The Fishlip Diaries

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2009-11-06T04:31:00.001-06:00

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2009-11-03T17:56:00.001-06:00

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2009-10-23T14:57:00.001-05:00

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2009-04-10T08:42:00.000-05:00

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2009-02-16T01:00:00.001-06:00

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Update.

2006-05-22T03:52:00.000-05:00

I am now posting at www.BetweenTheDitches.com

Back, in Time

2006-03-12T20:38:00.000-06:00

To those of you who still check up on me, thanks.

My trip for this summer has evolved and is now completely changed from when I last posted December 1st.

I would give you more info but I don't want to jinx it.

Check back at the end of May.

Are you planning on taking off again?

2005-12-01T11:14:00.000-06:00

It was about this time last year I started hitting the atlas pretty hard, planning my trip around the states. This December is no different from the last. I have been dreaming up a new adventure since I boarded that plane in from Vegas. After reviewing a road map of the Americas, I think I have a fairly good idea of where I would like to go. This route will definitely change. However, it should give you an idea of what my goals are. The timetable will probably be longer than 5 months.

Remember me?

2005-11-29T10:29:00.001-06:00

Trip Complete:

Well I’ve been back in Omaha for almost two months now. Getting acclimated to stationary life was fairly easy. In an attempt to keep things in Omaha a little exciting, I opted not to move into a conventional home with my parents. I have some friends in Mid-Town kind enough to let me stake a tent in there back yard. All was good up until last night when the wind was so strong it blew my tent into the neighbor’s yard. The lapping of my tent flaps was so loud it prevented me from getting a decent sleep. I ended up sleeping inside the house, but I am determined to last the winter out there.

For those of you who would like to hear my reflections on the past 7 months, or are interested in ideas I have for future trips just ask. I feel, for some reason, more comfortable answering question, than I do blabbing about nothing.

Omaha, See you on the 9th

2005-10-08T22:46:00.000-05:00

I never made it to Niland. From Barstow I got a ride from a trucker who was headed to Santa Anna. I made a few phone calls and got in touch with my cousin Julia, who is residing in Santa Monica. She and her roommate allowed me to stay a few nights. I made good use of my time there. I Checked out Venice Beach, Beverly Hills and Hollywood. I called another cousin of mine living in Pomona California. I hadn't yet met Malynda and her family, so I was excited to meet some long lost relatives. I took a 50 some mile trek to Pomona on the various community's mas-transit systems, it only cost me 4 bucks in fare, which was good because I was done to my last 6. When I got to Pomona Malynda was very inviting. Her husband Hiram and there four children seemed to enjoy my unexpected and short notice company. They were nice enough to provide me with meals for the duration of my stay. Every time I attempted to do any kind of cleaning up, they got offended. I ended up staying 9 or 10 days getting to know them before I jumped on a Greyhound to Vegas.

I decided wile I was in California that I was tired. My Pops is in Las Vegas and was willing to buy me an airplane ticket home with him. I probably would have hitched home if he didn't throw the offer on the table, But Like I said, I am tired of hitchhiking right now.

Lots of Weirdos Out There

2005-09-30T20:16:00.000-05:00

Like the lazy hitchhiker I have become, I took the Greyhound to Gallup NM. I convinced the bus driver to take me to the truck stop on exit 16. It was a scheduled stop on the bus route anyway. By the time we arrived in Gallup the sun was gone and on it's way to morning. I wandered around the area covered by fuel stops and motels until I found a rad place to sleep. Tucked away from the street lights and the roads was a bridge holding I-40 high above the rail road. Thinking this was an ideal spot, I set up camp. My hopes for a good nights sleep were shattered as the cargo trains rolled by every twenty minutes for a blanket drill. I woke up unrefreshed at 5am. I was quick to get to the freeway. I had my sights set on Flagstaff for the day.

My first ride was a Hispanic guy in his late 30's on his way to Holbrook. He spoke to me in English mostly, but he snuck in a word of Spanish in ever sentence. After we established where we were going his first choice of subject matter was African Americans, or “Negro” as he called them. The whole ride to Holbrook I had to sit in his truck and get an earful of his ridiculous hate speech. I couldn't believe that this recently imported Mexican actually thought black people were “taking over the world” and needed to be stopped. I'm not going to get into the rest of his hellacious monologue, I was so tired from lack of sleep, I had a hard time holding my tongue. When he drop me off he tucked a dollar bill in my hand and told me to get something to eat.

I was relieved when a Native American man, with his two sons picked me up and gave me a lift to Flagstaff. The guys were on there way to a football game. I didn't much get a chance to speak with them because I passed out almost immediately after introduction and I didn't wake up until we got to flagstaff. They woke me up at the Little America truck stop.

I wasn't expecting to get to Flagstaff at 8am so I decided to keep moving. I stood by the west bound ramp and watched my shadow slowly disappear. A big rig slowly rounded the corner blaring his horn a waving at me franticly. As he passed me at two miles an hour he held the good book up to the window. I closed my eyes and shook my head, “Christ, who is this guy?” he stopped his truck, blocking half the ramp, leaving just enough room for the cars to get by. I wasn't too eager to get into his truck so I walked to the tractor slowly. As I approached he walked over to the passenger side of the rig and lit a cigarette. He gave me a road side interview. Asked if I was on drugs, He had a real loud personality and carried himself like a cartoon character, real animated. I figured he was drunk, but he wasn't. He got in my face as he talked about Jesus. I was so tired right then, I was a little cranky. I was having a hard time figuring out if this guy was a threat or not. When he asked to search my pack I kindly refused the ride, through the pack over my shoulder, and started walking back to the bottom of the ramp. He back tracked, “no man, don't worry about it, I'll give you a ride!” The way the guy talked about Jesus led me to believe he wasn't going to hurt me, but I knew he was going to test my patience. I made the unwise decision of getting into his truck.

He, Jeffry was his name, was on his way to Fresno California. At the time I was on my way it Niland, I thought I might check out Slab City. Jeffry agreed to take me as far as Barstow, thats where he went North and I went South.

Jeffry was, for the most part, pretty messed up. He was an open book, and wasn't shy. He told me stories about how his brother molested his 13 year old daughter who is now 21, and seeing his uncle. He has had a series of unsuccessful marriages. Jeffry had been trucking for 15 years, for 13 of those years he was using all sorts of powders and pills to keep him up at the wheel. He was in Wyoming when he bottomed out and found Jesus at the Little America in Cheyenne. We stopped off at a Casino once we crossed the Nevada border. Jeffry was loud and obnoxious. He was sure to announce to everyone that he was a truck driver, and he was there to break the bank. It took him two hours to loose $40 bucks on the penny slots before Jeffry consented to defeat.

It was dark by the time we got to Barstow. Jeffry dropped me off on the South side of town, a little bit out of his way. He gave me half a bag of Frito's before I walked.

I looked around for a good place to squat for the night. I walked to the south side of the break. I stumbled into an outlet mall complex. The mall wasn't only closed, it was vacant. All the units were empty, at least all the units I saw. The complex was very large, a sign by the freeway boasted 100 stores. The PA was still on. The oldies station gave it an eerie, almost haunting feel. I grabbed a drink of water from the fountain before I scaled the side of a decorative, wooden, slotted canopy that gave access to the roof where I set up camp. My nights sleep was considerably better than the night before.

Going Broke

2005-09-22T19:46:00.000-05:00

This morning I attempted to leave Santa Fe via South bound I-25. I didn't have any particular destination in mind. Albuquerque was a given, but from there I wasn't sure if I wanted to explore the New Mexican By-ways, possibly experience a hurricane in Oklahoma City, check out the West Texas town of El Paso, or just make a B-line for California. This morning I was kind of bummed out. I didn't feel very much like being on the shoulder. I needed a little direction. I walked back into town and called my Pops. With a little outside perspective I was able to point myself in the western direction.

Hitching out of cities takes its emotional toll for some reason. I wanted to take a Greyhound to Grants, or Gallup, but the ride was 30 bucks I didn't have.

I went over to the Mall with my panhandling face on and drummed up $32. I took the Iron & Wine out of my ear then got something to eat. Called Quinn, Lisa's roommate, to secure another night on the couch. Went to Borders and read up on the Trans-Siberian Railway. Now I feel considerably better about my current traveling situation.

Another Day In Santa Fe

2005-09-21T14:05:00.000-05:00

I spent yesterday wandering the streets of Santa Fe trying to build up the courage to go up to people and ask them for spare change. I walked to the store fronts, I looked the people in the eye, and I couldn't bring myself to interrupt there stride. Its rude I guess. I feel much more comfortable flying signs at intersections. It seems so much more passive, “You can give me money, if you want to.”

In the midst of my urban wander I got a call from Lisa, one of the other Couchsurfing.com hosts I contacted. She called to let me know it was ok for me to crash at her house. I decided to give William a break. From Downtown Santa Fe I made my way back to his house to get my gear. On the way there I found fifteen dollars on the side walk.

When I arrived at Lisa's her and her roommates were gearing up to go out to the cinema and watch the new Bill Murray picture. I tagged along, borrowing one of there bicycles. It was rather simple to sneak into the theater. So simple I wouldn't exactly call it sneaking, as sneaking would imply stealth-like evasion. We just walked in like we had tickets and no one said anything.

Right now I'm kind of stalling, trying to figure out where I want to go next.

