the drive down I-15 to Las Vegas winding thru some beautiful rock-mesas.
decide to cruise Las Vegas Blvd...stop to buy some CDs (Metallica & new
Patrick O'Hearn), then thru Burger King to eat. See the grime and glitter
down the blvd to past all the biggies...Sands MGM etc. back onto I-15 up and
over the mountain pass thru the desert (117 degrees on the world's largest
thermometer-Death Valley--Baker,Ca.) to Barstow. Gas at a funky little station
and Adam at the wheel on rt 50 to get to Visalia.
I hop into the back seat listening to Metallica watching the scenery...a
multitude of living mechanical sculpture -- windmills of two designs..traditional
propeller design and rotator like Mariner's in "Waterworld".
An incredible sight and I try
to make images thru the windows open, adam driving. Rolling hill countryside
as we make our way to Hgwy 99. The sun sets and full moon rises over california
greenfields....sweet light left and moonlight right. Check into the Days Inn
try to watch some tube and crash.
Day six: The smell of the gentle giants
Sequoia national park and quiet
majesty of trees old and voluminous. A long drive up the mountainside to the
sights and smells of conifer and moist redwood soil. We stop at the center
to eat at the cafeteria and drive on to walk to see General Sherman, the largest
volume living thing on the planet. Many people...many europeans..french and
german; children too. Adam seems uninterested and I tell him that all my life
I have wanted to see these magic huge living things. are they a bit of an
anticlimax? ... the redwoods of Olympic Peninsula are taller; but in retrospect
the sequoia nobility resonates. but we must press on to San Jose and the drive
is a bit torturous and slow across the valley..everyone speeding.... finally
past Los Banos where we stop for ice cream to 101N to 85 to Blossom Hill to
Snell to Chenowyth to Dusenberg to Colin's Bugatti Dr where we meet Randy
who pees on the sidewalk at the gate because he is so nervous at these new
people HE does not know, but that know him. The Trooper is really dirty and
I pledge to wash it tomorrow and have the oil changed and the front aligned.
We are tired, but have driven 3100 miles without major mishap and it feels
good.
Colin arrives from work after
6 and we decide to go for Italian at a local place that is crowded (it is
Friday nite). The food is absolutely great ... fettucine mare alessandro for
me, spaghetti with meatballs for Adam, warm spinach salad for Colin. Adam
later says he would weigh 300 lbs. if there were a restaurant like this near
him. Home for wonderful sleep on a LazyBoy sleeper with a great firm mattress.
Like a baby.
Day seven: Cruz revisited
Up for breakfast of cereal and
homebrewed coffee to wash the Trooper like it had never been washed before
inside and out with soap, brush, spray, armorall and windex. It really shined
when we were done. (Thanks, Colin.) Then on to a great parking space near
the boardwalk fun and rides and games at Santa Cruz... a quick 45 minute drive
over the hills to the coast. Lots of sun and people (one young girl gasps
at the sight of Adam)...i have to touch the pacific [bikini watch] after a
hot dog lunch. We ride the roller coasters (i lose my hat) and try the VR
game complete with goggles and hand held controller thru some silly robotic
world of shootem'up. We manage to cram alot into a few hours and decide to
head back for steaks, corn on the cob and videos just as the fog starts to
roll back in from the ocean. Great dinner and StarTrek Generations and Highlander,
the final (I hope! -- too long), chapter.
Day eight: Love arrives
A quick trip to the SJ airport and pickup Monica. From colin's we drive to
the light rail stop and take the train into San Jose for the Jazz festival.
shall i say the HOT Jazz festival...not just the music was hot...it was 95
degrees and more. More like a food festival too. great viet combo platter.
After a couple of hours we head back..go to see Apollo 13 at the theatres
built near the drive ins in the round. Great flick...really terrific scenes
shot in the "Vomit Comet" KC 135. Can't imagine all the prep for
that 25 seconds of film production per parabola!
