The Drive: Day Three

We're almost there! The dogs woke me up at 6 a.m. and I took them out, along with Brandt's camera. Irises are my favorite flower and most have already bloomed and died by this time of year. I found two sets along the walking path outside of our motel and tried some artsy shots. Then all three dogs took turns smelling the second set, which I was able to get pictures of. Cedric didn't see the point in it and didn't sniff long. I wish I could have gotten a better one of him.

Ellie checked out the flowers first.

Then Sparrow wanted to see what was going on.

Then Cedric gave them a quick sniff.

Sparrow hanging out while I snap photos of the flowers.

I was really impressed with the walking path.
I didn't expect to find anything like this at a Best Western.

View of the mountain in Salt Lake City.

I don't have much to report on today. It was fairly cloudy but no rain. Today was a short drive but it felt like the longest. Idaho's license plates say it's "Scenic Idaho" but I can attest that southern Idaho is not very scenic. I was very restless while driving and so was Cedric. I got a few shots as he migrated around my car.

Driving out of Utah.

Cedric cuddling with Ellie.

Cedric is tired of all this driving and Sparrow is hiding under my arm.

Puppy kisses!

The Drive: Day Two

Today was filled with rain. We left Denver while it was sprinkling and it continued through most of our drive. One part, in Wyoming, was quite frightening to drive through. It was raining so hard that I was driving 40 mph when the speed limit was 75.

The rain came and went, which still allowed us to take pictures of the scenery today. The drive was definitely more scenic. I know people not from Kansas think it's flat but that's not true at all. While the land around the roads in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah was filled with hills, buttes, and mountains, the roads were mostly flat. I expected them to be insanely steep and have many dips and valleys. I'm much too used to driving through the Kansas hills and constantly climbing and descending hills. It's like driving on a rolling ocean (hmmm... possibly because Kansas was on the bottom of an ancient ocean!), whereas the roads up here cut through most of the climbs.

Cedric cried through most of the drive yesterday and wasn't thrilled today either. At our first stop, I offered to take him in my car since both girls were fairly calm. Cedric climbed in the back and spent the entire drive stretched out on a pillow I'd shoved between the driver's seat and the kennel. He enjoyed watching the scenery out the window and peeked over my shoulder often. He even barked at several cars when we were driving through the hills in Wyoming/Utah.

The most hilarious part of the drive was an electronic sign spanning the road in Utah. I really wish I'd had my phone ready so I could have capture it. It read something along the lines of,"No one has died on this road in 3 days." Brandt said he laughed for several miles.

Please enjoy some our pictures from today.

Cedric enjoyed the windows in Denver.

Not a happy boy.

Cedric wanted to cuddle after a chilly walk in the rain.

The impending doom.

Driving right into it!

My driving buddy!

Wind farm in Wyoming.

Sparrow and me in front of some scenery.

Brandt forgot to put on his sunglasses on our pit stop.

Letting the dogs stretch their legs on a
"scenic stop" (extra lane with a barrier)

Cedric is the King of Salt Lake City.

The Drive: Day One

We made it to Denver!

Open roads ahead!
Goodbye Kansas, we'll miss you!!

This morning started very early (5 a.m. for me). We made it to Uhaul before they opened and loaded the van full of stuff into our last pod. It was so muggy out that I was surprised I didn't see little clouds forming around us. OK, not really that bad but it was quite unpleasant at 7 a.m.

We made it back to the house and packed up the coolers and did our walk-through fairly quickly. Then we hit the road! Today's drive was just Kansas and part of Colorado. The scenery was as expected and Brandt was beginning to wonder if we'd ever get to the mountains. We finally saw hints of them just outside of Denver.

Ellie was like this the whole ride.

Brandt said Cedric cried most of the time and just wanted to cuddle. He eventually cuddled with one of his squeakers. Ellie slept most of the way and made sure she was always positioned in front of a vent. Sparrow got a thunder pill before we left and stayed somewhat calm. She still panted the whole drive but didn't cry or hyperventilate.

Things we saw today:

• Wind farms (I'd never seen one!)
• A guy having his trunk searched by state troopers
• A dirt devil. At least that's what we think they're called: a tall swirling tornado of dust
• A town called Kanorado (Kansas + Colorado)



Cedric isn't enjoying this trip very much.
He tucked himself in like this.

• When we stopped for gas a large mountain/herding dog on the roof of a truck and she would not get down

We're both pretty tired and I'm glad that we decided to extend the drive to four days. Now it's off to bed to rest for tomorrow's drive!

Moving Day

We are finally back at the motel for the night. Today started out well enough. We woke up just before 8 am and moved the bed and couch to the garage. The carpet cleaning guy was able to come early so we checked into the motel and had naps!