285

2005-09-20T13:08:00.000-05:00

Crested Butte is all about Biking

The rest of my day in Crested Butte proved to be entertaining. I rode to the top of a mountain with Andy and his friend Jethro in his 65 Dodge van. Then I drove the van back down as they rode there mountain bikes down the trail. Mike got home from his Biking trip early evening. We chilled at his house and shared stories for a greater part of the night.
This morning Mike took me to a cafe for breakfast around 730. I packed my bag and made my way to the Hitchhiking Station. About 5 minutes after I arrived a couple other hitchhikers showed up. Both were students on there way to school in Gunnison. About 10 minutes rolled by and another student pulled off the road in a little station wagon. Two of us rode into Gunnison. I was dropped of at the university (I'm assuming it's a university). From there I walked a short distance to the edge of town, where I stood for a good 3 hours. Finely a Truck driver by the name of Ford took me away. He filled my ear with Religious rhetoric and conspiracy theory as we traveled the mountainous terrain at 35 miles an hour. He stopped at the BP station I was told never to return to. I went inside to see if the guy who yelled at me for sleeping in his shed would recognize me without my gear. He didn't, in fact he was super friendly to me and the truck driver I was with.
This is the point where I went south on 285 and the trucker went North to Denver. I walked a mile or so south so my direction of travel would be clear to potential rides. I stood at this junction from 12:30 to 3. A couple of goofy working class guys bound for Durango gave me a lift to Monte Vista. After Monte Vista people kept giving me the international ÂI'm only going a little ways down the roadÂ sign with there fingers, So I started makings signs with my notebook paper and a magic marker that read what ever the next town was, usually the town was only 10 to 15 miles away. The signs worked like a charm, I didn't have to wait for more than 20 minutes. The down side is they could only take me 10 to 15 miles. Things were moving pretty smooth until I got to Antonito . Traffic slowed down and faded away, leaving me to fend for myself in the dark.
Then almost out of nowhere two trucks, one pulling two horses and the other a camper, came to my rescue. Pat was the name of the guy pulling the camper, the one to stop to give me a lift. Like me they were headed to Santa Fe. As I rode with Pat he gave me a brief history of the area.
Wile I was in Crested Butte I logged onto Couchsurfing.com and tried to locate some members in Santa Fe. I emailed 3 members and by the time I checked my Voice Mail in New Mexico all 3 had replied. I ended up getting a hold of William first.
Pat drove me right to the door of Will's place and left me with a bunch of food left over from his camping trip.
I expected Will and I's introduction to be sort of awkward, but it wasn't. He and his roommates were extremely laid back individuals. We listened to some of his bands music and I went to bed around 1:30 am.

an Antonito sunset.

Every Town Needs One

2005-09-18T15:09:00.000-05:00

I spent yesterday and today hiking around Crested butte and Mt. Crested Butte. I took in the panorama of mountains, read the plaques of the areas historical information and rode the free shuttle that takes you just about anywhere in town. It seems, if you're not into skiing, biking, rafting, kayaking, fishing, or drinking coffee you don't have much to do but walk around.

As I was walking to the edge of town I spotted this wonderful sign. I have to admit, I didn't think much of this town at first, but after seeing a designated spot for hitchhikers to stand, I found a new appreciation.

You Never Know Where You'll End Up

2005-09-18T12:02:00.000-05:00

I missed the G bus that was supposed to take me from Boulder to Golden at 7am. My phone has the nasty habit of powering down on its own accord. So I missed my 6am wake up call. Fortunately I didn't wake up too late. At 8am I scrambled to get my things together then walked to the boulder bus depot. I had to take 3 transfers to get to Golden.
My next destination was Crested Butte Co.
Do you remember Keith, the guy who took me from Portsmith NH to Harrisburg PA? Well, we've kept in touch. He had suggested the place several time, and sense I was sorta-kinda in the area I decided to make the trek. Crested Butte is the residing place of his older brother, whom Keith speaks highly of. In fact if it wasn't for Keith's brother Mike, he probably wouldn't have picked me up that day in New Hampshire. According to Keith, Mike is a pretty extreme traveler. He hitched from Maine to Alaska then back to Maine with a huge dog, and he bikes around the mountains on a regular basses. It was because of Mikes behavior Keith felt sympathetic to my needs.
The Golden area is kind of a hitchhiking nightmare, unless you want to take I-70 west.
There were two ways really to get to Crested Butte from Denver. The short way, 285, or the long way I-70. Because 285 was an 8 or 9 mile walk I opted to take the long way, which was a 3 block walk.

I traveled on I-70, route 24, 285, and 50. I received a number of short rides, but no real characters to write home about. Just a bunch of kind folks in Colorado.

The days are getting shorter at the nights are getting colder, especially at 10,200 feet.
I was standing in front of a BP station when the sun ducked behind the mountains and the temperature started to fall. This was around 7pm. I continued to make an attempt at hitching after dark but was granted no ride. The BP I was in front of closed at 8 so I snooped around, looking for a place to crash. Whats this? A storage barn with a master lock unlocked? It appears so. I looked around to make sure no one was around then opened the door. The shed was filled with paper work. I moved it around, piling it on top of each other to clear enough room for me to lay down. After I did that I found an extension cord connected to the station. Now I have power.

I woke up the next morning to discover I had kicked the door open in my sleep. I didn't close it for fear of someone seeing me. While I was packing up my stuff A woman peered into the shed. Her first words were, “oh, you scared me!”
I then explain my situation and made haste. While on the side of the road hitching down route 50 an older gentleman was stomping toward me in a rather animated way. With his hands curled up into fists. He asked me if I had slept in his shed last night. I was truthful and apologized for trespassing. I stood alert expecting anything. He looked as if he was going to hit me as he told me he would call the police if I ever set foot on his property again. I apologized again and he walked back to this store flailing his arms about, muttering curses.
It wasn't long after this incident I was picked up by an aspiring author on his way to coach a Football game in Gunnison. A couple of Locals took me form Gunnison to Crested Butte.
Unfortunately, when I arrived Mike had left on a Bike ride to Aspen. But his roommate Andy was nice enough to let me in. I explored the town. Then slept on the couch.

Now That I'm Not in Kansas

2005-09-15T20:29:00.000-05:00

The exit I was at in Salina was slightly congested. There were two panhandlers on each of the off ramps and one Hitchhiker on the west bound I-70 ramp. I sat under a bridge and waited for the guy to get a lift. I passed the time over a can of beans. The guys technique didn't seem very ÂprofessionalÂ. I watched wile he simply sat on his bag, no thumb or nothin'. I thought he was going to be there forever but he eventually got board with sitting there and walked off back to the truck stop.
I quickly gathered myself and moved to the ramp. It took about a half hour before I got a 10 mile lift. I was dropped at the base of the off ramp. As I walked to the on ramp an old Dodge Pickup was turning west. He stopped in the middle of the street that I was crossing then gave me a ride to an exit just 20 miles east of Hays KS. He told me he would be back in an hour or so, after he visited with his grandpa. If I was still there he said he would give me a lift to Hays.
Fortunately for me I didn't half to wait that long. Two folks about my age, Matia, and Nathan, pulled off in a Nissan pickup. They were heading all the way to Binghamton Washington. I hopped into the bed of the truck next to Nathan's things. Nathan had just returned from a Hitchhiking Euro-Trip. Matia had flown out to greet Nathan in Pittsburgh where he Picked up his grandma's truck. Nathan had a lot of kind words for his adventure in Europe. Very encouraging.
After it started raining the two were nice enough to let me climb into the cab with them. This made for a tight fit, but a dry fit.
We hit Denver around 10, 11 pm and my drivers were tired. I called up my friend James and tried to persuade him to let me and two strangers crash at his house for the night. James first rejected the idea but once the three were introduced to each other, when we arrived at this house, his fears evaporated. His concern was mostly for his roommates who wern't comfortable with the idea. James is such a hospitable guy he even treated us three to breakfast the following morning. Nathan and Matia continued on there way to Washington. I stayed behind and climbed a mountain side with James.
I'm looking forward to one more good nights sleep here in Boulder before I take off again.

Me and My Big Mouth

2005-09-14T12:47:00.000-05:00

I walked back to the ramp I came in on. I stood there for a good half hour before one of the 15 cop cars that drove by me decided to run my ID. The cop was really nice. He was from Sioux city NE so I think he may have felt some camaraderie there. He told me I would never get a ride from where I was standing. He suggested I go to the top of the ramp. I looked at him a little puzzled then I pointed to the sign we were both standing under, the sign read, “pedestrians prohibited beyond this point”. He looked at it like it was the first time he had ever seen such a sign. He then said “Ok, I'm not going to tell you you can, but I'm not going to tell you you can't.” (God, I wish I had that on tape) He wished me luck then moved on. I stood at the base for a moment more before proceeding on foot to the next exit. I made it about two miles down the line before a State Trooper flagged me down. He ran my ID asked if I knew I wasn't supposed to be up here. I told him in so many words that I kinda had permission.
I heard some garble on his radio then he said to me “I gotta go. I told you you weren't supposed to be up here, but, do what you gotta do.” he repeated this statement after I asked if it was all right if I walked to the next exit, rather than back where I came from.
He then sped off with his woo woo lights on.
I walked away feeling like I had some sort of hitchhikers immunity. I kept walking, Said to myself, “the next exits only a mile away” I did that for about six miles, until i ran out of exits. I stood with my thumb out under a bridge, It was raining. I was tired and hungry.
Another State Trooper pulled up, I remember thinking “Oh great, I've got another trooper to explain my unique arrangement to.” at first the officer didn't get out of the squad car. With the PA system he told me to step away from my back pack and put my hands where he could see them. Now I'm thinking “uh,oh looks like I pushed it”.
After I was hand cuffed and frisked the guy tossed me into the front seat of his car wile he and another officer searched my bag. To the officer I explained why I was on the freeway. He then gave me two choices, A ride Downtown, or a ride out of town. I chose the latter of the two. Upon dropping me off I was released from the hand cuffs and handed all my belongings. All except the motorcycle license plate I found on the side of the road in Wisconsin which I have been displaying on the outside of my backpack. Apparently it is still registered to a James something-or-other. Mr. Officer didn't want to rite me up for stolen plates and/or improper display.

So now that I'm at this 2 auto an hour on ramp, on an exit that yields only a strip club I began to get except the fact that I'm going to be hungry when I wake up in the morning.
About the same time I realized this, I came to another realization, I have a CB radio!
I turned the thing on and started soliciting rides from truckers. After several tried I finely nabbed one leaving the strip club. His name was Dean, and he was only going about 50 miles. Fine with me. Junction City was just what I need. I picked up a half gallon of Orange Juice and a can of black beans, Full at last.

I finely fell asleep around 1am behind a a vacant Country Kitchen. I woke up at 6, It was really cold out. Two rides, spaced out over 6 hours put me in Salina, where I'm at right now. The plan was Wichita but now I'm thinking Denver. It will all depend on where the driver's going.

