Vegas Baby!
Day #74
Tripometer: 9379.2 miles
There are lots of things to do in Vegas that don't involve gambling...who knew? It helps if you have a car, otherwise you basically stuck to the strip. So Jen and I went on a tour of the Ethel M Chocolate Factory. It was pretty interesting. We got our picture taken and put on a chocolate bar which I thought was a cool souveneir. The factory has a very cool water purification system which Jen was really excited about. I found it interesting but did really understand it all but I'm really glad that Jen was so fasinated by it. There was also a beautiful cactus garden that we walked through. After we were done with high-class chocolate we drove back to the hotel and parked the car so we could walk along the strip and check out M&M World. That's right! You guessed it...an entire store dedicated to M&M's. We even saw the 3D movie "I Lost My M In Vegas"...hey, it was free. The wall of all the available M&M colors was quite impressive. On our way to M&M World I saw Pete Rose kind of hanging out in front of a store so we stopped so that I could get his autograph. Jen thought that I should get him to write something like "Put It All On Red". I thought otherwise. Tonight we saw a tribute to the Rat Pack which we had gotten 1/2 price tickets to. Completely entertaining.
Me and Pete
320 Days of Sun
Day #69
Tripometer: 8428.1 miles
Rumor has it that Santa Fe has about 320 days of sun each year. Unfortunately the two days mom and I have spent here are not part of those 320. It has snowed for 2 days. I feel a little bad because this is the weather mom left back east but what can I do? Today we went to a couple more museums. We went to the Museum of International Folk Art, which was really incredible but a little overwhelming. There was just too much to see and the exhibits weren't laid out in any clear fashion. The temporary exhibit on the various ways that different cultures celebrate Carnival (like Mardi Gras) was a lot of fun. Then we went to the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture which was very well done. On our way back to the center of Santa Fe to do some shopping we made a wrong turn and a drive that should have take us 10 minutes ended up taking us a little less than an hour. It really wasn't our fault...the signs we totally misleading and not very helpful. When we had spent enough money we hit the road and ended up in Cuba, New Mexico, the town closest to our next destination that actually had a motel.
Santa Fe In The Snow
Santa Rosa
Day #66
Tripometer 8171.0 miles
Mile #8000: Cuervo, New Mexico
Today I drove on historic Route 66. I passed through a lot of cute towns. I drove to Santa Rosa and decided to stop for a little while. I found a nice park with a lake and a great view and walked around the lake, then I got some lunch and drove the rest of the way to Albuquerque (more Bugs Bunny references).
On The Road Again
Day #65
Tripometer: 7967.1 miles
Mile # 7500: Keene, TX
I hung out a little with Lisa this morning before getting back on the road. My mom is flying into Albuquerque (insert Bugs Bunny reference) on Thursday and that's about a 13 hour drive from Lisa's house. I decided that I wanted to get as close to Albuquerque as I could today and then spend Wednesday checking out the city. Well I made it to a town called Tucumari, New Mexico which is about an hour into New Mexico. The drive through Texas was very long but I did a lot of really good thinking and talking to myself (make all the jokes you want but talking to yourself is really helpful somethimes). I saw my first tumbleweed which was pretty exciting. Other than that the drive was pretty boring, nice but boring.
Manic Monday
Day #64
Tripometer: 7331.5 miles
Lisa went back to work and the boys went back to school. I slept a litle late, read my book and met up with my cousin Michael who goes to college in Austin. Michael spent the week vollunteering at the South By Southwest festival so he had a lot of really great stories to share. I got back to Lisa's house and we went shopping for the perfect belts for our beautiful buckles. We made a quick stop in the supermarket to buy another birthday cake since we had finished the first one. Once back at the house we played some more mah jongg and then called it a night.
All Around Cowgirl Champion
Day #63
So as I mentioned a few days ago I have become obsessed with the whole rodeo look. Today we went shopping. Lisa took me to a vintage western clothing store. We went to look at cowboy boots which are really beautiful. By the time we had left the store we were each All Around Cowgirl Champions, Lisa in 1992 and me in 1993...at least that’s what our new beautiful belt buckles say.
