It's been awhile since I have had anything to say... Too much has been actually going on for be to sit still and write on the blog. This morning, I have a moment so I will give you a quick glance at last night.
Yesterday we woke up in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Gilroy, CA. We drove straight through to Irvine, CA. This is where I grew up. We were meeting up with my three bestfriends from back then, I hadn't seen them or even really talked to them in over 11 years. I had no idea what to expect or what they expected from me. Needless to say I was a bit nervous/apprehensive about the whole situation.
Andddd now we're going to a pool party, where Eric has a pool, a jacuzzi, and a mini golf course in his back yard. "Welcome to Cali Guys."
Too much fun, The stories will all come later.
Much Love, (from my hometown),
Adam
Monday, June 29, 2009
Sunday, June 28, 2009
So A Week Is A Long Time
To not update what we've done, especially when the last thing I wrote about was Yellowstone. So, in favor of keeping most of you up to date with what's happening on this trip, I'll call this the abridged version.
We left Yellowstone for Jackson's Hole. We hit a bar, slept in the car. We met a very pretty waitress.
We left Jackson's Hole after seeing a female moose in a river. We made it to some hot springs outside of Salmon Idaho. We hiked for two miles but the view was worth it, and so were the hot springs. The earth is a strange place and I'm in love with it.
We got food at a brew pub and then made our way to Wagonhammer campgrounds. We met the owners, Abner and Shirley.
We left there and headed for Glacier National park. We stayed with Aaron's friend Nick at his place. We would spend two days there, hike to a beautiful lake, go to a riotous club, and I'm told get fucked with by the natives. I might not have been completely there for that.
We left Glacier and headed to Seattle. We stayed with Mark Reppi. If you live in the Seattle area and want an awesome friend, I suggest you find him before he disappears to Wenatchee, however that's spelt. We saw naked bike riders, ate massive burritos, went to two dead bars, danced in a graveyard, got tattoos, and watched Blindness.
We left for Vancouver after that and stayed with Adam's friend Alex. We had home made dinner, went to a bar where I was hit on by a crazy dancing girl and a mother. Then we barbecued the next day and drove to Portland. We had a blowout on the way. It was awesome but completely normal.
Portland we stayed with Adam's friends Alex's family. His brother Simon showed us around and showed us a good time. We had awesome indian food and went to a massive bookstore. We then saw Cursive that night before driving out to the Oregon Coastline.
We Drove to Crater lakes, saw it, and then kept going. We stopped for mexican food at a tiny place with a cute waitress, and why are there so many of them inthe world?, and continued on to Lake Tahoe to stay with our friend from high school Alex (and I'm not gonna try to spell his last name, I think it's Glazier. Okay so I did try. Damn.)
We spent two nights in Tahoe, and during the day we were there we swam in three lakes, and Alex and I jumped off of around sixty or seventy foot cliffs into water. Aaron and Adam did forty footers or so.
And then yesterday we were in San Francisco. I didn't like it till we got away from the piers, we met a couple named Shane and Amy. They proceeded to treat us for the rest of the night and tell us about Shane's roadtrip.
And now I'm in a starbucks rushing this before we go to an aquarium and then to a party for one of Adam's childhood friends.
Till I have more time, take care. The road is home.
Signed,
Andrew
We left Yellowstone for Jackson's Hole. We hit a bar, slept in the car. We met a very pretty waitress.
We left Jackson's Hole after seeing a female moose in a river. We made it to some hot springs outside of Salmon Idaho. We hiked for two miles but the view was worth it, and so were the hot springs. The earth is a strange place and I'm in love with it.
We got food at a brew pub and then made our way to Wagonhammer campgrounds. We met the owners, Abner and Shirley.
We left there and headed for Glacier National park. We stayed with Aaron's friend Nick at his place. We would spend two days there, hike to a beautiful lake, go to a riotous club, and I'm told get fucked with by the natives. I might not have been completely there for that.
We left Glacier and headed to Seattle. We stayed with Mark Reppi. If you live in the Seattle area and want an awesome friend, I suggest you find him before he disappears to Wenatchee, however that's spelt. We saw naked bike riders, ate massive burritos, went to two dead bars, danced in a graveyard, got tattoos, and watched Blindness.
We left for Vancouver after that and stayed with Adam's friend Alex. We had home made dinner, went to a bar where I was hit on by a crazy dancing girl and a mother. Then we barbecued the next day and drove to Portland. We had a blowout on the way. It was awesome but completely normal.
Portland we stayed with Adam's friends Alex's family. His brother Simon showed us around and showed us a good time. We had awesome indian food and went to a massive bookstore. We then saw Cursive that night before driving out to the Oregon Coastline.
We Drove to Crater lakes, saw it, and then kept going. We stopped for mexican food at a tiny place with a cute waitress, and why are there so many of them inthe world?, and continued on to Lake Tahoe to stay with our friend from high school Alex (and I'm not gonna try to spell his last name, I think it's Glazier. Okay so I did try. Damn.)