Brandt hired movers to deal with the pods and pack them. They were supposed to come at 4 but called and said they could be there around 2 or 3. When we hadn't heard anything by 3:30 we went back to the house and waited. Brandt called them at 4:10 and they said their last job ran late and they'd be fine in 45 minutes. Well, they never showed up and didn't return our calls!

The dogs were ready for bed!

Brandt was able to rent us a truck and van to pull two pods. We got there 15 minutes before they closed, so it could have been much worse. A friend and my sister came to the rescue and helped us load all of our things. We need a third pod, so we loaded up the van with everything else and will transfer it to a pod in the morning.

Uhaul opens at 7 am, so it's at early morning for us! Our walkthrough the house is at 9 and then we're hitting the road. I'm off to bed now because it's been a long and exhausting day. I'm not going to bother rereading this and proofing. I hope it's all coherent!

The Big Move

Moving day is almost here! My last day at work is Tuesday, we're officially vacating our duplex on Wednesday, and we're hitting the road early Thursday.

Ellie hiding in the backseat.

The drive: Brandt and I will each be driving our own cars and have decided to make 8-hour drives each day.  in his car. We'll need to make frequent stops fr potty breaklotlots and to stretch so we thought 8-hours would be more than enough driving each day (and night driving didn't sound appealing). We'll be on the road for four days and arrive at our temporary place in Portland on Sunday, June 1.

Preparing for the drive: Brandt is cooking food for the road so we don't have to buy any along the way. We've had our cars inspected and made necessary fixes to make them road trip ready (new tires, new timing belt, new air filters, etc). We've got our first aid kit ready, jumper cables on hand, more flashlights than we need, and even a set of walkie talkies so we can communicate. If it's not obvious by now, we're both planners!

The boy is clean and ready to go!

What about all of our stuff?: We are storing all of our furniture and most of our things in two Pods while we're searching for a permanent residence. It's great because they'll show up and load it then store it until we're ready to have it shipped. We don't have to worry about a huge truck and towing a car either. Brandt has done all of the math and it's actually going to be cheaper than renting a truck and paying for gas. Plus we don't have to figure out what to do with our stuff while we're subleasing.

The girls in their makeshift thunder shirts.

Getting the dogs ready: All three dogs have had their rabies and bordetella boosters, have their flea and tick prevention on, have up-to-date heart worm prevention, and got baths this week. Sparrow is terrified of car rides so we also got anti-anxiety pills for her. The vet was concerned about having her drugged for four days so she suggested we try Benadryl. I'm hesitant to take that route because I heard dogs have a not so pleasant bowel reaction the first time and I'm not too keen on dealing with that while on the road. I also have makeshift thunder shirts for the girls and may use one of those. (FYI: I refused to spend $50+ each on a shirt for the girls to wear when it storms. So I bought them those stretchy baby swimsuit shirts and they work wonderfully. I got them on sale last fall and paid about $5!)

So, Why Oregon?

After people get over the initial shock when we tell them we're moving across the country with no jobs, to a place we've never been, the first question is: "So, why Oregon?" Well, there is no simple one-sentence answer.

A few of our/my top reasons are:
- The weather is desirable (I'd prefer a little more sun but it's still great weather and less allergies).
- The arts and culture in Portland/Salem are great.
- The people are more in line with our personalities, passions, and political views.
- They love dogs too!
- We love the natural parts of the state like the forests and coast. Plus there are numerous state parks.
- I buy local whenever possible.
- I prefer organic foods.
- I am obsessed with recycling and recycle everything. Somehow, I've gotten Brandt to recycle a lot too!
- I'm liberal (insert gasp here).

To get to the core of my reasoning, I'm moving to Oregon because it's not Kansas (see most of the reasons above). I lived in the same small Kansas town for the almost 19 years of my life. I've only lived in Kansas but have traveled to the surrounding states as well as Washington D.C., Maryland, Florida, Arizona, Nevada, and even Mexico. I didn't really do any traveling until early high school when my youth group went to D.C. and Maryland. I was obsessed with the ocean at the time. Seeing the unending water and being able to throw off my shoes and dig my toes in the lapping waves gave me an indescribable uplifting feeling.

We arrived in Ocean City, MD at night and we convinced our youth group leader to let us go to the beach. I couldn't see anything other than immense blackness but the sound of the ocean filled my body. I could feel the waves in my bones before we'd even made it to the beach. Standing in the surf in complete darkness was life changing. I was but a speck of dust (credit Carl Sagan), or in this case like a grain of sand on one small beach, on one coast, on one continent, on a tiny planet. I wanted to do something with my life. I wanted my life to matter.

I even dressed as Avril Lavigne for Halloween my senior year.