Another New Experience
Day #62
Dan had to go home today (sad face). After bringing Dan to the airport Lisa, Sam, Noah and I went to the Texas Roller Derby. This was an insane experience. We sat on the floor in the front row and watched girls dressed up in ridiculous costumes skate in circles pushing each other over and pretending to get into fights. There was a very loud, very bad concert afterwards. We stayed for maybe a song and then had to get out. We went out to a late lunch/early dinner at a really good burger place. As we were eating it began to rain, actually it began to pour. We ran for the car and got quite wet in a very short time. And then the rain just stopped and we saw the most incredible, most complete rainbow I have ever seen. The colors were so bright and clear. Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of it or you would see it below. It was amazing. When we got back to the house we played more mah jongg. Yeah for mah jongg.
Rodeo Austin
Day #60
This morning we all got some much needed sleep, had cake for breakfast and decided to pass on South By Southwest and go to the rodeo instead. We had read the program for the rodeo/state fair and couldn't wait to get there. We hoped to see diving pigs but when we asked someone where they were we were told that there was an incident and that the pigs would not be performing any more today. We were all a little disappointed but were more concerned for the pigs. We walked around some, went to the petting zoo where we fed a yak, checked out the livestock and then saw Whiplash the Cowboy Monkey perform (see picture below). We spent the day eating food that was either fried (twinkies, oreos, etc.) or on a stick (pizza). Sam and Noah had a blast on the rides while Dan, Lisa and I talked. Then it was time for the rodeo. It was an incredible experience. I quickly became obsessed with the whole thing; the clothing, the events, everything. If you ever get a chance to go to a rodeo I highly recommend it. It will be like nothing else you've ever experienced.
Me, Sam (right) and Noah (left)
Whiplash the Cowboy Monkey
Dan, Sam, Lisa and Noah in Jail
South By Southwest
Day #59
Today we had a fun time exploring Austin. Sam, Noah and Lisa showed us some of their favorite places in Austin. We went to Toy Joy, Buffalo Exchange and Waterloo Records. Tonight we went to Stubbs to see Billy Idol. We got there around 8 and saw 3 other bands ( FYI...The Sights are really good!) before Billy came on. We had an amazing time. Billy Idol was so great. He's such a Ken doll. Everything about him is plastic but the essence of Billy was still there. We all had an incredible time and were all extremelly tired by the time we got back to Lisa's but it was totally worth it.
Austin, TX
Day #58
Tripometer: 7305.2 miles
Today I made it to Austin where I will spend the next few days with Lisa and her two boys Sam and Noah. When I got to Lisa's we had a few hours to catch up before we had to go to the airport to pick up Dan Grunfeld who will also be spending a couple of days in Austin going to the South By Southwest music festival. It was so great to catch up with Lisa. I love email because it makes it really easy to keep in touch with people but getting to actually talk with someone is so much better. We went to the airport to pick Dan up and got to do some really wonderful people watching. After finding Dan we went back to Lisa's house and did some more catching up before calling it a night.
More Strange Things To See
Day #57
Tripometer: 7144.8 miles
Mile #7000: Houston, TX
Today I left my aunt and uncle's house and drove through Houston where I found The Beer Can House (see pictures below). I know I won't be able to describe it well enough so I won't even try. After checking this out I got back in my car and I was going to drive to NASA but along the way I decided that I wasn't up for it so I spent the day in Kemah. It was a really nice day so I spent the afternoon walking around on the boardwalk. There were a lot of fun stores to do some window-shopping, good restaurants, games and some small rides. When it got late I found a place to sleep and called it a day.