We spent two nights in Tahoe, and during the day we were there we swam in three lakes, and Alex and I jumped off of around sixty or seventy foot cliffs into water. Aaron and Adam did forty footers or so.
And then yesterday we were in San Francisco. I didn't like it till we got away from the piers, we met a couple named Shane and Amy. They proceeded to treat us for the rest of the night and tell us about Shane's roadtrip.
And now I'm in a starbucks rushing this before we go to an aquarium and then to a party for one of Adam's childhood friends.
Till I have more time, take care. The road is home.
Signed,
Andrew
Sunday, June 21, 2009
There's No Way We'll Ever Update This Enough
...but here's to trying.
Today is day twenty-one. I'm sitting in a nice house in Seattle with a stomach full of raisin english muffin and coffee. Aaron and Mark are awake in the kitchen, I think Adam is still asleep downstairs.
So, In the last update, I got everyone caught up to Yellowstone. We spent the entirety of the next day exploring the park. We talked to a man named Gordon and another named Eugene Tennessee. Gordon told us about a place called Interstate Roadhouse in Tennessee, and Eugene told us what to do around the park. He had been to Danbury before, said he was a bread deliverer for a couple of years when he was a younger man. He suggested we take two days to see the park. We would do it in one.
We went to a mud pit called Dragon's Mouth or something of the sort, and it was more than adequately named. There were three buffalo on and around the path. We wound up getting as close as five feet away, and there was nothing more than a wooden fence between us. It was awesome and I was ready to run the entire time. I would like to ride a buffalo though, no one fucks with a man on a buffalo I bet.
We made our way through the sulfur steam and around the wooden path. There were tons of people, but that's what's going to happen when you're at a national park. Yogi was right, no one goes there anymore because of the crowd. I didn't realize I was so much a misanthrope, I suppose I always expected though.
After that, we headed to a museum in the park. It talked about how it was formed, about the processes that happen underground to form geysers, mud pits, hot springs, and steam vents. We're all nerds for that stuff, and I would tell you, but you'd be better off with google. Turns out though that Yellowstone is a hot volcano. As in, it could literally go off at any moment. Hell yes.
After that, we made our way to the trail head for Mt. Washburn. It was an eighty minute hike through a cloud that was raining. Also, snow. Everywhere. And we walked on it. Snow in June doesn't even seem odd to me anymore, and that's a thought that kinda terrifies me. Aaron had a water proof jacket, Adam and I were in hoodies. Adam had boots. Aaron and I wore shoes. I'm not going to say we were wet by the end. We were swimming. The top of the mountain was thick with fog, we could see at the most fifteen feet in front of us. That's fine though, I don't expect every view to be breathtaking. That wouldn't be real. There was a couple at the top, they were tall and we'd see them again later.
We left for the bottom, and I can imagine my parents holding their breath while we went some passes that were less than safe. It's okay though, life is more interesting when you might die. Speaking of which, we saw a bear soon after that.
We headed towards food after that. We ate at Roosevelt's, some kitschy feeling lodge with waitresses all in denim. The rustic look was sold more than felt, and it bothered me, but I was hungry. We spent the time people watching and I could smell a pipe wafting through the front door. There was a family all dressed in Red and Black striped shirts. It reminded me of camp. I remember everyone from Little Thinkers wearing the same colored shirts at water parks and amusement parks. It made sense, but damn if it's not creepy.
We went towards a waterfall following that. We left the beaten path in hopes of a better view, but it wound up ending rather abruptly in a washout. We hung around and tried to keep moving, but it wasn't to any avail. I don't know why they shut off the trail though, seems like most people would see that it was more or less impassable and would turn around. But then, perhaps 'm giving people the benefit of the doubt when they don't deserve it. I've yet to encounter a time on this trip that wouldn't support that though.
After that we made our way around the park and to Old Faithful. We stopped to almost see a bear for a bit, saw more elk and more buffalo and I'm sorry but I don't think I could ever look at buffalo enough. Also, turns out you can never have too many pictures of buffalo, or so Adam thinks anyhow.
We made it to Old Faithful just after it went off. Adam and I proceeded to sit on the benches and wait for it. Yes, it was going to be a hour, but dedication is important. We didn't really wait the whole time, instead Aaron Adam and I headed to the car to make PB&Js and listen to music. I had though we saw Gordon again, but we didn't. Perhaps it was folly to hope.
After Old Faithful went, an event that wasn't smelly in the least and much to my surprise, we headed to the Grand Tetons. It was getting dark by this point, and we couldn't see much of the view. We made it to Jackson Hole, went to a bar with quite possibly the prettiest girl in the world, then fell asleep in the car a bit out of Jackson. Adam woke up the next day confused, and Aaron and I had shitty sleeps in the front seat.
And that was Yellowstone. And it was what I wanted.
Today is day twenty-one. I'm sitting in a nice house in Seattle with a stomach full of raisin english muffin and coffee. Aaron and Mark are awake in the kitchen, I think Adam is still asleep downstairs.