The Road to Topeka

2005-09-13T13:37:00.000-05:00

I woke up this morning at 5:30. Last night I slept on a loading dock completely blocked form view at the end of a dead end street. After looking around Columbia I made my way back to the ramp I was dropped in on. It is my opinion that sleeping close to your chosen ramp is better than waking up and dragging yourself through the sleepy town in the morn. Best to dillydally when you don't need a ride rather than when you do.
These days I've been taking to the practice of completely disregarding the UVC ( Uniform Vehicle Code). The UVC states that it is unlawful for any pedestrian to enter a controlled access freeway. I've been walking along freeways a great deal, and I've never had a problem with police officers. Once in Michigan a state trooper told me to go back to the top of the ramp, that was it. I've seen hundreds of police vehicles pass me, I wave, they wave back, and thats the last i see of them. So from the law enforcement standpoint I see very little risk (knock on wood). I would guesstimate that 75% of my rides are from through flowing traffic and the other 25% come from the ramps. My justification for breaking the law.
John pulled over as I was walking along I-70 West, Topeka bound. Coincidently John was heading to Topeka as well. John was behind the wheel of an 84 commercial van that he had completely rebuilt. John needed a vehicle with enough room to haul his wheel-chair-go-kart-looking thing. He needed it because of a car accident that broke his back in 87. John loved his pot and his morphine. A had to take over the driving for few miles, John was in and out of pain during our 6 hour ride together. He left me in Topeka at noon with hours to kill.
My first order of business was to locate a free Wi-Fi hot spot. I found it, but the bad news it is closes at 2pm giving me an hour and a half to work. I was considering camping out in Topeka for a few days, but by the time 2:30pm rolls around I might find myself riding my thumb to Salina

On the Road Again

2005-09-12T19:59:00.000-05:00

After spending a little over a week in Omaha I hitched over to Ft. Dodge IA to pay my mother a visit. After the previous two weeks of relaxing I'm on the road again.

My mother drove me to I-35 so I could hitch my way south. My day yielded 3 rides: Bret, an Agricultural appraisal expert. Gordy, A man in his late 40's collecting unemployment who seems to fill the hours in his day by driving his other unemployed friends around to look for jobs. Gordy shared with me a hitchhiking experience he had years ago. (mp3) Gordy dropped me off at the 80/280/35 Junction. I didn't hold out much hope for a ride until I cleared the commotion caused by the traffic merging in and out. I picked up roadside treasure while I walked. One article of treasure worth mentioning was a 4”x3” American flag on a stick. I grabbed some electrical tape out of my pack and attached it to the frame of my pack. This flag drew the attention of Joe, a Durango driving, Special Forces officer. Joe admitted he only stopped because he “couldn't pass up a flag”. Joe was on his way to Jefferson City. While I had my sights set on Topeka KS, I didn't feel up to a night in a city such as Kansas City. So I Traveled with Joe as far as Columbia.

I'll get to Kansas by and by.

Like A Drifter, Born to Walk Alone.

2005-08-31T20:20:00.000-05:00

Wet and sticky upon waking up. I gathered myself then walked North bound down I-75. I hoofed a good eight miles before Dusty, an ex-rodeo cowboy, saw me soaking wet on the shoulder of the freeway with my thumb in the air. He drove me to the north side of Atlanta at the 75/575 split. I stood at the base of the off ramp, exchanged friendly conversation with a fellow hitchhiker. Within thirty minutes a big rig hit the air brakes and I climbed in.

Randy was his name. Randy was a die hard truck driver who claimed to be born in Mexico and to be of Native American Blood. He looked Anglo to me.
From Atlanta we drove to Knoxville, Tennessee. Randy had to take his truck into the company shop for some needed repair, while he did that I waited at a pilot station down the street from the shop. He returned about two hours later with a load that needed to be dropped off in Myerstown, Pennsylvania. I rode along.
Over the course of the night Randy was popping a variety of pills into his mouth. I think he figured he owed me a explanation so he opened up. This was Randy's first month back in the trucking business after a two year hiatus due to complications with brain cancer. He told me the doctors gave him about two years to live and he wanted to get as many miles in as possible.
I could tell Randy's mind was slipping. His memory, sense of direction and navigational skills were poor. Second guessing himself, and missing exits caused him to get frustrated. He had me take over as navigator for the rest of our travels together. Breinigsville, PA to, Wintersville, Ohio to Pittsburgh, then all the way to Wisconsin. We sipped on Dr. Choice and listened to the same White Snake CD over and over again. Randy claimed to be the drummer of the lead singer of White Snakes band back in high school.
Randy was kind enough to employ me as his lumper, he paid me 30 dollars to unload his truck. The distribution centers would supply me with the electrified pallet jacks. I had never used a pallet jack before so I was less than graceful on the warehouse floor.

While in Wisconsin, Randy Picked up a load that needed to be back in Tennessee the next day. Our four day partnership came to an end when he dropped me off in Chicago on his way down south. As far as I know, Randy spent his fiftieth birthday alone, behind the wheel of his Freightliner.

See You Later Alligator

2005-08-31T16:50:00.000-05:00

My friend from Omaha, John Christie, had recently moved to Augusta. He volunteered to give me a lift from Columbia South Carolina to his home. I would much rather be with a friend than spend another 2 hours on a bus alone. By coincidence John and his girlfriend were planning to make a day trip to Savannah the next day. I slept on their couch and we were off to Savannah the following afternoon. Where we hooked up with another friend of mine from Omaha, Corey Lundquist. As old friends often do, we spent the night catching up over some Vincent van Gogh Go Pizza in Downtown Savannah. John and his lady drove back to Augusta at nightfall. I spent two nights with Corey before he drove me to the Florida border.
Since the day I started this journey I've been dreading this hitch through Florida. Looking at the congested coasts on the political maps had given me a sense of unease. The lack of positive testamentary from the Hitchhiking community didn't help build my confidence either. Regardless of what I had been told by others I had to see Florida for myself. The plan was Key West or bust.
At first things were going ok. I got a lift pretty much right off the bat. Unfortunately, she took me to the center of Jacksonville. It was a couple of hours before a ride to the southern side of town. I spent a total of six hours in Jacksonville before I took to hitching on the freeway. Another hour passed before a young buck took me as far as St. Augustine.
Night was fast approaching, I did my best to get out of there before dark but to no avail. I popped into a Mobile Station to use the restroom. I asked the clerk, an older gentleman, if he knew if it was supposed to rain tonight. He asked if I was looking for a place to lay down. Then he showed me a cube van with a twenty foot trailer that was parked behind the store. The van was outfitted with carpet, electricity which powered a 100w light bulb, and a television/VCR combo and an eight tape VHS library all of which featured Rob Schneider.
The large number of roaches made sleeping a little difficult. I woke up from my nap craving a Dr. Pepper. The convenience store I was sleeping behind had closed so I walked over to the motel across the street and grabbed one out of the vending machine. Some sheriffs must have seen me walk behind the station on my way back. Minutes after I returned three officers confronted me as I was attempting to watch Duece Bigalow while I enjoyed my beverage. The officers were more aggressive than I anticipated. Every time I attempted to answer a question asked by one officer I would get cut of by another officer with a different question, making it difficult to explain myself. They insisted on referring to me as “boy” which didn't make me feel any more comfortable with the situation.
They were trying to prove I was trespassing but they couldn't get a hold of the proprietor of the fueling station so they had to take my word. Because my operators licenses was suspended they claimed to have the right to confiscate it. I wasn't about to argue Florida statutes with these guys so I had to take their word.
I didn't even mention the heat. While I was there the thermometer didn't drop below 85 degrees. I was restless and paranoid the law was going to come back so I didn't sleep the rest of the night. At first light I jumped back on the top of the ramp of North bound I-95.
Not sure if it was the heat or the fatigue, but I was done with Florida.
By days end I found myself just North of Macon, Georgia rolled out in a Shell station parking lot.

The back of the van in all its glory

In a Town of Liberty

2005-08-30T12:42:00.000-05:00

Ray sent me off on a head start. He drove me to the County of Madsen VA where he dropped me off on the shoulder of Route 29. The day was long and hot. Virginia provided me with plenty of quick rides. It's common to run into drivers only going short distances when you hitch on state highways. It should be no surprise that shorter rides don't lend themselves to deep conversation. The two of you have time to break through the standard. Where you going, where you from, chitchat. Before you know it the ride has come to an end and you go your separate ways. Not all rides are the same.

I wouldn't say I was stranded on the road side of Alta Vista when Nathan pulled off the road. I had only been at this spot for a half hour or so. I had just been deposited there by a family of ex-dead heads who now own a styling salon in Alta Vista.

Nathan was an off duty sheriff's deputy living in Alta Vista. He wasn't going anywhere in particular. He handed me a sack full of food from McDonald's. We drove around while I ate. I told him I was on my way to Augusta Georgia. Nathan seemed very interested in finding me a ride all the way to Georgia. He pulled off under a bridge back on Route 29 and told me to wait there while he talked to his paster about finding me a ride. He gave me an extra six dollars then drove off.

I didn't expect Nathan to come through. I figured it was his way of saying, “Sorry I can't take you further down the road.” I stuck my thumb in the air but didn't get any takers. I noticed the later in the day it gets the more difficult it is to get a lift. When Nathan took off it was a little after five. I stood on the shoulder until seven. To my surprise Nathan came back. I got in his truck and he told me he bought me a bus ticket all the way to Augusta. I wasn't expecting a bus ticket. He made it sound like there were some truck drivers or commuters that go to his church who would be willing to drive a woe-begotten traveler into the deep south. But I'm not going to complain about a bus ticket. A rides a ride I guess. Nathan took me to, what I'm going to assumes was, a pantry. His wife and mother in-law were there waiting for us. They handed me a fabric insulated cooler with Nascar logos and images decorating the sides. Inside it was full of soap, sunscreen, a change of clothes and a variety of consumable goods such as energy bars and crackers. Nathan's wife handed me a baggy with ten dollars worth of quarters and told me to use them in vending machines. They handed me a towel and pointed me in the direction of the shower. I cleaned up then put on the Old Navy, Polo-esk, shirt they gave me. Nathan insisted on buying be a pair of shoes. He drove me to the Wal-Mart Super Center in Lynchburg and “Wouldn't take no for an answer” when I attempted to refuse his offer. Afterward he drove to the Taco Bell and we had a nice chat about Jesus and his roll in saving the souls of man. It was a nice conversation. I didn't feel the pressure or get the feeling he was nagging me to accept the word. Most the time when I get the Jesus bit in my ear I feel as if I've been cornered and a mild feeling of resentment sets in.

When Nathan dropped me off at the depot he left me with a copy of a bible that was divided into sections based on moral dilemmas people might face.