Beer Can House and Interesting Car
Lazy Day
Day #56
Today we just hung around the house. Aunt Sandy and Uncle Steve got ready to go back to work, Kate got ready to go back to school and I got ready to hit the road again. I did some much needed laundry, read my book and just relaxed. I realized that it was something that I miss while on my trip. I don't have a place to just lay on the couch and read or take a nap. It was also great to just sit and talk. It was definitely a good day.
Arboretum
Day #55
This morning I went to see Kate ride horses. It was pretty cool. The best part about it was that there was this horse range within a city. It was a really great hideaway. After lunch Aunt Sandy, Uncle Steve and I went to the arboretum (Kate decided to take a pass on this trip). It was a good afternoon. We saw some flowers, although a lot of them were not in bloom yet. We also walked a couple of trails in the woods. My favorite spot was a bamboo hut overlooking a pond. It was really calm and quiet. I could have sat there for hours.
Kate On Her Horse
I Helped To Corrupt My Aunt
Day #54
Today Kate, Aunt Sandy and I decided to go to the movies. Kate and I wanted to see Robots and Aunt Sandy and I wanted to go see Million Dollar Baby so we decided to go see both. First we saw Robots which was very entertaining. It's definitely worth seeing but you can probably wait until it comes out on video and just rent it. After Robots we simply walked across the theater and saw Million Dollar Baby (we had checked the movie times and planned on seeing both in one day but don't tell anyone that we didn't pay for the second movie). Aunt Sandy claims that this was the first time she had snuck into a movie. If this is true I'm glad I could be there for it. Million Dollar Baby is a very powerful movie. I won't discuss my feelings on the ending just in case some of you haven't seen it but it is very shocking and emotional. Nonetheless...I think it's a must-see movie. The acting is realy incredible. After the movies we went out to dinner considering all we had eaten was popcorn. Not that popcorn is bad but it's just not filling enough.
Galveston
Day #53
Today Kate and some of her friends wanted to go to the beach. I was a little surprised that the beach was a possibility in March but whatever, I knew I wasn't going to go swimming. Aunt Sandy, Kate, her friends and I went to Galveston which is an island about an hour east of Houston. We walked around, got ice cream, and did some window shopping before going to the beach. Aunt Sandy and I hung out on a blanket while Kate and her friends sat in the water, made a sand castle and went for a walk. It was a little windy but still and very nice day. I made sure to at least put my feet in the Gulf of Mexico just so I could say I did it.
From Dallas to Houston
Day # 52
Tripometer: 6979.0 miles
Today I slept a little later than usual. I then cleaned out my car and headed to Houston to spend a few days with my Aunt Sandy, Uncle Steve and cousin Kate who has the week off from school. Yeah Spring Break! Nothing else to report on for today.
What's So Exciting About Dallas....
Day #50
Tripometer: 6687.2 miles
There's nothing exciting about Dallas. If you have the option...don't go to Dallas. I thought it might be a cool city to see. It was ok but nothing to write home about. Anyway, as you might imagine there is JFK stuff everywhere you turn. I figured I had to see something so I went to the 6th Floor Museum. It was pretty well done. After I walked out of the museum some guy on the street tried to sell me a JFK memorial magazine and then told me about the Conspiracy Museum. I was a little disappointed that I didn't know about that museum first. It would have been much more fun than the 6th Floor Museum but at this point I had had enbough of JFK. So I walked around downtown Dallas. It was nice enough. Then I went to a Dallas Mavericks game which was a lot of fun. Most of the stars were injured but it was a lot of fun to see guys play all out, which doesn't always happen. Today wasn't a bad day, but it certainly wasn't that exciting. I guess they can't all be. There's always tomorrow.
Driving Day
Day #49
Tripometer: 6659.8 miles
Mile #6500: Kilgore, TX
Today I did nothing but drive to Dallas. It wasn't that exciting but it had to be done. One thing I did notice on my drive through the state of Louisiana was that there are little casinos at every rest stop. Now I'm sure they were not full casinos. I'm sure they only had dinky slot machines or something but still. It's a little crazy but I guess people like to gamble.