So, In the last update, I got everyone caught up to Yellowstone. We spent the entirety of the next day exploring the park. We talked to a man named Gordon and another named Eugene Tennessee. Gordon told us about a place called Interstate Roadhouse in Tennessee, and Eugene told us what to do around the park. He had been to Danbury before, said he was a bread deliverer for a couple of years when he was a younger man. He suggested we take two days to see the park. We would do it in one.
We went to a mud pit called Dragon's Mouth or something of the sort, and it was more than adequately named. There were three buffalo on and around the path. We wound up getting as close as five feet away, and there was nothing more than a wooden fence between us. It was awesome and I was ready to run the entire time. I would like to ride a buffalo though, no one fucks with a man on a buffalo I bet.
We made our way through the sulfur steam and around the wooden path. There were tons of people, but that's what's going to happen when you're at a national park. Yogi was right, no one goes there anymore because of the crowd. I didn't realize I was so much a misanthrope, I suppose I always expected though.
After that, we headed to a museum in the park. It talked about how it was formed, about the processes that happen underground to form geysers, mud pits, hot springs, and steam vents. We're all nerds for that stuff, and I would tell you, but you'd be better off with google. Turns out though that Yellowstone is a hot volcano. As in, it could literally go off at any moment. Hell yes.
After that, we made our way to the trail head for Mt. Washburn. It was an eighty minute hike through a cloud that was raining. Also, snow. Everywhere. And we walked on it. Snow in June doesn't even seem odd to me anymore, and that's a thought that kinda terrifies me. Aaron had a water proof jacket, Adam and I were in hoodies. Adam had boots. Aaron and I wore shoes. I'm not going to say we were wet by the end. We were swimming. The top of the mountain was thick with fog, we could see at the most fifteen feet in front of us. That's fine though, I don't expect every view to be breathtaking. That wouldn't be real. There was a couple at the top, they were tall and we'd see them again later.
We left for the bottom, and I can imagine my parents holding their breath while we went some passes that were less than safe. It's okay though, life is more interesting when you might die. Speaking of which, we saw a bear soon after that.
We headed towards food after that. We ate at Roosevelt's, some kitschy feeling lodge with waitresses all in denim. The rustic look was sold more than felt, and it bothered me, but I was hungry. We spent the time people watching and I could smell a pipe wafting through the front door. There was a family all dressed in Red and Black striped shirts. It reminded me of camp. I remember everyone from Little Thinkers wearing the same colored shirts at water parks and amusement parks. It made sense, but damn if it's not creepy.
We went towards a waterfall following that. We left the beaten path in hopes of a better view, but it wound up ending rather abruptly in a washout. We hung around and tried to keep moving, but it wasn't to any avail. I don't know why they shut off the trail though, seems like most people would see that it was more or less impassable and would turn around. But then, perhaps 'm giving people the benefit of the doubt when they don't deserve it. I've yet to encounter a time on this trip that wouldn't support that though.
After that we made our way around the park and to Old Faithful. We stopped to almost see a bear for a bit, saw more elk and more buffalo and I'm sorry but I don't think I could ever look at buffalo enough. Also, turns out you can never have too many pictures of buffalo, or so Adam thinks anyhow.
We made it to Old Faithful just after it went off. Adam and I proceeded to sit on the benches and wait for it. Yes, it was going to be a hour, but dedication is important. We didn't really wait the whole time, instead Aaron Adam and I headed to the car to make PB&Js and listen to music. I had though we saw Gordon again, but we didn't. Perhaps it was folly to hope.
After Old Faithful went, an event that wasn't smelly in the least and much to my surprise, we headed to the Grand Tetons. It was getting dark by this point, and we couldn't see much of the view. We made it to Jackson Hole, went to a bar with quite possibly the prettiest girl in the world, then fell asleep in the car a bit out of Jackson. Adam woke up the next day confused, and Aaron and I had shitty sleeps in the front seat.
And that was Yellowstone. And it was what I wanted.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Catching Up: From Mt Rushmore to Yellowstone
So, I believe the last time you heard from us was somewhere around the base of Mt. Rushmore. At least, that’s what Adam says. The last time you heard from me was a lot earlier for that. Sorry for the lack of updates in general though, this leg of the trip dragged us out into the great big nothing that are the western states. Entire towns out here are created out of tourist traps and by taking advantage of beautiful naturally occurring rock formations and the like.
Right now, I’m writing you from Jackson Hole Wyoming. Only, recently, they dropped the Hole, apparently it made this place a bit more undesirable to live in. I suppose that’s the largest detriment to this place, I can’t imagine that living this close to the Grand Tetons would take much convincing on my part.
Anyhow, we left the camping lodge for horses back on Sunday morning. The lady there only charged us ten dollars to pitch a tent there, and even then she said she only charged us for the showers that each of us took. She looked a bit like my mom, I think they shared a nose and a certain love for the wildlife.
