praying

a long pause; just wanted to keep the site alive.

Stripes of Lake Michigan

Warm water and rough waves tickle the banks of Lakeside, Mi.

The beach of last year has been swallowed for now.

A literal shifting of sands.

Michigan Home

Home. Well that could be an entire blog in and of itself. Home.

I told my mother on the phone when I walked in the house that I would trade the last stretch (from Chicago to Pinckney) for the entire other four days. Tough going through midwestern storms, blinding rain, flooding highways, and Michigan drivers who don't get the concept of the left lane. I had to get off the freeway twice, once because I could not see and once for flooding. A serious accident humbled all of us blasting along, and the average speed plummeted to about 4 miles an hour. Again, very thankful I made it back in one piece with even bigger patches of poison oak taking over my driving body. Mendocino lives on. 

I called this entry Michigan home because I am blessed by the sensation of multiple homes right now, California and North Carolina being close contenders. It has been an incredible seven weeks on the road, the last month concentrated in the Bay Area and north. There is nothing better in the world than feeling welcomed and loved. Nothing.

Perplexed

I've just got one question this morning. How with the antiseptic atmosphere of these hotels lacking operable windows, congested with intervening lobbies separating you and the outside, do mosquitos get into my room? I see them gathering outside my window this morning; that I can take. But last night when I surprisingly discovered what I thought was a solo transgressor and smeared him against the vinyl wallpaper, I assumed that was it. Not so. Morning greetings at six am, buzzing in the ear. Could they be living in the air conditioning system?

Other Curvy Paths

All this driving reminds me of earlier confrontations with curves. The Gualala River meets the Pacific Ocean. More framing studies - what should the river do to the edge of the page?

Happy Accidents in Nebraska

You cant know what you are getting at high speed. If they've eliminated talking on the cell phone while driving then taking photographs is probably not a good idea, but it's hard to resist. Sometimes you get lucky and catch an image that resembles what you saw (and captures why you wanted it) and other times the photograph itself reveals something you never saw. 

In each of these photos (shot from the car), objects and their backgrounds change up who is standing still and who is moving. Bales of hay roll faster than my car, spaces between train cars are trees swept from their woods, a single stone freezes atop a whizzing hillside. 

Crossing Wyoming

I suppose Best Western is its chain name - Outlaw Inn is where I rested last night and just ate breakfast. Accompanying me was the Casper Star Tribune (though I am in Rock Springs) and its assembly of headlines is worth noting. 

The United States is unprepared for an asteroid attack.

Handguns by Hand

"Wyoming remains a raw, sparsely settled place where guns are a way of life. Wildlife

is thick and people hunt to eat." The guy who owns the store is proudly holding what looks

to me like a pistol with a long goose neck.

(I order a Belgium waffle)

Rainbow Family attacks Forest Service Officers

And lastly, going national, old homey Helms finally dies. All I could think was how did this man with so much evil in his heart manage to die the same day as John Adams. Who gave him the right to command a headline on the day we celebrate our collective citizenship? (remember his nightly "viewpoint" on the news in the late 60's Wren?)

Off for another driving day. There would be days like this Mama said.