My bus was supposed to depart from the station at 11:30. I must have missed it while I was talking to an ex-hitcher

turned minster who was getting on a bus back to Bangor, Maine. The next bus didn't leave till 7 in the morning. I don't know why. But it seems Greyhound looked for the most squalid parts of town to plop there stations in. As if they have the idea that there clientel would prefer to be in the seediest places imaginable when they land in a new and unfamiliar town. I didn't dare leave the station. The only thing in sight was an abandoned shoe factory and a U-haul Rent-A-Center. I pulled out my bed roll and took a nap on the depots steel balcony. Somewhat out of sight.

Mulch Man to the Rescue!

2005-08-14T20:36:00.000-05:00

I'm off, I'm off! After helping my brother in-law build and design his website I'm back on the road! No more comfy beds, well stocked refrigerators, or 24 hour internet access for me. North Carolina and the rest of the south is ah callin'.

ComicCon

2005-08-10T12:47:00.000-05:00

This past week in Chicago was a pleasant departure from my trip. The Wizard World comic book convention was nothing shy of fascinating. Standing in line for 6 hours for a chance to meet Frank Miller and Jim Lee, and viewing the many independent comic book artists in Artists Alley was an unexpected inspiration.

My little brother Harrison standing in line.

Pekachu and I, that's me on the right.

Like I was saying, The Comic-con was inspiring. I took a conversation I had with one driver and decided to draw it out in cell form. It may seem too dry or superfluous but It's my first one.

click to enlarge, comments welcome.

Vacation

2005-08-01T22:46:00.000-05:00

This blog: more that likely will not be updated until the 9th or the 10th of August.
When I Return to BWI on the 9th, my course should continue as planned. To all who saw the previous "map" I would like to offer this amendment:

Click to enlarge
(Dark Blue: Where I've Been. Light Blue: Where I'm Going.)

I would also like to thank my sister and brother in-law for putting me up for the last two weeks. They have been nothing but kind and generous. If you live in the Fredericksburg area, I suggest you call Ray at The Mulch Co. for all your outdoor restoration needs. He's in the book.

Novocaine

2005-07-28T08:22:00.000-05:00

I just had a tooth that has been absessed in my mouth for over 2 years removed yesterday. I figured since I was parked here in Virginia for another week I would take advantage of this time to get it removed by a professional dentist. There have been several times in the past when I attempted to remove the tooth myself. Every time I felt the cool stainless steel of the pliers on my tooth I would chicken out. The dentist did an alright job I suppose. After I saw how much pulling and wiggling he had to do to get the thing out of my mouth I realized how necessary novocaine was. I left the office with a prescription for penicillin and one for vicodin. I was in such a daze at the pharmacy. After I picked up the pain killers, I went to the bathroom and left them there, not noticing they were gone until I got back to my sisters place. So now I'm in a fair amount of pain, a little nauseous for some reason, enjoying the fact that I'm not on the road in this condition. Thank god for family.

Heads Up!

2005-07-25T22:34:00.000-05:00

Thanks to the philanthropical nature of my step mother and my little brothers thirst for comic book knowledge (and thanks to unavailability of a chaperone from Omaha), I will be flown to Chicago to attend this years Wizard sponsored Comic Con . Here I will be keeping an eye on my little brother and rediscovering an entertainment medium that has been long forsaken, by me anyway.

So, from August Third to August Ninth I will be in the Chicago area. This is an invitation to my pals in Chicago as well as the folks back home to say "Hi" in person. Omaha is only a nine hour drive away.

"August Third? That's still a week or so away. What are you going to do until then?"
Well there's lots to do here in Fredericksburg. I hope to get some more work from Ray. Taking this time to generate a little money, making things easier down the line. Perhaps I'll experiment a little more with spanging. Whatever the case, I'll keep ya posted.

Kindness in a Fancy Car

2005-07-25T16:54:00.000-05:00

Ray didn't have much work today so he dropped me off at the main entrance of the Central Park shopping center around 11:30. I made a sign the night before that read: "TRAVELING. Far From Home" (Behind the word Home was an image I drew of the state of Nebraska, something I don't think anyone noticed or understood) "In Need of FUNDS. please help, God bless. To learn more visit FishLip.org" The response to my panhandle was amazing. Before I was escorted off the median by the Fredericksburg Police at 12:20 I managed to round up $66.34. Obtaining such a large amount of money in such a short amount of time by means of spanging seemed to me, too good to be true. Perhaps that's why it's illegal in the state of Virginia.

Thank you Fredericksburg! I promise not to get drunk!

People, I Know.

2005-07-24T19:56:00.000-05:00

I woke up from behind the bar soaking wet. Not because it had rained, just from humidity. I was awaken by the not so distant laughter of a couple of fishermen who were fishing from the very same dock I was sleeping on. I don't think they peered behind the bar to see if anyone was there. When I walked out from behind the bar they looked at me strangely as I waved to them while I walked that awkward early morning walk to the street. I made a mad dash to I-95 in a effort to get a ride before the traffic got to hairy. I figured tourists didn't get up before 6 on Sundays. Keith Wehmeyer ( the third Keith I've run into so far) pulled over onto the shoulder of the freeway in his GMC. Keith was headed all the way to Pittsburgh which gave me more dropping options than I was prepared to handle. Keith seemed like a pretty cool guy, we shared a lot of the same common interest, and had eerily similar upbringings. I enjoyed chatting with Keith so I opted to stick around. Keith was kind enough to alter his path to get me closer to my selected spot on the map. Lancaster, PA. Keith dropped me off south-east of Harrisburg, ending what I'm sure was the beginning of our friendship. It only took one more ride from the son of a dairy farmer named Scott to get me to downtown Lancaster. Once in Lancaster I called on a friend of a friends brother to set me up while I was in town. At first Brian Alison wasn't sure who I was over the phone. Once I told him I was the guy who always had a bottle of soda at the party his memory clicked. Brian and I had seen each other around, we had many of the same friends. Neither of us has ever really been in a situation where we found ourselves alone together before. To me the situation was sort of humorous. Here I was 1200 miles away from home having dinner with the Alison's, a family I sort of knew. Don't get me wrong, Brian and his family were excellent hosts. Brian, after he got off work the next day, drove me to the town of York. Just two short rides later I found myself in Baltimore. I only toured Baltimore for a half an hour or so before I jumped on a commuter to Washington DC (which, no body calls Washington DC, they just call it Washington). I arrived in Washington at 5:45pm. Just in time for all the cool stuff to close. I made a few phone calls and waited for ether: a)my sister in Fredericksburg VA or b)Tom, my friend in Alexandria. I walked around until 10 pm before Tom got ahold of me. I crashed at his apartment, on his couch. The next day my sister Melanie and brother in-law Ray drove up to Alexandria and gave me a lift down to Fredericksburg. The plan was to stick around here for a couple of weeks and generate a little revenue working for Ray. Ray owns a little mulching business. My first day of work proved to be a tough one. Just me and two other guys spreading 48 yards of mulch in the Virginia heat. On my first day of work it was established that I was "no bueno!" at spreading mulch.
I haven't given up though. I'll be back to work tomorrow.

Keith:

What's in Maine?

2005-07-24T02:43:00.000-05:00

I guess New Hampshire didn't leave too big of an impression on me. The people were kind and the mountains were beautiful. The hitching was good, for some reason though I just didn't connect. Perhaps I was too hot at tired to care.
I traveled through New Hampshire North bound on 93 then East on Route 2. For such a small state I managed to get a total of 9 rides from Concord to Gorham in 5 hours.
From Gorham I caught a ride all the way to Augusta, Maine. I was dropped off in front of the capital building. I stared at it for a couple of minutes then made my way back to I-95. I caught a ride with a fisherman and a carpenter who were on there way to the Old Port in Portland. Two very fun gentlemen who embodied that famous New England banter. After just about every statement they made they said to the other, "Am I right, am I right?".
They dropped me off next to a square of street musician and a guy juggling fire sticks while on a tight rope. I perused the streets until the sun went down then I took a mat at the shelter.
The next day in Portland I ate at the Soup Kitchen then wandered the street some more. I was thinking of staying in Portland one more night but decided not to. My decision came kind of late in the day, noon. I attempted to hitch right from the downtown on ramp with a sign that read "Boston". Figuring the sign was a little too ambitious I later dumped it. I wasn't high or stoned but I felt like I was. I started feeling a little ill as I was leaving Vermont. I'm not sure what I was coming down with but it was affecting my head. I got in a car with a girl who told me if I wanted to get to Boston I needed to get to the turnpike. She didn't take me far, just to a turnpike on ramp. I didn't have a clue where I was, I lost my map of Maine in New Hampshire, which may be part of the cause of my disorientation.
A veteran named John took me a little farther south to Old Orchard. Old Orchard was hopping with tourist. John, I think, made a wrong turn because I-95 was nowhere in sight. I stopped into a gas station with no electricity to get directions. The attendant told me Route 1 would be my best bet if I was trying to get South.
Taking the clerks advice I hoofed down Route 1 in hopes of a commercial "clearing". But the side walks and tourist shops just wouldn't let up. This went on for miles and miles. I walked all the way to Kennebuck when a nice young man by the name of Benjamin thought I might need a lift and pulled off to give me a ride.
Ben was nice enough to share his grass, root beer, and Red Bull. He took me far beyond his destination to Kittery. From Kittery I got a lift across the bridge to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Portsmouth was another ocean front tourist town 56 miles from Portland. I attempted to make conversation with the folks in the square but I was too out of it to really get into it. I just found the dirtiest looking kid with dreads and asked him if he knew where I could squat. He pointed me in the direction of a park. I went to check it out and it was filled with people on lawn chairs. Right next to the park though was an abandoned sea food restaurant and tavern called Pear II. Around back was a dock overlooking the water front with an outdoor bar at the end of it. I unrolled behind the bar. The sound of the lapping waves provided me with a relatively peaceful nights sleep.