This entire trip has been like that though. Everywhere we’ve gone I’ve met people I’m convinced I already know. As though there are only a certain amount of people in the world, and there are only a certain amount of people you could possibly be. But then that’s a silly thought, and I’m a silly person.
We headed out first for crazy horse. We saw it, in all of it’s unfinished glory. We didn’t pay to get in, nine bucks a head is a bit pricy and we would learn more than enough about it form the people we were yet to meet on the trip. We turned around and headed for Mt. Rushmore.
On the way, we stopped at a place called Cosmos. I’ll save the nitty gritty details and say only this: It fuck’s with your perceptions. And well. Adam was happier than a kid on Christmas in anticipation for it, and Aaron and I left both skeptics. I suppose it’s just in my nature not to believe. I don’t know Aaron’s reason. But it was interesting.
We made it to Mt. Rushmore after that. Perhaps it’s a joke that I’m not privy to, or maybe the people that knew we were going to see the Faces wanted us to be even more impressed, but to anyone that told us they’re tiny, they’re not fucking tiny. We walked on the paved paths around the bottom of the faces, took silly pictures, and then found buried treasure. Thank you Mark Reppi. And I’m still of two minds about the whole thing. I understand the good it’s done, the business it brings, the work it creates, the tourist money garnered by a state with little else to go on but that, farm land, and the bad lands. Still, I wonder why we feel the urge to blow up mountains and reconstruct entire forests and hills to our liking. I worry about the touch of human hands I guess, but perhaps that’s a rant better saved for a a time I have a more formed opinion on it.
We left Mt Rushmore and headed for a swimming hole we never found. We did find an unpaved road and a river though, and I enjoyed both. We then headed for Sturgis; we were looking for The Road Kill café. I doubt they would have put the accent over the e though. We found, instead, a street almost completely devoid of business and life. We left the street a bit disappointed, but then we filled up on cheap Chinese food and made tracks for Yellowstone. It would be a long trip, we found ourselves smack dab in the middle of the Rockies at sunset. All the words and all the pictures we could take would pale in comparison to what we saw. I’d try, but I’ve been trying to learn this days when to fight and when to give, some losing fights are worth fighting and there are ones you could win that you ought not to bother. This is a losing one that I shouldn’t.
How could I forget? On the way to Yellowstone, we stopped on a route called Powder Keg Pass, we wound up climbing a mountain next to a turn off.It gave a view I dono't think I've ever seen the equal of with my own eyes, at least of nature. It was a rocky climb to the top, I dropped my lens cap twice into small crevices, and I can imagine the look of horror that would be one Aaron or Adam's face if they saw me contorting my body to get it. Sometimes I take dumb risks, but I know that. I think I'm okay with it. We waited on the top for a bit, then took off in search of Yellowstone. Oh, and there was snow on the ground. In June. Head-trip.
We made it to a Yellowstone campground that closed at ten at nine fifty-nine. We then met a man who would lay out the rest of our trip around Yellowstone for us, though we would do it at an accelerated pace. His name was Eugene Tennessee, and he was as bad ass as his name would suggest.
But I’ll save that for the next update. The road is treating us well, we’ve dealt with the rain, learned to live in the car, and I’ve become quite certain by now that the North East of America is probably the least friendly place I’ve been to thusfar. I’m ready for the rest to prove me wrong, though I hope it doesn’t.
From the road.
Signed,
Andrew
Right now, I’m writing you from Jackson Hole Wyoming. Only, recently, they dropped the Hole, apparently it made this place a bit more undesirable to live in. I suppose that’s the largest detriment to this place, I can’t imagine that living this close to the Grand Tetons would take much convincing on my part.
Anyhow, we left the camping lodge for horses back on Sunday morning. The lady there only charged us ten dollars to pitch a tent there, and even then she said she only charged us for the showers that each of us took. She looked a bit like my mom, I think they shared a nose and a certain love for the wildlife.
This entire trip has been like that though. Everywhere we’ve gone I’ve met people I’m convinced I already know. As though there are only a certain amount of people in the world, and there are only a certain amount of people you could possibly be. But then that’s a silly thought, and I’m a silly person.
We headed out first for crazy horse. We saw it, in all of it’s unfinished glory. We didn’t pay to get in, nine bucks a head is a bit pricy and we would learn more than enough about it form the people we were yet to meet on the trip. We turned around and headed for Mt. Rushmore.
On the way, we stopped at a place called Cosmos. I’ll save the nitty gritty details and say only this: It fuck’s with your perceptions. And well. Adam was happier than a kid on Christmas in anticipation for it, and Aaron and I left both skeptics. I suppose it’s just in my nature not to believe. I don’t know Aaron’s reason. But it was interesting.
