I took the dog Walter on a long walk up the hill through the tree farm.
Here is a tree in the cloudiness.
I took the Blueberry Tank to get its oil changed. There was another vehicle with an Alaskan license plate in the oil-changing bay. The poor Oregonians thought the Alaskans were invading or something.
[daily log: walking, 5km]
Category: My Photos
Caveat: Tree #4
I’m thinking of just posting a picture of a tree every day. I think living up in Prince of Wales Island, Alaska, I won’t run out of different trees.
Today, the tree is a cherry tree in Juli and Keith’s front yard.
Yes, we have arrived back at their house, west of Portland.
We drove down from central Idaho. Here are two more pictures from stops along the road.
Snake River Valley at dawn.
Some mountains fighting with a snowcloud.
This is our last major stop before returning to Alaska. I’ll make one side trip next weekend, up to Seattle, hopefully. We’ll do some shopping and things that we can’t do easily up in Craig. Then next Friday (Jan 18), we take the ferry northward.
[daily log: walking, 1km; driving, 700km]
Caveat: Tree #3
We drove back across Utah. This is daily tree #3 – some juniper at the side of a rest area.
At a different rest area I met this bird. It walked right up to me, utterly fearless, and tasted my foot.
[daily log: walking, 1km; driving, 700km]
Caveat: Chocolate Avenue
I took a walk this afternoon. This time I went west. I found the big chocolate factory. There is a street behind the factory called Chocolate Avenue (sign at right in picture – the big white building is the chocolate factory).
Now I understand why Arthur likes to visit his brother in Montrose.
Some other pictures.
Call this daily tree #2.
Tomorrow, Arthur and I drive northwest. It looks like we’re not going to meet Arthur’s friends in Reno, so we’ll be heading straight for Portland. Our holiday adventure is coming to a close. We’ll have a bit over a week in Portland and then we return to Alaska.
[daily log: walking, 9km]
Caveat: Hay
I took a long walk in the morning. I walked east up out of town.
I looked south from the top of a hill.
I saw a cold horse, who said nay.
I saw something for the horse to eat, called hay.
In the afternoon, we went to have beer with some of my uncle Alan’s friends at a craft brewery in downtown Montrose.
[daily log: walking, 8km]
Caveat: portraits
We spent the day mostly just hanging out with Patti and Alan.
My two uncles, Arthur and Alan, could almost pass for twins, though they’re not.
Later, I took a long walk, in a big circle around this subdivision and another, and the fields beyond.
I saw some sheep in a field. I said, “Happy Holidays!” to the sheep. The sheep answered, “Baa [humbug].”
I took a self portrait in fresh snow. This is a mere shadow of my former self.
[daily log: walking, 7.5km]
Caveat: Hello Snow
We drove the rest of the way to Montrose, Colorado, today. It was a bit of a monotonous drive, but the temperatures outside were quite cold. And there was quite a bit of snow scattered around.
I took some pictures from before departure from the motel.
This is the crescent moon and venus (upper right), from my predawn walk.
Here are some mountains out to the west, at sunrise.
We took a wrong turn and ended up on the planet Mars.
Finally, we arrived at my uncle Alan’s house.
I took a long walk. Arthur didn’t want to come, because it was too cold. I love the cold.
[daily log: walking, 5km; driving, 600km]
Caveat: driving from 10°C to -10°C
Yesterday I went back from L.A. to Jenna and Braden’s in Indio. We didn’t depart for Montrose.
Then today, in the morning, we departed. We drove across the Mojave Desert, taking a non-interstate highway shortcut between Indio and I-15 just south of Primm, Nevada. There was snow falling in the high desert.
Later we had lunch in Las Vegas, and we drove north on I-15. It went from 50 degrees (10C) in Las Vegas to 15 degrees (-10C) where we stopped for the evening in a motel. Much colder.
[daily log: walking, 2km; driving, 750km]
Caveat: The Arroyo not-so-Seco
This morning, my dad, my brother and I went on a hike up the Arroyo Seco canyon, which stretches up into the San Gabriel mountains above Pasadena from the NASA-JPL campus on the north western end of the city.
Here is JPL.
Here we are, setting out. A rather low-quality selfie. I’m looking pretty scraggly, these days: my new Alaskan look, I guess.
Here are some pictures from along the trail.