Live Free or Die

2005-07-20T12:42:00.000-05:00

Bennington appeared to be nothing but a one horse town. It was only 6pm when I arrived. I figured I could probably get a few more miles in before dark. I stepped off the Greyhound and asked the bus driver, Tom, if he would be kind enough to point me in the direction of north 7. He squinted his eyes and raised his upper lip then asked where I was going. "Burlington" I replied. He asked why I didn't buy a ticket. I told him I was tight on cash. He then told me in a very demanding voice to "Get back on the bus!"
Tom's unexpected generousity filled my heart with joy which a smile on my face reflected for the next two hours. I thanked Tom again once we arrived in Burlington.
Burlington Vermont wasn't a bad town. I ran into some gutter punks, one of which knew Dirty from back in the day. They gave me some of the banana bread they had dumpstered and gave me a good squatting tip. A tip I took behind Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Shop on the abandon loading dock.
The next day I had to do something about the fact that I had only 4 dollars in my pocket. I figured I'd do what I know works. So I hopped on a bus to the mall and flew a sign.
I'm not all about the generic "homeless broke, will work for food, need help, god bless" signs, even though they probably work the best. I decided to go with something a little more biblical. I'm standing at a red light so they have plenty of time to read something long. "If you want to be perfect, go, sell all your things and give to the poor, you will have treasure in heaven. (Mathew 19:22)"
It was interesting to see the reaction I got for holding such a sign. It seemed to offend a lot of old lady's, put smiles on the teens, and confuse many others. It was hard to keep from laughing. I just kept thinking how rediculous this must look.
18 dollars wasn't bad for an hours work, plus I got to use my transfer ticket to get back downtown. The rest of the day I lay about the parks reading Vermont's fantastic free publication "Champlain Valley Comic News".
That night I stayed in Burlington. I took the city link to Montpelier at 7:45 the following morning. Did you know Montpelier is the only capital city in the nation that doesn't have a McDonald's? It also only has 7000 inhabitants. I didn't stay very long. I got a ride at Exit 8 from Jeff. Jeff was an analyst. One of those jobs where even after they describe what they do you're still confused about what it is they do exactly . Jeff's vocab and articulation was too much for me. By the time he dropped me off in New Hampshire my head was swimming. Like getting a ride from Noam Chomsky. I guess when your an analyst it's probably good to have an opinion about everything.
Eric picked up where Jeff left off. Eric was driving a dump truck on his way to Concord (pronounced Canquered). Eric grew up on a farm in northern New Hampshire. He had never left New England. Not only had he never left but he had only been to Vermont, and Maine. I told him he should probably get out while he's still got his youth, he's only 20. "Eh, you know, I got everything I need right here. I don't really have any reason to leave." was his reply.
This type of comfort, or contentment was new to me. I can't recall if I've ever met someone who didn't want to leave their home because they were perfectly happy there.
In Concord I met a lot of folks at the Salvation Army, and at the Friendly Kitchen who also had never left New England. I admit New England is a beautiful place, I guess beautiful places don't breed explorers.

Albany is one more hit

2005-07-20T10:15:00.000-05:00

I stayed with my friends in buffalo until the morning of the ninth of July. It's easy to stay put when folks such as these are so inviting. I really didn't want to leave. Keith dropped me of at the 90/290 split. I'm always reluctant to hitch in this manner for fear of harassment by the law (it is illegal to hitch on freeways), and for fear of vehicular collisions. At 9am, traffic in the Buffalo area isn't exactly light. When John pulled over to give me a ride in his commercial van with a post digger in tow he brought two cars behind him to a wheel locking, screeching halt. It was a little embarrassing to be the cause of such commotion. Like dropping a tray full of food in a crowded cafeteria.
John turned out to be a good guy, he was on his way to Rochester to finish building his friend's back porch.
Two rides later I found myself in downtown Albany on State st. I headed down South Pearl St. looking for a place to do my "business" when I came across a McDonald's. As I entered the restroom David was leaving. When I exited the restroom David and his friend Eric, or E-rock were sitting and eating what I can only describe as, a fish fillet. David said to me as I walked by "still tryin' to get out of here?"
A little confused, I replied with a yes. He went on to say he had found a ride with his ex-girlfriend to Burlington VT, I was welcome to join if I was willing to hang around until Tuesday, 3 days away. He then invited me to sit with him and take of his french fries. After sitting with him for a bit a handful of things became clear. David had thought we had a conversation about being stranded in Albany a week before I met him. Even after I told him I had just arrived in Albany he was positive we had met before. Nevertheless, David's offer to take me to Burlington still stood. David and E-rock were also High as kites. The only reason the two chose McDonald's as their hang out was because it was one of the few establishments in Albany that had doors on their toilet stalls. When you're homeless and addicted to heroin stalls are an ideal place to shoot up.
Although I was dealing with young, desperate, unemployed homeless drug addicts I didn't get the feeling I was in harms way. E-rock explained to me that they had principles. Picture a modern day urban, Robin Hood, on smack, and you would see the picture painted for me by E-rock. David and I talked in the Empire State square while Buddy Guy was performing a free live concert and E-rock played hackie sack with some street kids. I got the low-down, on how their money was made and tomorrow I would be witness to their craft. I stayed in the mission with the two.

The standard wake up call at 6 am was delivered on schedule. David still had some money in his pocket. Enough for a couple of hits to get the ball rolling. We Located Rico, the dealer, not to hard to do. Made our way to McDonald's. I ordered hash brown potato patties for the two while they shot in the bathroom. E-rock got nice and lifted while David, unfortunately missed his vein, causing his hand to swell up. Around noon we made our way to the mall. E-rock had a back pack and David carried a large duffle bag.
This is how it's done. David and E-rock split up. They each have a list of sizes and brands that they have buyers for. You find the pants you want then you grab a few more. You hide the pants you want in the 3 or so you don't need. Upon entering the dressing room you show the clerk the 3 you don't need, she/he doesn't see the articles tucked away and lets you into the dressing room. You then: a)put the clothes on under your own or b) stuff them in your bag. When exiting the fitting room simply hand the clothes back to the clerk and say no thanks. I stood by and watched for two hours. The process was simply amazing to watch.
On the bus ride downtown they stripped down shedding their extra layers. No exaggeration, they left the mall with an easy grand worth of merchandise. What is even more amazing is that they do this everyday.
Downtown they went to their usual fences (people who buy stolen goods).
Within an hour all the loot had been sold for a grand total of $300, which in another hour was gone. E-rock and David were set to sail for another 24 hours.
This was the routine. David was well aware that his current living situation couldn't last forever. He knew it was only a matter of time before he got caught boosting (stealing) or double crossed the wrong guy. This was his reason for the move to Burlington, he felt he needed to get clean and he knew he couldn't do it in Albany.
David just had to get through Monday then he was off the stick.
Monday was a repeat of Sunday, just a different mall. I chose not to go into the mall today. Instead I felt like applying the knowledge given to me by the Gutter Punks. I was down to my last six dollars in cash so I felt it appropriate to "Fly a Sign".
I don't feel comfortable yet approaching people, asking them if they can spare any change. Flying a sign seemed like it would be more my speed. Fundamentally, there's no real difference between asking for a ride and asking for a buck. A sign that reads "Albany" or a sign that reads "Broke Traveler in Need of Alms". Both call on the good will of people. And, for me, are passive enough methods of obtaining motion or funds. At least, this is how I rationalized begging for money.
Remarkable. Only 45 minutes elapsed before I was called to the parking lot by a man with a bread truck willing to give me as much bread as I needed. Sense I was off the curb I decided to call it quits on my "test run". I walked away with 15 dollars and 3 loaves of bread. I went to the food court, celebrated with a Pepsi and waited for my friends to arrive with twice as much loot as they had yesterday.
Monday night on our way to the shelter David ran into and old friend of his he hadn't seen in months. His friend had a place for him and E-rock to stay and some H, sort of a last blast, or a going away present. David told me to be outside the shelter at 9:30 the following morning. He said he wouldn't be any later than 10.
I waited around that morning until 12. He never showed. This kinda bummed me out. I was looking forward to witnessing David and his ex interacting, I've never seen a Heroin addict come down, I can't help but feel I missed out.
If you've ever been to Albany I think you would agree that it is pretty much a sprawling ghetto. I didn't feel to safe or comfortable hitching out. I went to the GreyHound and picked up the cheapest ticket to Vermont, Bennington, $12.
I couldn't help but to think something unfortunate might have happened to David. I called E-rock before I hopped on the bus. He said he hadn't seen him since the night before.
He seemed like the kind of guy who would keep his word. I couldn't imagine why he would keep me in Albany for 3 days if he wasn't planning on coming through. Very bazaar.

Punk Rock

2005-07-16T09:14:00.000-05:00

Larissa was a 22 year old from the suburbs of Buffalo. She lives in a house, goes to school, has a cellular phone, and drives a car at the direct expense of her parents.
Dirty is a true to life gutter punk, or a "crusty" as he puts it. Dirty has been hopping trains and living out of "Dirty's Dinners" (Aldi's dumpsters) since he was just a wee lad. Originally from Portland, he now calls Ithaca home.
Wicked is from Portland OR as well. Dirty and him met at the Gathering for the first time in years. Wicked just met Larissa at the Gathering 6 days before I met them and already had a well established romance. Wicked was very protective of his new love. I was told tales of Wicked's ability to overcome any who tried at the hand of his lady.

I hitched a ride with these guys to Ithaca NY on July 3rd. Despite the fact that they were drunk the majority of the day I didn't think they would be a problem for me. They seemed like nice enough chaps.

Our drive started early, at 6 am. The first order of business, once we reached a town, was to fill up the tank with gas and buy a 12 pack of Natural Ice. Wicked couldn't function without alcohol in his system. By the time we got to the gas station he was irritable and his body was shaking from withdrawal.
It didn't take long for the car to start smelling foul. Because Dirty and Wicked had to urinate every 15 minutes stopping had become impractical. One liter bottles were used as receptacles.
I sat in the back next to Dirty because he was getting purity intoxicated. His aim into the bottle got steadily worse as the drive continued. He pissed all over his hand several times and wiped it on his pants. Because the windows were down in the front, and Dirty and Wicked were both dumping their wasted at 65 mph. Their urine would spray all over the back seat where I was sitting. Dirty also vomited at one point which splashed on me.
By the time we got to Pennsylvania we were out of beer, gas, food, and money. The only thing left to do now is spange. Dirty flew a sign that read "Traveling, Hungry, Broke, Please Help, God Bless". He sat on a median and collected from traffic. A half hour yielded $12. Wicked and Larissa worked together in the Big Lots parking lot asking individuals for spare change. They collected $22 dollars in about 45 minutes.
A tank of gas, Taco Bell, and a 12 pack of beer and we're back on the road.
We went through the same drill in Binghamton NY. By this time all three were too drunk to drive. They handed the wheel over to the hitchhiker to deliver them safely to Ithaca.
I slept on Dirty's girlfriend's sticky, living room floor. In the morning they drank in one of the gorges, we had lunch at Loves and Fishes. I needed a shower and some friends so I hitched back to Buffalo in time to see Keith and Jon blow up a piano with powerful mortars in a 4th of July celebration.