We made it to Mt. Rushmore after that. Perhaps it’s a joke that I’m not privy to, or maybe the people that knew we were going to see the Faces wanted us to be even more impressed, but to anyone that told us they’re tiny, they’re not fucking tiny. We walked on the paved paths around the bottom of the faces, took silly pictures, and then found buried treasure. Thank you Mark Reppi. And I’m still of two minds about the whole thing. I understand the good it’s done, the business it brings, the work it creates, the tourist money garnered by a state with little else to go on but that, farm land, and the bad lands. Still, I wonder why we feel the urge to blow up mountains and reconstruct entire forests and hills to our liking. I worry about the touch of human hands I guess, but perhaps that’s a rant better saved for a a time I have a more formed opinion on it.
We left Mt Rushmore and headed for a swimming hole we never found. We did find an unpaved road and a river though, and I enjoyed both. We then headed for Sturgis; we were looking for The Road Kill café. I doubt they would have put the accent over the e though. We found, instead, a street almost completely devoid of business and life. We left the street a bit disappointed, but then we filled up on cheap Chinese food and made tracks for Yellowstone. It would be a long trip, we found ourselves smack dab in the middle of the Rockies at sunset. All the words and all the pictures we could take would pale in comparison to what we saw. I’d try, but I’ve been trying to learn this days when to fight and when to give, some losing fights are worth fighting and there are ones you could win that you ought not to bother. This is a losing one that I shouldn’t.
How could I forget? On the way to Yellowstone, we stopped on a route called Powder Keg Pass, we wound up climbing a mountain next to a turn off.It gave a view I dono't think I've ever seen the equal of with my own eyes, at least of nature. It was a rocky climb to the top, I dropped my lens cap twice into small crevices, and I can imagine the look of horror that would be one Aaron or Adam's face if they saw me contorting my body to get it. Sometimes I take dumb risks, but I know that. I think I'm okay with it. We waited on the top for a bit, then took off in search of Yellowstone. Oh, and there was snow on the ground. In June. Head-trip.
We made it to a Yellowstone campground that closed at ten at nine fifty-nine. We then met a man who would lay out the rest of our trip around Yellowstone for us, though we would do it at an accelerated pace. His name was Eugene Tennessee, and he was as bad ass as his name would suggest.
But I’ll save that for the next update. The road is treating us well, we’ve dealt with the rain, learned to live in the car, and I’ve become quite certain by now that the North East of America is probably the least friendly place I’ve been to thusfar. I’m ready for the rest to prove me wrong, though I hope it doesn’t.
From the road.
Signed,
Andrew
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Quick post from a porch on mount rushmore
I am writting this from my phone so please forgive the misspellings. A lot has happened since mil-rock. We drove from there to DES moines Iowa! On the way we stopped at frank Lloyd wright's house on the rock in somewhere Wisconsin. We were all pretty excited, paid the 12 bucks to get in and began enjoying the scenery. The was an infinity hall way which was just a hallway that went out into the sky and had NO supports! It was also built in such a way that it seemed like it was going on forever. We go through the whole house talking about how great frank Lloyd wright was and when we got to the gift shop at the end there was nothing about frank. How ever there was a book on alex Jordan. Curious I picked up the book and read the back cover "alex Jordan, the man, the dream, the house." it was the alex Jordan house not the frank house... Needless to say it was still pretty awesome! Then we made it to just outside of Des moines as it was getting dark and scrambled to find a place to sleep. Luckily we found a state park on saylorville lake. We watched the sunset over the road, words can't describe how truly awesome it was. Hopefully I'll throw up a pic sometime soon.
The next morning we went for a quick swim in the lake and then were on out way to downtown DM. it was a quick day downtown because no offense to our Des moineian friends but there ain't a lit going on. When we asked what there was to do in Des moines, people laughed at us, which reallly threw us off because what we usually get is... How old are you guys? After the laughter died down, we left Des moines.
We swiftly made out way to Omaha and we didn't know what to think. No place to stay, no plans, no idea what to do. But it didn't matter we were in the home of saddle creek. We were ready to rock.
Well I'm off to sleep. I'll let AJ fill younin up to now.
Signed,
Adam
The next morning we went for a quick swim in the lake and then were on out way to downtown DM. it was a quick day downtown because no offense to our Des moineian friends but there ain't a lit going on. When we asked what there was to do in Des moines, people laughed at us, which reallly threw us off because what we usually get is... How old are you guys? After the laughter died down, we left Des moines.
We swiftly made out way to Omaha and we didn't know what to think. No place to stay, no plans, no idea what to do. But it didn't matter we were in the home of saddle creek. We were ready to rock.
Well I'm off to sleep. I'll let AJ fill younin up to now.
Signed,
Adam
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Mil-Rock... Fuck Green Bay.
"You guys HAVE to go to Milwaukee!"
"Dude, there is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING in Milwaukee! Why would you go there?"
"If there is something fun in Milwaukee... I definitely haven't found it yet."