We hiked about 6 miles, up and back down.
Later, we met James and Leia and we had a brunch at the Red Hen Cafe, a somewhat historic location in Altadena.
In the afternoon, I walked around Pasadena some. I like Pasadena. I lived here for about half a year, in 1992. But it was my dad’s birthtown, and where my grandparents lived when I was small, so we visited here often. Here is Pasadena’s iconic city hall.
[daily log: walking, 10km]
Caveat: brackets, hats
We spent some part of the day working on the Model A, some more. Trying to solve an oil-burning problem. And my brother Andrew manufactured ad hoc brackets to hold some non-standard modifications in place – an altered throttle lever, a non-standard alternator.
For dinner, my dad and I met with his friend Fidel and his family at a Thai restaurant up the street here in Pasadena. I really like Fidel and his family. For some reason, Fidel brought an exaggerated Mexican-style hat (which doesn’t even make sense – he’s Salvadorean) and gave it to my dad. But he wore the hat for this photo.
[daily log: walking, 4km]
Caveat: A
I drove out to L.A. from Indio.
I arrived at my dad’s garage (adjacent to his old house – his current house is up in Pasadena, but he stills pays rent on the garage at the old place).
There, my dad and brother were working on the Model A.
My father bought this car before I was born, in Kentucky. It was the first car I got to try to drive – I was maybe 12 or 13, and we were on some rural bit of road, I think up in Fieldbrook or McKinleyville (north of Arcata). My dad’s working on this car has been a kind of constant in my life.
The last time it was running and drivable was 1998, maybe. Recently my dad has been working on it.
The engine fired up and ran for a short time. There are some things that still need to be worked out – it seems be burning a lot of oil.
I saw the sun set in my old neighborhood, which is a striking memory of mine.
Later, we went to my brother’s place and had a fine dinner with him and his girlfriend Lilit and James and Leia.
I’ll be meeting some friends tomorrow.
[daily log: walking, 2km; driving, 300km]
Caveat: west to Califerne
We left Phoenix and arrived at Jenna’s in Indio, California, around noon.
It was nice to see everyone here. This is where we will spend Christmas.
I took a picture of Arthur with a cat.
Juli and I took a walk (as we often do when we see each other) and I saw a roadrunner in park.
We walked up a hill and I took this picture of the Coachella Valley. It’s notable that the valley is below sea level.
We had a big pasta dinner with everyone who is here.
[daily log: walking, 4km; driving 400km]
Caveat: giant cookie party
My sister had a giant Christmas cookie party today.
I liked being there, and finally meeting (or meeting after such a long time) many of the friends she talks about.
Plus, there were a lot of cookies.
The Arizona lifestyle requires a backyard pool, and, perhaps, Christmas sweaters for the dogs.
Earlier, my nephews Dylan and Jameson were put to work as slaves raking the lawn (because this is Phoenix, and the leaves are only now falling from the trees).
Later, we went by a store where Jameson is working as a cashier. He is a very chill dude. When I lived in Korea, it was hard to explain to kids that most teenagers get part-time jobs in the US, but it’s true – this is the proof.
Personally, I think he could pretend to be a k-pop star and get away with it.
We had pizza for dinner. Around the table counterclockwise you can see Mark (Todd’s brother), my sister in a santa hat, Dylan, Todd and, of course, the gruncle.
Tomorrow, we drive to Indio.
[daily log: walking, 1km]
Caveat: rocks and canyons
We drove past many rocks, on our way from Tucumcari, New Mexico, to Phoenix, Arizona.
Here is a very traditional-looking hilltop village in western New Mexico.
Here is the Salt River Canyon, coming down an alternate route (avoiding interstate highway) from Holbrook, Arizona through Show Low and Globe to Phoenix.
[daily log: walking, 2km; driving, 900km]
Caveat: cows and windmill
A day of driving.
A picture: cows and windmill – somewhere in eastern New Mexico.
Before leaving Dean and Pam’s I took a portrait of the three of them.
[daily log: walking, 2km; driving, 900km]
Caveat: another day on the farm
Another day on the farm. Just kinda hanging out. I made my chupe de pescado – Arthur’s suggestion. Apparently he somewhat likes, within the scope of his laconicity. I think it was at least deemed edible by Dean and Pam.
The farm.
A pretty good tree on the side of the road with Ozarks in the background.