Welcome Home

2005-07-16T08:26:00.000-05:00

Keith and Jon dropped Big Worm and I off at the main entrance of the Rainbow Gathering about a half an hour before dark. Worm had done her share of drifting from age 14-18 so the Gathering was a bit of a reunion for her. I didn't have much daylight to explore the camps on my own so I stuck with Worm and her friend at camp TKK. TKK didn't leave me with a very good first impression of the Rainbow Family. Throughout the night I was witness to a couple of fist fights and several verbal altercations. Later as I was trying to sleep, in what I thought was a secluded nook in the woods, I was attacked by a heavily intoxicated gentleman in an epileptic fit. Several young dreaded individuals rushed to his aid while I laid on the ground confused.
The next day was a bit more pleasant. I ran into a Native Alaskan, Gabbie who explained to me the workings of the gathering. Gabbie let me park my bag next to his in the camp known as "Instant Soup" which is the camp, for the rest of my time in Rainbow land, I defaulted to.
I should say that the Rainbow experience is like no other. I ran into a lot of interesting and unique happenings. Next to the "Pink Elephant" camp I stood by and watched fire side dentistry. A young, drunk Gutter Punk, removed an older punk's 23 & 24 lower left teeth with a pair of pliers. Rum and Coke for anesthetic, and a sock fresh from his foot as gauze. I was told he was driven to the hospital the next day.

The Girl, Amanda, who drove me from Black Hawk, South Dakota to I-90 ran into me as I was combing the parking lot (side of the highway) looking for New Yorkers to take me to Ithaca after the Gathering. Amanda had just arrived and was setting up her camp "Sun Shine". She was dragging a wagon filled with tarps, drums, rice, and bungee cords. She enlisted me and a couple of others to help her steer the cart through the rugged trails.
That's kind of how things work in the gathering, There was little else to do, in my opinion, but help others build camp and eat food. There were those who preferred not to help and do just the opposite, reek havoc. I ran into a tripe of these folks at the camp called "Fuck Off and Die"
Alcoholic beverages were prohibited at the gathering. Signs everywhere read "We don't pray in your bar, don't drink in our church!" This didn't stop my new friends at "F.O.D." It seemed they were drunk 24/7. Whenever they needed more beer or whiskey they would ride into the town of Richwood and spange (the act of begging for spare change).
It would be three of these individuals , Wicked, Dirty, And Larissa, that I would ride to Ithaca New York with on the 3rd of July.

Just ah No Account Drifter

2005-06-26T14:06:00.000-05:00

I landed in Buffalo on Tuesday and I'll be here til Monday. It turns out Keith and Jon are going to Ashville North Carolina. They are nice enough to take myself and Worm along with them. As far as West Virginia. Worm and I will be attending the National Rainbow Gathering in Mill Point. (learn more about the Gathering at www.Welcomehome.org)

Rocket Man

2005-06-23T18:06:00.000-05:00

So now I'm in Buffalo New York. I left Cleveland on a Grey Hound bus. This was the first Grey Hound I've taken on this voyage and I'm sure it will be the last. I spent two nights in Cleveland in the China Town area. China Town consisted of two restaurants, and I think, an auto repair shop. To say the area was run down would be understating its actual condition. I, for whatever reason, didn't think to take a photograph but looking back now wish I had. Every standing structure had plywood over the windows, even one of the restaurants. If it didn't have an open sign I would just have assumed it was abandoned. The town was only about a 2x2 block area completely surrounded by old industrial buildings. Nothing seemed to fit 100%. An island completely engulfed by auto repair was "The World Cup" a coffee shop. I stepped inside to view a puzzling display of coin operated coffee vending machines accompanied by snack and soda machines as well. Cafeteria style tables and office chairs made up the seating area. The lone employee who popped out of the back room about 4 or 5 minutes after I entered informed me that the internet was free for customers to use. I hung around for a couple of hours while she did whatever she was doing in the back. The place closed at 4 pm.
I didn't do much in Cleveland except hang out in public places. I stayed at a place called Aviation, an old school building next to an air strip that had been converted into a homeless shelter. In the morning they bussed all the homeys to a drop-in cathedral on the south side that served up breakfast and lunch. I ate some of the fried potatoes but didn't stay for lunch. I had some interesting conversations with a 51 year old ex-prostitute who complimented me on my good looks and told me I should shave. Her friend stood by and didn't say much other than "emhmm, I know that's right". Both lady's told me they fell into Cleveland and were looking for ways out. They warned me that Cleveland was a trap that sucks people in and there was no way out. Maybe that's why I felt compelled to take the Grey Hound.
I landed in Buffalo just before noon. The city bus goes up to Niagara Falls so I took that to do a little sight seeing. On my way back to Buffalo I did some bus hopping to get a good look of the city. By the time 7pm rolled around I found myself on Elmwood Ave. I think it's kind of a main drag for the students of Buffalo State. I walked by a house with two hipsters on the porch. Well, I was going to walk by but Katie, or Big Worm, or just Worm, asked me where I was from. I took this as an invitation to approach the porch and engage in conversation with her and the gentleman to her left, Keith. The two apparently enjoyed my company. Worm, after discussing it with the 3 others living there, invited me to sleep on the couch. I accepted.
Our night turned out to be filled with fun and adventure. Keith is a big fan of Karaoke. He drove us to a bar called Frizzy's where we all sang our chosen tune (Rocket Man for me). A young man at the bar, Brian, got a little sauced and bought every one in the bar a round of drinks. I thanked Brian for the Red Stripe. He then invited the 4 of us (John, one of the room mates was with us) to his hotel room at the Holiday Inn, room 608. On the short walk to the hotel Brian managed to find a homeless guy and invited him as well. So the six of us now are in this two bed hotel room. Brian has something he wanted to show us, he grabbed 3 black trash bags and dumped them out on his bed to reveal, what was probably a thousand dollars worth of fireworks. Rockets, artillery shells and other big explosives I'm not sure are legal. At first all were excited about the idea of igniting some of these cannons but this is when Brian started to get strange, he started babbling about how many fireworks he had the year before. Announced to the room not to drink anything as he handed out beer. Brian started to appear agitated and in my opinion was getting unpredictable. Once he brought out the Big Book (AA) in one hand and the Holy Bible in the other I casually walked out the door and the others followed. All but Brian and the Homeless guy, the two seemed to be hitting it off nicely.

Week Long Day Without Hours

2005-06-23T16:48:00.000-05:00

Matt, Erin's boyfriend gave me a ride to the Casino 8 miles outside of Marquette. Construction was heavy, there wasn't even a shoulder to stand on. I went into the Casino to see if they had a shuttle that ran to Marquette. They do, only it doesn't run for another 5 hours. Hmm, I remembered a public beach on Lake Superior I just rode by with Matt. I walked to it wile I contemplated my next move. The mourning was breezy and cloudy, but not at all chilly. I looked to the west, in the distance I could see the town of Marquette. It didn't look too far. I figured I could make it there before the shuttle bus even arrived at the casino. I walked by way of the beach. I took off my socks and shoes and attached them to my back pack. Everything about the walk assured me that I had made a excellent choice, Everything seemed to fit. As I walked, almost mysteriously, an unopened two leader bottle of Coca-Cola washed up on the shore in front of my feet. Slightly chilled by the lake, the soda was oh so refreshing. Around this time the clouds made way for the sun to shine, and warm the sand.
It was only a 4 hour walk to Marquette, I took my time. I wandered around downtown til I found my way to the Janzen Hotel. Janzen was different from any other shelter I have seen. Picture an old hotel with a bathroom at the end of the hall. Then add a fully functional kitchen stocked with slightly outdated pastries, bread, canned goods, and candy bars. All up for grabs. Cook anything you want until 6:30pm. The Janzen Hotel was more like moving back in with the folks than into a homeless shelter.
I ended up staying there for two nights, I got to know some of my room mates a little. Most of the folks there were recovering alcoholics from some of the smaller towns in the UP. Others were travelers who knew a good thing when they saw it and opted to stay in the hotel as long as possible. Although tempting, I opted to leave after a few nights. I had to back track a little, passing through Munising again.
I arrived in Sault Ste. Marie (The Soo) in good time. I approached three hip looking kids my age in a parking lot of a government housing complex to ask them if they knew of any shelters or good places to squat. Unfortunately for me the Soo had little to offer in this department. Dani, one of the three, offered to take me across the bridge to Soo Canada, and get me a meal at the pita pit.
Slight problem with Canada. For whatever reason this particular boarder guard didn't like the idea of me roaming around Canada with no real destination. She denied me entrance into the country. Dani and I were both bummed out about this. Dani was kind enough to drive me back to the states and feed me some Taco Bell before dropping me off at the I-75 exit. From there I got a couple of rides that landed me outside St. Ignace, the town just north of the Mackinac Bridge. Fhere wasn't much around. I had a choice: walk 5 miles into town, then back to the interstate in the morning, continue trying for a ride in the dark of night, or sleep on the patio of the Castle Rock gift shop. At least the place opens at 9 am, a reasonable wake up call. I was tired, I tried to sleep on the bench next to the Coke machine but it wasn't happening. I pulled out my bed roll and laid down in front of the doors to the shop.
I woke up well before 9 the next morning, I was getting eaten alive all night and jumped at the first sign of daylight. There were hardly any folks on the freeway when I started walking it at 5am. In no time at all I was picked up and taken across the bridge. It was smooth sailing all the way to Flint Michigan. My driver Mike dropped me off on the freeway, the I75/23 Junction. I didn't realize this particular area of highway was under construction. It was a 12 mile hike to the next exit. Getting a ride in a construction zone didn't seem probable, especially when there isn't anywhere to pull off. No bother. Rather than walking with the orange barrels as the cars screamed passed I walked in the compact dirt as the highway men worked. It's not to often one gets the opportunity to stroll as a massive scraper creeps by on the left and a back hoe waves you past as he dumps concrete rubble in the bed of a dump truck. I was surprised how cool, or laid back all the workers were about me passing through their work zone. I got a wave or a peace sign from every guy I walked by.
The first exit I got to was one of Home Depot, Barnes & Noble, and newly built up scale apartments. Not the exit for me. It was only a mile or so to the next on ramp, I could see the super tall "Speedway" sign from where I stood. I had a feeling that exit would be more suitable for my hitching needs.
My hunch was right. From here I got a lift to Ann Arbor just before sundown. Ann Arbor was my goal for the day, which wouldn't have been unreasonable if I hadn't spent 5 hours in Flint. The fact that I made it to Ann Arbor felt miraculous to me.