Everyone was wrong. Mil-rock is outstanding. We left Chicago, late in the day, with no plan at all for what to do, where to sleep, or even where to go for the day. Ilana had suggested Milwaukee, and it was the first place we saw on the highway, so that is where we went. Our first stop was The Harley-Davidson Museum. 16$. We just looked through the window, and left. Then we searched and searched for the Pabst Blue Ribbon Factory, only to find out from two young police officers that it did not exist anymore. Shit. Dragging our feet we went to the Miller Valley where the great beers of America are brewed like, Miller Lite, Olde English, Miller Chill, Sparks, and Milwaukee's Best! Needless to say, we were well hydrated travelers. Example: I asked the bar tender in the beer garden what the last tap was. She replied with "Oh that's water." AJ responded "Oh you have TWO Miller Lite taps!" Our tour guide felt like she would rather be purchasing a noose. She wasn't a fan of Miller Time. or getting paid by the Miller Hour. From there it was suggested that we check out Pizza Shuttle. $13.45 for a large special pizza and three tall beers, local brew. We're there. The pizza was delicious as well. And the hostess set the bar for Milwaukee by giving us a LIST of places to see and things to do. Complete with actual directions. Awesome. We tried to go to the Lake Shore Brewery but it was closed (Luckily). We then went to a brew pub that we had seen earlier in the day The Water Street Brewery. When we got it we figured it would be a little pricey, but were excited to try a new beer. We sat at the bar and asked the bar tender what her favorite beer was. Oktoberfest. Sold. We told her about the trip and as par for Milwaukee she was really nice. Eventually, we started talking with her and the other bartender Johanna. Both girls were really awesome and helped us think of things to do here, and told us "Forget Green Bay". Lisa graciously crossed it off the list, and with that saved us five hours of driving and probably a tank of gas. Thanks Lisa. We were only meant to go into the brewery for a drink, but long story short we ended up closing the bar with them. Johanna's friend Andrew showed up, and go figure he went abroad in Australia as well! And EVEN went to Danbury, CT! hahaha. We're taking him our drinking next time we're all back in town. I can not stress how awesome the people here really are. Aaron met a guy and got us a place to stay. He taught us how to break into his house, and said he would only come back if he didn't find another place to stay. Andrew and Johanna stressed us going to this bar called Safe House. I can't tell you about Safe House. It's a secret. But you have to go through a secret entrance to get in. And to leave you have to put a quarter into a telephone in a booth, and the back slides open and leads you down a flight of stairs, through some hallways, and outside. The password to get in is definitely not "I'm looking for a Safe House." There we were once again greeted with a friendliness that I hope becomes a part of my life. The whole bar took on to us and helped us plan our next day in town. Even offered to take us to lunch, which we will be going to shortly. We got drunk. Found our way back to John's place (the guy who offered us his place). Broke in. And slept on the apartment. In the morning John woke up, while we were thanking him he told us a story about how the night before he told his friends that he was letting three guys stay at his place and he wasn't there. "Dude, you're sooo fucked, they're going to rob you blind!" John - "No, they're not. I was once in their place and I know how it is backpacking around." Friend - "They're stealing your shit RIGHT NOW" John - "And besides what the fuck are they going to steal. I have a fucking picture of an Indian over a T.V. from 1992. And two palm trees."
Last night, really set the bar for the trip. Staying in Mil-rock one more day. Couldn't get enough.
Signed,
Adam
"Dude, there is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING in Milwaukee! Why would you go there?"
"If there is something fun in Milwaukee... I definitely haven't found it yet."
Everyone was wrong. Mil-rock is outstanding. We left Chicago, late in the day, with no plan at all for what to do, where to sleep, or even where to go for the day. Ilana had suggested Milwaukee, and it was the first place we saw on the highway, so that is where we went. Our first stop was The Harley-Davidson Museum. 16$. We just looked through the window, and left. Then we searched and searched for the Pabst Blue Ribbon Factory, only to find out from two young police officers that it did not exist anymore. Shit. Dragging our feet we went to the Miller Valley where the great beers of America are brewed like, Miller Lite, Olde English, Miller Chill, Sparks, and Milwaukee's Best! Needless to say, we were well hydrated travelers. Example: I asked the bar tender in the beer garden what the last tap was. She replied with "Oh that's water." AJ responded "Oh you have TWO Miller Lite taps!" Our tour guide felt like she would rather be purchasing a noose. She wasn't a fan of Miller Time. or getting paid by the Miller Hour. From there it was suggested that we check out Pizza Shuttle. $13.45 for a large special pizza and three tall beers, local brew. We're there. The pizza was delicious as well. And the hostess set the bar for Milwaukee by giving us a LIST of places to see and things to do. Complete with actual directions. Awesome. We tried to go to the Lake Shore Brewery but it was closed (Luckily). We then went to a brew pub that we had seen earlier in the day The Water Street Brewery. When we got it we figured it would be a little pricey, but were excited to try a new beer. We sat at the bar and asked the bar tender what her favorite beer was. Oktoberfest. Sold. We told her about the trip and as par for Milwaukee she was really nice. Eventually, we started talking with her and the other bartender