Day Nine: Monday August 14,
A half-day at the Bay the kayak kid
In the morning I take the Trooper
in for that fw alignment, oil change & AC check. More on this later. We
have decided to get over to Monterey Bay and try some kayaking. And it is
great. $25 for the whole day if you want...complete with wet suit, kayak and
paddle. Beautiful weather...we paddle near sea lions, sea otters and the kelp
bed...all the way up to the Aquarium and into the harbor. We race back to
Sand Jose to pick up the truck but it is not ready...turns out it did need
freon and they didn't want to add it without telling me.(Disgusting male sound.)
Day Ten: My new traveling companion
colin drops me off early at the dealer to get the truck. Sipping really weak
waiting room coffee, an older man, a contractor, tells me his recent (successful)
lifestory of little formal education, (that's entertainment!)...most interesting
story about divining rod use to find water. Been married five times. back
to the house to pack and take Adam to the airport where we find out his flight
is cancelled. Incredibly surly counter agent...I simply want to know what
our options are...He is flying back on American thru Dallas...we wait at Terminal
A where the food options are unquestionably limited, but at least I can get
a cappuchino to buzz thru an Am Photographer with. Adam is quiet...he will
probably be glad to get back to his world. It has been a great trip for us
both, I believe. We have many experiences to talk about for years to come.
Sad as he boards the plane that the trip with him is done.
Monica and I head out over San Fran Bay Bridge (slow going) to Sacramento
and Nevada. As we pass thru Reno, colin calls to express love and good-byes.
Through Nevada, which is greener than we expect to dinner in a little cafe...great
Mexican food...we see more Sturgis' 95 harleybikers..on to Winnemucca....the
Winnemucca Hilton...the Neda Motel (and we did). Owned by an Asian Indian
family, we are reassured by the desk clerk that there is a Jacuzzi in the
bathroom...a showertub with a couple of jets... the name was perfect.
Day eleven...a pretty good cup of coffee
A cappuchino in Winnemucca in a little breakfast shoppe. Charged up onto the
road with a great caf/sugar buzz all the way to Utah after a truck stopcasinolunch
where monica plays some quarters. the vision coming up over the last hill
to the ?Salt FLats for miles
to the Lake and the city by the mountains. "Coming in from the West to
Salt Lake" sounds like another willie nelson tune not on that cassette
we played morning and nite. Countdown to directions leads to 7-11 misdirections
to bookstore map and phone connection with Larry/Kathy and their dogs Max
and Sadie. great salmon and wine dinner, exercise room tour.
Day twelve: not enough sleep
in Mormontown
too much wine but no time to whine (or sleep) to take Kathy to Pennyswest
then southprovo to rt 6 & 191 (again). Caffeinelite coffee from Cathy
leads yet another truckstop cafe in the hills that is even worse. Tho the
chow was great pancakesandwich and bacon. Only some happy arousal to forestall
the exhaustion of the next few hours. On our way to arches and canyonlands:
MOAB (Muad Dib)
where it came together down to petroglyphs. wonderful wide/fish velvia
photos at n and s arches, park avenue, balancing rock, three gossips. Later
the slides look like some ruins of an ancient civilization of giants.
Poplar Place for great saladlunch. we crash into late afternoon sleep
at 4pm at b&b struggling. back for sunset walk to landscape arch and points
between. magnificent sunset; Slick Rock Cafe difficult diners and petroglyphic
prophecy of the day to come. hot sleep. Day thirteen: synchronicity
up for showers and the 2B of B&B. Couple from Miami talking about their
three weeks of driving...go see Dead Horse Point. OK we say and are off to
Canyonlands for an amazing drive to incredible heights...whale rock, salt
dome (where the giant alien civilization landed to walk the valleys of Canyonlands
and build temples that are now Arches National Park?). Mesa Arch looking down
on the white rim road. Then to the road to the petroglyphs
along the Colorado river where the universe coalesces.
The hand print on the wall
resonates back to Patrick O'Hearn CD. Return to Poplar Place for "best
ever" lemonade, amazing pizza. Then drive up the Colorado to Fisher Towers
along the river towering red sculpture walls to I-70 to Grand Junction to
drive thru the mountains along the river past the condos vs trailers overdevelopment
of Vail under a brilliant red sky cloud sunset to Frisco $20 B&B on a
whim. bugs so thick on the windshield you can't read the license pate. Big
Moose bar for split burger, fries and beer after a soak in the hot tub under
the starry sky. great cool evening.