up in the UP

2005-06-22T15:57:00.000-05:00

At the crack of dawn I was out of Lansing, I picked up a 24 ounce bottle of Faygo and hit the road. I ended up walking halfway through a town called De Witt before I was picked up by a farmer passing through. He dropped me about 5 miles down the road, getting me out of town. Phil just happened to drive by. Phil was hauling scrap in his old school Silverado. He tossed me out of the cab once we reached Bob's auto on the north side of St. John. From here an Olds with a Middle aged lady at the wheel, two kids in their late teens, and a dog of some kind of hairless Chinese breed, stopped to give me a ride to Alma. Alma is where Junior Campbell found me on the shoulder in the hot mid-day sun. Jr. was driving a super large diesel pick-up with a bed full of tires. He had to make a stop in Mt. Pleasant but could take me to Clare before he went west. Right on freeway 127 is where Keith picked me up. Keith worked for a company outside of Grand Rapids that counted inventory for large retailers. He was in charge of a crew that was meeting him in Munising up in the UP. He was running early and had some time to kill. There are, apparently, a handfull of caves in the UP. Keith is a caver by hobby and offered me to accompany him to his favorite cave. He had with him an extra set of gear and outfitted me with a helmet, waterproof pants, head lamp, flashlight and some boots. We had to walk a great distance to get to the cave, it was buried deep in the woods. The cave had a very impressive mouth. Once in, the experience became even more spectacular. The water was still very cold, at times it reached up to my knees. I really couldn't even have begun to guess how long the tunnels were. Keith had been in this particular cave on dozens of occasions and knew the tunnels well. One tunnel inparticular opened into a 10 foot high water fall which was very impressive. I, unfortunately, had to leave my camera in the previous tunnel as the water levels were too high and would most certainly have damaged my camera.
It was a warm day, so our damp conditions felt very nice. I dried off on the drive to Munising. Keith didn't really drop me off but parked in the lot of his hotel. As I walked away it started to rain, hard. I ducked into an American Legion. All the Vets didn't ask, just assumed I was veteran as well. I was excited about my caving adventure and couldn't help but share my story. They invited me to join them in a gave of Trivial Pursuit. I ended up hanging out in the bar long after the rain stopped the Vets were kind enough to see my thirst was quenched, and bought me a few drinks. Erin the bar tender seemed more than happy to set me up at her and her boyfriend Matt's cabin in Deerton, 20 miles west of Munising. She closed up shop around 12.

Lansing

2005-06-22T15:50:00.000-05:00

Getting from downtown Kalamazoo to the 94 junction was slow going. Luckily, I didn't have to walk the entire distance. Ron & Sue saw me walking, turned around, and picked me up. Sue was an Elementary school teacher. She just finished up the semester and had to go back to the school and clean up her 1st grade class room. Minge Elementary is in Battle Creek. Sue & Ron Agreed, if I was willing to stick around while they cleaned, they would drive me to Lansing. I didn't have anything better to do so I lent a hand. I made Lansing my destination for today, simply because it was the capital city. Besides, I wanted to take 127, a highway with few good sized cites, the type of highway you want to devote a full day to.
Ron was a quiet guy with what I'm going to assume is a dry since of humor. He insisted on dropping me off right on the steps of the capital building so we drove around the until we found an appropriate spot in front, then said our goodbyes. It was about 3pm when I set foot on the Lansing streets. I walked around downtown, munched on some burnt peanuts, then popped into Moriarty's pub to drink some soda and watch the Jackson verdict.

Yes there really is a Kalamazoo

2005-06-22T15:39:00.000-05:00

The Metra Train is by far the best way to get out of the Chicago Metropolitan aria. I assumed the train would only go a far as Gery, I bought a $4.50 ticket. When I got to Gery there were still a grip of people sticking with the train, obviously this in not the end of the line. I found out first hand the end of the line is in South Bend Indian. Folks from Indian it seemed were eager to pick up hitchhikers. I stuck out my thumb and minutes later got a ride, my rides weren't going real far but the frequency was high resulting in an 8pm arrival at Kalamazoo Michigan. I slept in the Gospel Mission that night. I woke up at 6 the following morning to a ridiculous amount of rain pouring down on the streets. Hitching in this weather would be most uncomfortable. After Breakfast at the shelter I followed the rest of the homeless to the Drop-in down the street. I hung around, talkin' shop, until the rain stopped around 1pm.

The Don

2005-06-22T15:30:00.000-05:00

Don's a loud mouth from Long Island, at least, that's where he lives now. He actually grew up in Brooklyn. Looking at him you would think he was from Nevada. Covered from head to toe in Leather and denim. The moment he opened his mouth any illusion was shattered. He pulled off the tough the stereotypical Brooklyn accent, and the stereotypical New York attitude as well. When Don pulled over to give me a ride he got out to make room in his stuffed 96 Cavalier. What ever he didn't have room for, was thrown on the side of the freeway. Napkin, half a bucket of KFC, a banana, plastic cups, and various wrappers from candy bars and jelly beans. Once, back on the freeway, Don had me hand him a Genuine Draft. He asked me to guess what year I thought his car was. He just had it panted and was proud of the new shine. Don was proud of a lot of the things he owned, he showed me a dented up, metal Thermos he got for five bucks, "they don't make um like this anymore." I'm not exactly sure what Don did for a living but I'm sure he hit up every yard sale he saw from Seattle to St. Paul, where he picked me up. At one point, Don said to me, "Hey when we get up to this rest stop up here a little ways I wanna show you this nice 22 I picked up."
I wasn't quite sure I heard him right so I repeated what I thought I heard him say in the form of a question, "Wait, you're going to pull over at a rest area, to show me a gun?"
He rolled his eyes at me, as if it would be ridiculous to think he would try and shoot me. He ended up showing me the gun in a Wendy's parking lot. He kept the pistol in a briefcase behind his driver's seat. In the case was the gun, holster, about 100 rounds, and Lethal weapon 1-4 on video cassette. The reason he bought the pistol was because it resembled the gun used by Wyat Earp, Don had a kind of endearing fascination with the old west. He told me that's where his roots were. I asked him what he meant by that. He asked me how much I thought he paid for the gun.
Don was definitely one of the stranger folks to stop and give me a ride. I could go on and on about all of Don's eccentricities and quirks. I was tempted to travel with him all the way to Long Island. If nothing else, just to see if I could be patient enough to keep my self from strangling him. All though, Don was interesting, his constant littering, shouting, drinking, and aggressive driving was certainly a test of ones patience. Don dropped me off near downtown Chicago. Later that night, as I was wandering around looking for my friends house, I saw Don on the street corner. You couldn't help but notice the guy, his western attire was a distinct contrast to the Chicago streets.
Don said he had found a lady at the gas station he stopped at that needed to get a key made. He drove her to the hardware store and she let him stay at her apartment. Don gave me his information so I could hook up with him when I'm in New York.

35,36,37

2005-06-06T22:49:00.000-05:00

I found my way down to Duluth, Minnesota. I spent my childhood summers in Duluth, back in the day. I found some old friends, Gail, her boyfriend, Dave, and her three sons, Johnny, Kial and Matt. I stayed a couple of nights to catch up and reminisce. Dave just bought a saloon called Rascals in Proctor, 3 or 4 months ago. They have been slaving to turn the place around and in my opinion the bar looked rather nice. I got into town on Saturday. I hung around the bar as the place filled up that night. They had a cover band playing. Stranded was the name of the band.
On Sunday, I spent a good chunk of the day playing pool and drinking soda with Matt. Later we drove around town looking childhood landmarks.
Monday, Dave and I road around town, he was kind enough to buy me some bread and apples. I picked up some more street maps. Dave then took me to highway 2 I-35 junction.
On the way down to St. Paul, I got a string of short rides from all walks of life: Bill the Evangelist, Jim the travailing Pasty salesman and Steve the Vietnam vet recovering from meth. Jim, Judy, and their son Judas took me into downtown St. Paul.
Jane, my step mother, encouraged me to stay with her friend Mary while I was in Minneapolis. She gave me her number. I called Mary once I got there only to find she was in Omaha. Regardless, she phoned her husband Joe and arranged for him to pick me up at the Super America Fueling station where I was waiting. I had never met Joe and barely knew Mary. This made for a kind of awkward situation. Joe, it turned out, was a cool guy and didn't appear perturbed my presence.
I plan to leave the Cities in the morning.

Day 34

2005-06-06T20:04:00.000-05:00

I took off from Thunder Bay on the city bus and tried to get as far South as I could before hitching. I asked the driver if he could drop me at the 17-11/61 junction. "Hitchhiking, eh?" was his reply. An old lady on the bus was eavesdropping on this conversation and gave me a Canadian Dollar and told me to get something to eat and to be careful in the states.
The driver took me as far as he could, which was next to the airport. I got a lift from a school teacher and part time journalist who's expertise is weather. Graham took me to the South Gillies exit (608) 35 km from the border. I unloaded the weed Jeremy gave me onto Graham as a kind of thank you.
Jeff and Matt, two wealthy kids dressed in the latest fashion were on there way home to Milwaukee from Northern Ontario when they took me to the border. They had to drop me at the Canadian customs. As part of the conditions I agreed to upon entering Canada, I had to check out so they knew I was gone.
I had to walk across a bridge to get to the U.S. border inspection. when I got there, there were two guards waiting out side for me. They both looked very threatened, like I was a bomb about to explode or something. Saying things like "just stay right there" or "hands where I can see them please". They weren't going to let me back into the country unless I let them search my bag. It was a fairly humiliating experience as Mr. Danielson read through my note book and spread all my possessions on the counter for all to see. I guess your rights as an American citizen don't apply should you choose to leave this great country of ours. America, It's a prison.
After repacking my bag I walked 6 miles to Grand Portage. It took a while to get out. It seemed like everyone going South was headed to the Casino. Chris gave me a lift to the Harbor Light in Grand Marie The Harbor Light is a family restaurant where I charged my phone and ate some fries.
I was walking, on my way to find a spot to sleep on the shores of Lake Superior, when Dan stopped to give me a ride. Dan is getting shipped out in 4 weeks. He's just 18 and signed up with the National Guard. He needed someone to buy him beer, so I volunteered. He gave me the 9 dollars in change. He and I drove around for a bit then went to his friends Joe and Grant’s house in Tafte. Dan told me sleeping on the beach was no good. He drove me to an Army buddy of his, Jake , to see if I couldn't stay with him. Jake wasn't home, but his dad was. Randy set me up with a cot in his son’s room. I'm not sure what Dan told him exactly, but I got the feeling he may have lied to him, Randy seemed to be under the impression that I knew his son, Jake. I didn't lead on that I didn't, I just went to sleep.