Johanna. Both girls were really awesome and helped us think of things to do here, and told us "Forget Green Bay". Lisa graciously crossed it off the list, and with that saved us five hours of driving and probably a tank of gas. Thanks Lisa. We were only meant to go into the brewery for a drink, but long story short we ended up closing the bar with them. Johanna's friend Andrew showed up, and go figure he went abroad in Australia as well! And EVEN went to Danbury, CT! hahaha. We're taking him our drinking next time we're all back in town. I can not stress how awesome the people here really are. Aaron met a guy and got us a place to stay. He taught us how to break into his house, and said he would only come back if he didn't find another place to stay. Andrew and Johanna stressed us going to this bar called Safe House. I can't tell you about Safe House. It's a secret. But you have to go through a secret entrance to get in. And to leave you have to put a quarter into a telephone in a booth, and the back slides open and leads you down a flight of stairs, through some hallways, and outside. The password to get in is definitely not "I'm looking for a Safe House." There we were once again greeted with a friendliness that I hope becomes a part of my life. The whole bar took on to us and helped us plan our next day in town. Even offered to take us to lunch, which we will be going to shortly. We got drunk. Found our way back to John's place (the guy who offered us his place). Broke in. And slept on the apartment. In the morning John woke up, while we were thanking him he told us a story about how the night before he told his friends that he was letting three guys stay at his place and he wasn't there. "Dude, you're sooo fucked, they're going to rob you blind!" John - "No, they're not. I was once in their place and I know how it is backpacking around." Friend - "They're stealing your shit RIGHT NOW" John - "And besides what the fuck are they going to steal. I have a fucking picture of an Indian over a T.V. from 1992. And two palm trees."
Last night, really set the bar for the trip. Staying in Mil-rock one more day. Couldn't get enough.
Signed,
Adam
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
The Second Tuesday (From the Arch to Chi-Town pt 1)
I'm laying on an air mattress in the basement of Aaron Katzs girlfriend's basement uploading something like a hundred and eighty photos to a photobucket account I made while Aaron, Adam, and Alyssa (the wonderful provider of our place to sleep (wait, maybe that's her parents(Of course, that isn't all that important, but I ask you, who doesn't like a ton of parenthesis?(See?)))) are still sleeping, or at least trying to. I'm sure the clack of keyboard typing and Alyssa's cat jumping around and opening doors doesn't help.
We'll be leaving Chicago soon. I'm not so sure that's where we are at the moment, Alyssa lives in a suburb, but I do know that I'm still going to call this Chicago, and in whatever strange corner of my brain this place and the memories I accrued here will inhabit, this will still be linked with Chicago.
But then, I don't feel we've had any kind of substantial update since Nashville. I'll try to catch you guys up, but it's a bit of a daunting task. Our days are packed, our nights are packed, my dreams have been packed, and the coming weeks don't seem like they'll be any slower at all.
We slept in the car in St. Louis. It was roughly three hundred thousand degrees and more humid than the ocean. At least. The preceding night we were offered a place to stay by a homeless man that gave us a Columbia shirt, an embroidered lighter holder, and a meat thermometer. He turned in a circle and said "Yo, you could camp at my sisters! Let me go get here." We waited for him to walk down the street and then drove away. I wonder where our sense of adventure went.
We walked around St. Louis, saw the arch, went on the Anheuser-Busch tour, and then went to Soulard market place. We met a homeless man named Reggie who was holding a DVD player in a brown-paper bag. He told me that white people used to laugh at black people for the type of gauges I have in my ears. Then he asked us if he speaks like a nigger. Then he free styled and beat boxed. Then we gave him three dollars and told him to have a good day.
We gave away six dollars in total to the homeless in St. Louis, a city surrounded and filled with mansions.
We left St. Louis for Indianapolis later that day. We made it to within forty miles and stayed at a camp site. The night was going fine, we made rice and beans on the propane stove, went and bought fire wood, then spent the rest of the night trying to make a fire. The wood was soaked through with water, and every bed of coals we made sizzled and popped with moister pockets. It never really picked up.
While we were sitting watching and working on the fire, we heard rustling by our other picnic table. Aaron shined a light on it. A raccoon grabbed our bread and ran into the woods. That fucker. The raccoon would spend the rest of the night making noises as though dying and rummaging around our tent for food. Adam slept with his hands on a Hatchet and his pocket knife.
We went into Indianapolis for the day following that night. We went to a place called Bazbeaux's Pizza for brunch, then to the IMA. I saw Ma Jolie again, I had forgotten how much it ruins me. There are very few pieces of visual art that can tug at my heart strings, but Ma Jolie seems to do it more or less every time I see it. Ugg.
We ran into a man waiting at a bridge near the Lily house to propose to his girlfriend. He was wearing a nice suit and the day was just hot. I hope she said yes. I hope they are happy.
After that we drove to Chicago. We met Alyssa at Goose Island for a couple of beers before Aaron headed to her place and Adam and I went to Sam Young's apartment. I thought the night was soon to be over, instead we stayed up and watched Beavis and Butthead until I fell asleep on the couch.