In high school I was obsessed with moving to California. Those who knew me then, saw me in my
punk/skater phase. I wanted to skateboard but was horribly uncoordinated (still am). I wanted to surf but couldn't do that in Kansas. I wanted to get out. I didn't belong. I wanted to find out who I was and what I could be. As I've grown, I realized California isn't for me. It's expensive, I'm not a fan of the crazy hot summers in Kansas (so Cali wouldn't be so great either), and I've matured out of that phase. However, I still knew I belonged somewhere else.

Now, I describe myself as a "new-age hippie." I made this up because I don't really qualify has a hippie. I enjoy my showers and deodorant. I'm not a hipster. I don't want to take down the government. I do want to do something meaningful with my life. I do want to save the world. I believe everyone is equal and deserves equal rights, treatment, pay, etc.

I hate politics but I must add a little about the politics here in Kansas. All I will say is that I disagree strongly with Gov. Brownback. More specifically - my jaw dropped when I heard he wanted to cut state funding for the arts. This also meant that matching federal funding would also be lost. Then he did it! I was horrified. Cultural institutions are already underfunded and not appreciated in this state, now the governor was saying they weren't even worth supporting. He claimed that a committee could totally do all of that and nothing would change. We all know how that went.

Art is an important part the human experience. The arts provide jobs and culture. They provide revenue for a community and have been proven to help children learn. Life is about more than math and science. Please don't misunderstand, I love science and I'm fascinated by all that scientist do. However, not all of us are inclined toward those disciplines either (math is my mortal enemy). The arts are at the core of who I am and what I want to do with my life. To be told that they are worthless (and by extension what I love and who I am are worthless as well) by the man leading my state was just too much.

Think you don't like the arts? Then stop listening to music (yes, even rap), stop watching movies (not just those artsy-fartsy ones either), don't let your kids finger paint or express themselves in any other way, and definitely don't let your child participate in dance or play a musical instrument because all of that is art. All of that enhances our lives. All of that is important. Oops, it appears I've stepped up on my soapbox. Let me step down and wrap up this post.

So there you go, that's why I chose Oregon, the abbreviated version (yes, this is a shortened version). I loved most things about living in Kansas and I know I'll miss living here but this is the right choice for me. We both realize that Oregon may not be all that we hope it will. We know it will fall short of our expectations in some areas. But now is the time in our lives to do this. It's crazy to pick up and move across the country without jobs. But it's more crazy for me to stay in a place that doesn't suit my needs or life ambitions. So we're making this journey together in hopes of more fulfilling lives.

We Have a Place for June!

Good news everyone! We just booked our place for June! It's a cute little upstairs apartment that allows our three dogs, is completely furnished, and we don't share with anyone. All three of these criteria were actually quite hard to meet within our price range. I'd hoped we could have a fenced yard but it just means we'll be taking lots of walks.

Brandt found a great website for subleasing. It verifies the owners and renters; we don't even pay the owner directly so we know they won't run off with our money. We waited a little too long to book (completely my fault) because I'd hoped one of us might have a job offer by now. This temporary location will allow us to get to know Portland and Salem while we search for a permanent home to rent.

Kitchen

Tiny kitchen table for two. I love the flowers on the wall!

Bright bedroom. We may need to cover that window with a blanket...

Living room.

A Colorful Goodbye

My friends put together a farewell BBQ for me and Brandt yesterday. I had a feeling that they might be planning a little more because they wouldn't say much about it. I was right and quite surprised!

We created one large piece of art and each took home one section. They had laid out 10 blank canvases and outlined sunflowers. Each had been labeled beforehand with our names on the back but we didn't know which was which. We rotated around the table and each painted on every canvas. It was a great idea and I had a blast. We drew wheat, tornadoes, Bluegrass guitar picks, fish, and more.

We waited until it was dry to find out which was ours. Mine was even more special because Brandt's name was written as "Bandit," which is their nickname for him.

Ours is hanging in our duplex and I can't wait to display it in our new place in Oregon. I love painting, art, and my friends. This is a wonderful representation of our friendships and it truly means a lot to me. I've known one since we were both in utero, another since Kindergarten, and others as recently as the last few years. The length of time we've known each other doesn't matter; I'm fortunate to call each of them a friend. I've spent innumerable hours swimming (or avoiding our workouts), teaching swim lessons, staying up late, getting in to trouble, and laughing with these amazing people.

Even though small town life wasn't for me, I wouldn't trade the way it shaped me and the unforgettable memories we've made together. We've battled wasps, been in a car accident, tried to get lost driving in the fields, spent hours at Silver Creek, fished, shot guns, been bridesmaids, kept up everyone in Hotel At Old Town (twice), rode our bikes across town at 7 a.m. for swim practice, and those are just the memories that pop into my head first. I'm sad that I won't be able to watch their kids grow and miss late nights doing ridiculous things, like wrapping someone as a mummy with duct tape. I'm thankful for the memories I do have and fully expect more shenanigans when I make trips back home.