Day fourteen: Milo
On past Denver and to Ogallala, Nebraska (a depressed salad bar) listening
to the radio auto mechanics from Cambridge on NPR talk to the contractor with
his Rube Goldberg exhaust pipe extensions on his big Voyager van. To Lincoln
and finally Waverly to Mary Alice and Milo, the sweetest dog since Randy she
called Minderbender.. The garden tour is great as some of it ends up on our
plates for dinner. I start reading tom robbins' half asleep in frog pajamas
(100 pages before we leave). inspirational.
photos of farmland in summer to match blue nebraska from christmas '93.
monica and mary alice talk and laugh as good sisters do. the world is good;
the world is at peace.
Day fifteen: rolling the hills of iowa
corn country...great spaces without the vistas of the west. beautiful late
pm light and I make my last pictures because tomorrow we will be home. A diner on the prairie with steak and milkshake and country(?) music.
monica drives on thru the sunset while i shoot the sky. to bloomington, IL
and an overnite comfort inn. room with the exit door...end of the bldg...everybody
UP monday first light. Tiny strofoam mudwater cups with pathetic donuts on
the side the continental. Desperate we go miles off road while I'm cell phone
dream analyzing with michael as we drive to univ of illinois where the early
Webwork (mosaic) began. and for what???...a great bookstore with a cappuchino
machine...or is it a espresso bar that sells books? (FINALLY A GREAT CUP OF
COFFEE!!) tried to buy frog pajamas, but they were out. we buzzed on
home thru indiana. once at indiaNOplace it felt like we were home. stopped
to see the kids and deliver adam's guitar and courtney's earrings. home. and
edge radio begins in dayton.
What
can you say about your own aunt and uncle? That loved you and watched over
you and imprinted your premature cognitive commitments a la deepak chopra.
the piecing of the ancestry puzzle back through generations of old photos
and papers. the albrights back several generations back to Ohio right around
Dayton. 43 Corwin St. where Mumma got a postcard from my greatgrandfather.
only blocks from my current residence.
Dinner in the lodge (we are seated immediately)and recover from climbing
and walking at 8200 feet. The drive out is quick as we see and almost hit
several deer incl fawns. down from the plateau and north and west to get to
I-15. We drive thru Zion Nat'l Park on rt. 9 lit by the moonlite...see no
people the road is paved red and the mountains loom around us bathed in fullmoonglow.
The road winds and switches..two tunnels...one incredibly long. Finally we
make our way out ... it is now almost midnite. Continuing to try to find I-15
entrance, the road seems to be endless. We are joking and laughing at large
speed limit sign and "coal wash basin". Punchy tired. finally the
freeway ..south to St George...all I want to see is a Hampton Inn sign and
there it is! We check in at 1:30a and crash onto our beds, flip thru the channels
and SLEEP.
to the ?Salt FLats for miles
to the Lake and the city by the mountains. "Coming in from the West to
Salt Lake" sounds like another willie nelson tune not on that cassette
we played morning and nite. Countdown to directions leads to 7-11 misdirections
to bookstore map and phone connection with Larry/Kathy and their dogs Max
and Sadie. great salmon and wine dinner, exercise room tour.
while i shoot the sky. to bloomington, IL
and an overnite comfort inn. room with the exit door...end of the bldg...everybody
UP monday first light. Tiny strofoam mudwater cups with pathetic donuts on
the side the continental. Desperate we go miles off road while I'm cell phone
dream analyzing with michael as we drive to univ of illinois where the early
Webwork (mosaic) began. and for what???...a great bookstore with a cappuchino
machine...or is it a espresso bar that sells books? (FINALLY A GREAT CUP OF
COFFEE!!) tried to buy frog pajamas, but they were out. we buzzed on
home thru indiana. once at indiaNOplace it felt like we were home. stopped
to see the kids and deliver adam's guitar and courtney's earrings. home. and
edge radio begins in dayton.