We woke up early the next day, Ilana (Sam's girlfriend(see, how much do you like these)) showed us around Chicago. We hit up Navy Pier, down around the Mag Mile, and then went to a place called R.J. Grunts with a guy named Neil that we met the previous night. They had homemade potato chips and massive sandwiches.
Ilana and Neil were both good people, I'm glad we met them.
After that we headed to a pub named the Abbey for Ricky's show. We were forced to wait outside by a fat bouncer who seemed more than a little upset with life. But we hung out and had free drinks and listened to DJ Sluggo. After that we went to a pretty crazy party packed with people and a terrible DJ. The cops showed up in full force, a paddy-wagon and a couple of cruisers. We were cattled out onto the street and made our way, more miracle than motion, back to Sam's apartment.
We had been in Chicago for a little over twenty-four hours by that point, I was pretty sure that it was to be as ridiculous a time as I could want.
But for now, we're going to go get breakfast at Superdog, finish our laundry, and then head out for Milwaukee today. Yes, it'sn ot really on the list, but we've heard so much about it that it would seem like a crime not to visit.
This trip is more than I could have expected.
Signed,
Andrew
We'll be leaving Chicago soon. I'm not so sure that's where we are at the moment, Alyssa lives in a suburb, but I do know that I'm still going to call this Chicago, and in whatever strange corner of my brain this place and the memories I accrued here will inhabit, this will still be linked with Chicago.
But then, I don't feel we've had any kind of substantial update since Nashville. I'll try to catch you guys up, but it's a bit of a daunting task. Our days are packed, our nights are packed, my dreams have been packed, and the coming weeks don't seem like they'll be any slower at all.
We slept in the car in St. Louis. It was roughly three hundred thousand degrees and more humid than the ocean. At least. The preceding night we were offered a place to stay by a homeless man that gave us a Columbia shirt, an embroidered lighter holder, and a meat thermometer. He turned in a circle and said "Yo, you could camp at my sisters! Let me go get here." We waited for him to walk down the street and then drove away. I wonder where our sense of adventure went.
We walked around St. Louis, saw the arch, went on the Anheuser-Busch tour, and then went to Soulard market place. We met a homeless man named Reggie who was holding a DVD player in a brown-paper bag. He told me that white people used to laugh at black people for the type of gauges I have in my ears. Then he asked us if he speaks like a nigger. Then he free styled and beat boxed. Then we gave him three dollars and told him to have a good day.
We gave away six dollars in total to the homeless in St. Louis, a city surrounded and filled with mansions.
We left St. Louis for Indianapolis later that day. We made it to within forty miles and stayed at a camp site. The night was going fine, we made rice and beans on the propane stove, went and bought fire wood, then spent the rest of the night trying to make a fire. The wood was soaked through with water, and every bed of coals we made sizzled and popped with moister pockets. It never really picked up.
While we were sitting watching and working on the fire, we heard rustling by our other picnic table. Aaron shined a light on it. A raccoon grabbed our bread and ran into the woods. That fucker. The raccoon would spend the rest of the night making noises as though dying and rummaging around our tent for food. Adam slept with his hands on a Hatchet and his pocket knife.
We went into Indianapolis for the day following that night. We went to a place called Bazbeaux's Pizza for brunch, then to the IMA. I saw Ma Jolie again, I had forgotten how much it ruins me. There are very few pieces of visual art that can tug at my heart strings, but Ma Jolie seems to do it more or less every time I see it. Ugg.
We ran into a man waiting at a bridge near the Lily house to propose to his girlfriend. He was wearing a nice suit and the day was just hot. I hope she said yes. I hope they are happy.
After that we drove to Chicago. We met Alyssa at Goose Island for a couple of beers before Aaron headed to her place and Adam and I went to Sam Young's apartment. I thought the night was soon to be over, instead we stayed up and watched Beavis and Butthead until I fell asleep on the couch.
We woke up early the next day, Ilana (Sam's girlfriend(see, how much do you like these)) showed us around Chicago. We hit up Navy Pier, down around the Mag Mile, and then went to a place called R.J. Grunts with a guy named Neil that we met the previous night. They had homemade potato chips and massive sandwiches.
Ilana and Neil were both good people, I'm glad we met them.
After that we headed to a pub named the Abbey for Ricky's show. We were forced to wait outside by a fat bouncer who seemed more than a little upset with life. But we hung out and had free drinks and listened to DJ Sluggo. After that we went to a pretty crazy party packed with people and a terrible DJ. The cops showed up in full force, a paddy-wagon and a couple of cruisers. We were cattled out onto the street and made our way, more miracle than motion, back to Sam's apartment.
We had been in Chicago for a little over twenty-four hours by that point, I was pretty sure that it was to be as ridiculous a time as I could want.
But for now, we're going to go get breakfast at Superdog, finish our laundry, and then head out for Milwaukee today. Yes, it'sn ot really on the list, but we've heard so much about it that it would seem like a crime not to visit.
This trip is more than I could have expected.
Signed,
Andrew
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