Tomorrow, we depart for Phoenix.
[daily log: walking, 4km]
Caveat: Anumpa Tosholi
In the morning, Arthur and I took a walk down the road.
Only a half-a-mile down the road, there is the Choctaw Nation Capitol and Museum. This is Native American country, and Dean and Pam’s farm is nestled up against the reservation land.
The museum was pretty good. There were historical exhibits on the genocide, called the “removal” and commonly called the “trail of tears.” Then a lot about the life since settlement in Oklahoma. I most enjoyed the contemporary artworks by tribal members.
In the museum shop, I made the mistake of looking at the books on sale. There were Choctaw language dictionaries. As many know, I have a weakness for dictionaries, especially in languages I don’t know and probably will never learn.
I bought dictionaries.
Arthur was bemused, as he is anytime he directly encounters my odd book-owning habit.
“Anumpa Tosholi” is in the Chahta (Choctaw) language, and means “word translator” which is the expression they use for “dictionary.”
Later in the day I got to “help” Dean feed some hay to his cows. Really mostly I was standing around.
[daily log: walking, 3km]
Caveat: Poem #869 “In southeast Oklahoma”
ㅁ the fogged sun rises a pond swallows the bare trees and cows malinger.
– a pseudo-haiku.
Caveat: Lotsa horizon
“Lotsa horizon around here.” – Arthur.
We visited people today. First, extended family of Dean and Pam’s up in Crescent, Oklahoma, on a farm. We had venison chili for lunch and later Arthur and I took a walk down the road.
Then later, we had dinner with my uncle Miles, his wife, along with my cousin Niki and her family. Clockwise, you see Ella, Abby, Niki, Jeremy, Kaitlyn, me, Arthur, Miles, and Nancy.
Then we drove to Clayton, where Dean and Pam have their farm.
[daily log: walking, 4km; driving, 300km]
Caveat: OK
I have arrived safely in Oklahoma City. I’m tired.
Rather than meet with Arthur and his friends Dean and Pam at their home in Clayton, Oklahoma, they contacted me as I drove down and suggested meeting in Oklahoma City, instead. This will enable an easier meet-up with other people tomorrow – a member of their family, on one hand, and a member of Arthur’s family (my uncle Miles), on the other hand.
So I drove to OKC (as Okhahoma City is universally abbreviated) and we are at a motel here. We’ll meet up with various people tomorrow.
Here are some pictures from driving down.
[daily log: walking, 1km; driving, 1350km]
Caveat: dialogues at dawn
Bob and Sarah had to throw out a broken toilet and ancient chair, so I helped carry them to the curb last night. This morning they awaited their fate, collecting frost.
I would entitle this photograph “Dialogues at Dawn” because of the way there are two places to sit, side by side. But it’s humorous.
Later I took a medium-length walk around the pond in the center of the town of Whitewater, since Bob and Sarah had to work, of course.
I saw these guys standing on the pond, ice-fishing.
[daily log: walking, 3km]
Caveat: Poke men in Madison
I went to Madison with my friend Bob. He had to do a radio interview, related to publicizing his upcoming concert which he is conducting.
While he was in the radio station doing his interview, I had some time to kill walking around Madison. I have never lived in Madison, but I have spent a lot of time here over there years, because it’s where my sister went to grad school, and where several friends also went to grad school, and of course now, where my friend Bob teaches and conducts music.
I took this picture looking up State Street, which connects the state capitol building (in the distance) with the university campus (behind me).
My friend Doug has long described Madison as “Disneyland for college students” and that seems an accurate moniker. It’s everything you want in a college town.
Madison occupies a striking isthmus between two lakes. So a few blocks north of State Street you’re on the shores of Lake Mendota.
Later, after his interview, Bob and I met with Martin, who is the son of my friends Mark and Amy who I just finished visiting up in Eagan, Minnesota. Martin works in downtown Madison, so it was easy for him to get away from work and have lunch.
I found a place selling poke. Poke (/poʊˈkeɪ/) is a bit like a Hawaiian version of 비빔밥 (bibimbap) or 볶음밥 (bokkeumbap). You mix rice with various toppings, including raw or cooked fish, veggies, and sauces. I had one with very hot sauce and raw tuna and tofu. It was delicious.
Here is a selfie of me, Martin and Bob at the poke joint.
