Monday, July 5, 2010

Go Cubs Go

The morning of the the 29th we began our drive East from Salt Lake City. After a few glimpses of red rocks as we crossed the Wasatch Range we began our long drive across Wyoming-- with the opportunity to view every shade of grey and brown imaginable! What a treat.

From Wyoming, it was into Nebraska as the landscape turned from parched scrubland to the low undulating hills of grassland. After a couple of stops for fuel, food, caffeine and internet access we continued on through the night. I was determined to put one more state in the rearview mirror before we called it a day (night?).

Shortly before 3:00AM CDT we crossed the border into Iowa from Nebraska before pulling over at a rest stop near Council Bluffs for a short nap. I intended to rest for a couple of hours before driving on, but we all sleep soundly until 8:00 AM before resuming our trip.

After another full day's drive across America's heartland we arrived in Chicago just after rush-hour before settling into our hotel near Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. We grabbed a bite to eat and began planning for the next day's trip into the city and to Wrigley Field.

Although I had once been to Wrigley (9 years ago) I was still excited to see the Friendly Confines again-- and the kids seemed especially excited to see the Cubbies (for
the first time). After walking around downtown Chicago for a bit, we took the "L" up to Wrigley so we could arrive a bit early.

The ushers at the ballpark with extremely fan-friendly, allowing us to take the kids down to the wall that separated the stands from the field during batting practice-- with made for a great experience for the kiddos. The game itself was a little frustrating (what Cubs game isn't?), with the Cubs trailing 2-0 as it entered the 8th. The Cubbies added to the excitement when the rallied to tie the game in the bottom of the eighth. Although, in true Cubbie style, the blew an opportunity to take the lead before finally losing in extra innings. Nevertheless, it was an awesome experience.


Sunday, July 4, 2010

On the Road (Again)



Ok...so I've actually taken the time to blog. That word sounds weird.

We left Oregon on Monday (28 June) at 3:30AM and drove all day toward our destination: Salt Lake City. The first several hours were in silence, as everyone (except for me of course) was sleeping. When everyone finally awoke, we turned on the CD player and listened to our first song:


With everything ahead of us
We left everything behind
But nothing that we needed
At least not at this time
And now the feeling that I'm feeling
Well it's feeling like my life is finally mine
With nothing to go back to we just continue to drive...

Jack Johnson, Broken


Totally unplanned. I had heard the song before, but had never taken the time to actually listen to the lyrics...and they seemed oddly apropos given the circumstances.

After several fuel, food and bathroom stops, we arrived at the hotel in Salt Lake around 6:30 PM MDT. Day One was in the books. 800 miles down. 2500 to go.