Later, I took a long walk to a nature reserve north of Bob and Sarah’s house. I went past the photogenic Whitewater water tower.
[daily log: walking, 4km]
Caveat: a city of memories and stale snow
I spent my last day in Minneapolis running a few errands and driving around a bit, among my memories. I’ve lived in Minneapolis/Saint Paul, on and off, for almost a quarter of my life, including very formative years of young adulthood.
This is the house on Elliott Avenue where I met Michelle and Jeffrey. Bob and I were roommates, upstairs, while Michelle lived in the downstairs unit. Jeffrey was 5 years old, then. The house’s appearance is almost unchanged.
Here is the Minneapolis skyline as seen from 14th Street at the University of Minnesota campus, at sunset.
No visit to Minneapolis is complete without a meal at an Ethiopian restaurant. Mark, Amy and I went to a restaurant on 4th Avenue South, just south of Lake Street, a few blocks northwest of the Elliott Avenue house shown above.
[daily log: walking, 3km]
Caveat: My almost brother
I call Eugene my “almost” brother. He was an exchange student from Kazakhstan in the early 1990s, living with my dad and stepmother in Southern California, at the time when my brother Andrew was a teenager.
Eugene has been a member of my extended family ever since, even though I haven’t seen him much (I mean, the same could apply to many of my actual relatives, too).
His wife and he live in Minnesota, here, and have two amazing children. I was happy to meet them. I drove out to their house for dinner this evening. We took a selfie at the dinner table. It’s not a great photo, but it managed to include all of us, despite its blurriness.
Since Eugene speaks Russian, natively, and his wife Marisol grew up as a native Spanish-speaker in Los Angeles, they made the decision to raise their children trilingually. It’s quite spectacular to see a 4 year old switching seamlessly between English, Spanish and Russian. The fact that I’m fluent in two of those and able to at least vaguely understand the third (from my two years of college Russian), I had fun switching along with her.
All parents who can should give the gift of multilingualism to their children.
Unrelatedly, earlier, I took another long walk at the big park south of Mark and Amy’s house. I took some pictures. They seem a bit monotonous, I’m sure, but I never tire of the winter landscape here.
I saw a frozen stream.
I saw long shadows.
This is Jensen Lake. A good Minnesota name.
The lake has an island.
I found an unexpected shrine beside the trail.
I saw a hillside beetling into the lake.
[daily log: walking, 5km]
Caveat: Minnesota Trails
Last night, Amy made a delicious dinner (which I tried to help with, at least a little). There was a roast and potatoes.
Today, I ran a few small errands, got frustrated with my bank, and decided to take a long walk in the giant park near Mark and Amy’s house. I took a lot of pictures.
I went east on Cliff Road to the entrance to the Lebanon Hills Regional Park. I walked down a snow-covered path.
I saw some small lakes.
I had to find my way around a stretch of closed trail. These two signs were at opposite ends of the closed part.
I saw some trees.
I saw what, in summer, is probably a grassy hillside.
I came to a clearing in the trees and saw some humble, 21st century habitations.
I love Minnesota in the winter. It is probably what I miss most about living here.
[daily log: walking, 4km]
Caveat: increasing amounts of snow on the ground
I drove east yesterday, and it was interesting to see the increasing amounts of snow on the ground as I progressed northeastward from Denver to Minneapolis.
After crossing from Colorado to Nebraska:
After crossing from Nebraska to Iowa:
After crossing from Iowa to Minnesota:
The Blueberry Tank in Mark and Amy’s driveway this morning.
[daily log: walking, km]
Caveat: More old pictures
Wendy found some more interesting old pictures in some boxes. I scanned a few.
In 1994, Michelle (my wife, who died in 2000), Jeffrey (my stepson, who is now 31 and lives in Seattle) and I drove from Minnesota out to California, and stayed with my dad (Phil), Wendy (my stepmom), Andrew (my brother) and Eugene (an exchange student living with them at that time).
We spent Christmas in Temple City, California.
Here is Jeffrey (my stepson) at age 7.
Here is Jeffrey with his favorite present, an infamous air hockey table.
Here is a picture of me, Jeffrey and Michelle, looking pretty happy.
[daily log: walking, 2km]
Caveat: Liquid Mechanics
I went to visit the craft brewery owned by my brother-in-law. It’s pretty interesting that he has this business. I tasted a few of the beers he makes there, and I bought a case of porter which I might give away as gifts or drink at some point.
Here is a picture of Wendy, me and Eric at the brewery, called Liquid Mechanics.
Later, I had dinner with my sister Brenda and her two kids (well one – Sarah wasn’t joining for dinner) at their house. It was nice talking to my sister.
[daily log: walking, 2km]
Caveat: Ancient Images
I have spent the day visiting with my stepmother Wendy. I met her current significant other, Larry, and we had a late lunch at a restaurant they like, where Brenda (my stepsister) also came.
One thing we did was spend some time going through some old photo collections. I scanned a few of them – so now I have digital versions of some old photos of my siblings and me.
Here is a rare and implausible “family portrait” from 1990, when I had just finished the training phase of my brief Army career.
Here is a picture of my father, looking rakish, and me, looking awkward. I was 13 years old, and we were taking a trip in Europe, in late 1978.
Here is a picture of me when I was 11 years old, at Phil and Wendy’s McKinleyville house. I think it might have been my birthday.
Here is a picture of my sister Brenda, age 5, pulling a go-cart that my father had made up the hill.
Here is a slightly damaged picture from my sister Samara’s wedding, in 1996: the four siblings.
Here is a picture of me with Lucy the Dog from a camping trip to northern Minnesota in 1993 – the dog belonged to my friend Kristen in that era.
Here is a picture of Samara, Wendy, me, and my father’s parents Alice and John, from around 1975.
Wendy and I took a short walk around her neighborhood and I took this panorama of Colorado’s Front Range looking west (you can “click to embiggen” this picture, you know).
My stepmother has artistic talent. She made this kokopelli that is in her back yard.
[daily log: walking, 2km]
Caveat: Wyoming? Why, indeed?
I drove easter (er…, farther east) than before.
I arrived at my intended destination: my stepmother’s home in Colorado. My stepsister and her family live here too. Despite the “step” I consider these very important members of my family: they came to visit me in Korea, which can be said for very few people.
Some pictures from the drive.
Dawn in Utah (where I stayed in a cheap motel).
I saw snow the entire day.
Wyoming is … a bit monotonous. I never saw so many broken down trucks by the side of the road, though. I guess some combination of cold and bad luck?
My goal.
[daily log: walking, 1km; driving 870km]
Caveat: go east
I went east. A lot.
Still working on that.
I’ll add some pictures later maybe.
[Update: Some pictures…]
[daily log: walking, 1km; driving, 1200km]
Caveat: Blueberry’s Bath
I think I’ve mentioned that I dubbed Arthur’s Chevy Tahoe SUV “the blueberry tank.” That’s the car I’m driving all over during the holidays, and tomorrow, I set out on my next leg. I’ll drive to just north of Denver, where my stepmother Wendy and stepsister Brenda lives with her family.
Today, Arthur and I had another VA appointment, and we ran some other errands and Arthur surprised me somewhat by deciding it was finally time to wash the car. So we took it to one of those fancy “hands on” carwash places and got it cleaned. It was quite dirty – the dust was caked so thickly that an ecosystem of moss was forming on the sides of the car.
Now it’s clean.
Tomorrow I drive.
[daily log: walking, 3km]
Caveat: Dead Guy
Today was a hard day. I was at the dentist in the morning. A horrible dentist experience, as they always are for me. Pain and discomfort and feeling of being complicit in my own torture, and then having the privilege of paying for it.
Sigh.
I had a frustrating time with trying to get my computer (HP laptop) serviced too. If I want it to be serviced, I have to send it to the manufacturer. Which means being without a computer during that time – plus, it’s a bit complicated since I’m currently traveling around. I’ll probably just not bother. And that means the manufacturer has “won” – they’ve made the issue of warranty service sufficiently difficult and complicated such that I simply don’t bother, which of course is their money-saving objective.
Sigh.
On a good side, I got my tax returns for 2012-2017. That’s a feeling of accomplishment.
I have a lot of pain in my mouth. They had to puncture and drain an abscess above my molar. Ow.
When I got back, I told Juli I felt dead.
She gave me some “Dead Guy Ale” to go with my dinner, which seemed super appropriate.
Life goes on. Tomorrow will be better.
[daily log: walking, 2km]