Day 33

2005-06-06T01:06:00.000-05:00

I hit the sidewalks of Winnipeg at 7:15. As I walked South down Main two desperate individuals approached me, Calvin & Dez. Dez didn't do much talking as we walked. Calvin had a stride that would have been cool in the 80's. He asked if it would be cool if he traveled with me. I said it would be fine, knowing for certain that Calvin wasn't going anywhere. We walked around downtown looking for a CAA building so I could get a map of Manitoba. While we did this, Calvin started wailing every time he saw a cigarette butt on the ground. He tore the filter from the remaining tobacco and stuffed the tobacco portion into his pocket to later blend together and smoke. I lost Calvin & Dez once I got to the bus terminal that takes you to the Winnipeg perimeter. I simply refused to pay their fare and they went away. I didn't have any luck finding a CAA so I went into a Petro Canada. the attendant explained that the Trans-Canada Highway 1 will deliver me right to Thunder Bay. Canadians have been so nice so far. The driver of the number 14 bus told me I didn't want her bus, I wanted the 19. I asked her how much fare was for the 19 and she handed me a transfer ticket and wished me luck. Good thing too because I didn't have any Canadian bills.
I made it to the perimeter of town alright. I still had a ways to walk before I could get some good hitching ground. I got picked up and taken 25 km to Steinbach by Christina, a Polish immigrant. She picks up every hitch hiker she sees because in Poland, that's just what you do.
I was the only one at the exit when I arrived to Steinbach but that quickly changed. About 50 minutes after my arrival, I noticed Reese walking towards me with his thumb in the air. Reese is a hitchhiker from Vancouver who is going to Toronto. He had been hitching for 40 hours straight, only sleeping in passenger seats. Enter Sean, another hitchhiker from Vancouver on his way to Toronto. Sean was a nice enough guy. He and Reese decided to start hitching together. Sean, I noticed had a tick in his ear, I helped him remove it. Then the two of them moved further back down the highway so motorist were sure to know I was here first.
An hour passed and Ted pulled over, he took me 40 km to an ESSO truck stop.
Here, I met another hitcher who had reportedly been there "all day.“ I went into the truck stop to fill my water bottle and when I came out he was gone.
Caterina, Lucas, Sondra and the dog, Goose were the next to stop. Caterina was the owner and driver of the Tacoma pick up. The three were friends who met in Vancouver, BC and were headed home for the summer. Lucas to Toronto, Sondra to Montreal, and Caterina to New Hampshire. I suppose you could call these cats Hippies for lack of a better word. When I first climbed into the cab there was Jazz in my ear, Pot in the air, and stickers promoting a certain brand of fair trade coffee. Lucas and Sondra didn't talk much. Lucas took a nap in the back seat and Sondra laid on the blankets in the truck bed. Caterina was a funny gal who had a strange habit of calling cities, provinces, and sates by some kind of nick name. I'll give an example. Ontario = On-scary-o (or) On-terrible, Thunder Bay = Thunder Thigh. When I told her where I was from she sang to me a song by the Counting Crows. Caterina had been stuck in Thunder Bay on her way to BC 10 months ago. She had found a bar called the Apollo where she met some kids who gave her a place to stay. When we arrived in Thunder Bay, she dropped me off.
The first person I met out side the Apollo was Ryan. Ryan was playing guitar. He told me there was a great roof top to sleep on around the corner and if I was around later he would show it to me. Cool. Inside the Apollo I met the bar tender, Jeremy. After noticing the back pack he asked where i was from, where I was going. He gave me a pitcher free of charge, said it was a little flat, but still good. Jeremy also gave me a Bud of Marijuana, also free of charge. Oh, and free soda as well. As a result of all the freebies I hung around for a while and met some of the regulars. Glen was one of them. Glen was pleased to meet a hitchhiker from the states. He made sure I had plenty "OV" and jager to drink. Glen also said I could sleep at his place if he didn't make it with a certain lady at the other end of the bar. Unfortunately for me, he took her home. No bother, I ran into Jason, another employee of the Apollo. Ryan was no where to be seen, but Jason know where this wonderful roof top was and was happy to show me.
Together we climbed a natural gas pipe that led to the roof. He showed me the best spot on the roof to sleep then he left me to myself. It wasn't bad.

Day 32

2005-06-05T14:02:00.000-05:00

At the shelter, I woke up to an old man with a fur hat singing "good morning to you" in the tune of Happy Birthday to the whole room. I gathered my things and headed for I-29. It took me a while to get at lift. I found that all the stories I have heard about hitching in North Dakota were true. People will honk, wave, smile, or give you a thumbs up, but they wont pick you up. I waited 5 hours for a ride from Gay "nothing implied" Jensen. His mother cursed him with the name 65 years ago. Mr. Jensen was a sugar beet farmer heading home to Drayton.
After Gay dropped me off it would be another 4 hours before a car full of teens took me 6 more miles to the Cavalier exit. 2 hours before Brian from GHY, a company some how involved with border patrol, took me to the border. He told me to go to the GHY station at US customs and ask for him and he would take me to town if I couldn't get in to Canada.
After a leisurely interrogation, by a border guard who's co-workers referred to as "B. Low," I was granted a 10 day pass into Canada. The process of getting into Canada was time consuming but relatively painless.
I started walking my way to Winnipeg. David J.C. Cooper, M.A. had seen me on the side of the road on two separate occasions in North Dakota. I recalled seeing him waiting at immigration. David figured if I made it through the Border ok I was probably harmless. A conclusion I hopped someone would draw. David and I had a fun drive as he tried to see Canada through the eyes of one from the states. When I arrived in Winnipeg I heard the night's low was to be 14 degrees. I failed to realize the temperature was measured in Celsius witch caused me some unneeded stress. I was just going to find an alley some where but I found a Salvation Army and stayed the night there. As a foreigner I was allowed one night only. Before dropping me off David warned me that Michel Moore was too easy on Canadians and that I was in a rough part of town and I should be careful.

Day 31

2005-06-05T13:18:00.000-05:00

Last night my sister, Marianne, and her boyfriend, Devin, were coincidentally on their way North from Omaha to Detroit Lakes, Minnesota to spend a week on the lake. They were kind enough to let me tag along. They let me sleep in the spare bed at their cabin. This Morning Devin drove to the edge of town and let me off on North 59.
I walked about a quarter mile when a gentleman swung his car around to offer me a nice warm meal back in Detroit Lake. I told Wally I had just eaten. He drove me to the nearest truck stop up the road, put six bucks in my pocket, and gave me a warm cup of apple juice that was "still good."
I filled my water bottle in the gas station bathroom then continued walking.
-Shortly, Shirley stopped to give me a ride to Waubun. Shirley was a spunky old timer with six Kittens in the back seat who were on their way to live the rest of their days on a farm.
-Michelle was on her way home from work. She worked at the Casino in Mahnomen and lived in Waubun. She was almost home when she stopped to pick me up. Michelle was listening to 2 Live Crew and took me all the way to Mahnomen. She told me she used to hitch this stretch every day to get to work and back.
-Casey and his son, Anthony, pulled off the highway and took me to Bejou. Casey offered me a doob witch I did not except.
-A carpenter, Greg, took me from there to Winger. He didn't have much to say.
-Conrad and Jeff were on their way to Jeff's house to partake in some sort of recreational activity in Erskine when they stopped.
Eriskine sits at the crossroads of 59 and highway 2.
I stood at the junction west bound for Grand Forks.
-Danny Paige took me as far as his exit, mile marker 41. I walked to mm 34.
-That's when I got a lift from Curt. Curt was on his way to a buddy's house in Crookston to plan for tomorrows dirt biking trip to Idaho.
In Crookston, I found Minnesota State University with an easily accessible football field and with a well concealed spot under the bleachers. I figured, if I didn't get a ride from here this would be a fine place to camp.
For the first time ever,43 I was slightly disappointed I found a ride, I had just spent the last 4 min. looking at the field from the highway day dreaming about my nights sleep. I quickly got over it though.
Shane was a very generous man. He put me right at the door steps of the Grand Forks mission, the most luxurious mission I have ever seen. Shane also handed me all the cash in his pocket ($32) and insisted that I take it.

On The 24th Day

2005-05-27T15:34:00.000-05:00

My original plan was to go to North Dakota then to Minnesota. Because I took this detour to Rapid City I felt tempted to go back home to Omaha. I did not expect to make such a great distance in such a short period of time. My little brothers birthday is on the 29th so I thumbed my way back home. I arrived in Omaha early evening on the 25th. I'll be here until Monday morning. I will be heading North to Fargo.

so far:
25 days, 5600 miles, and 61 rides.
a 91.8 mile per ride average
at 9.3 miles per hour (on a 24 hour a day scale)

Day 23

2005-05-27T15:15:00.000-05:00

After getting a new tire Ann did everything in her power to get rid of the bus. The mechanics gave her the phone numbers of people who they thought would be interested. I think about four guys showed up but no takers. Ann paid 5000 for the vehicle but was so distraught she was willing to take 3000 just to get it out of her hair. I made a decision to go with the ladies to Rapid City last night so around noon I got back in the bus and we headed back down I-90. Things were looking good and Ann's spirits were high. We were almost to Sheridan when BOOM another tire goes down. Needless to say this was not good. Ann's mood dropped like a brick and only got worse when the tire repair company made an error sending a truck to Gillette some 100 miles away. Ann used this extra time to scope out an RV storage lot in Sheridan wile I stayed with the bus.
Ann found a lot with an owner kind enough to let her park the bus free of charge. And as soon as the tire was replaced we drove to the lot and put the for sale signs Kara purchased at K-mart in the windows. We piled into Ann's Trans Sport and said good bye to the bus. Ann was real quiet the rest of the way home. Emotionally beaten buy the bus.
We just barely missed the open doors of the shelter when we arrived in Rapid. Ann seemed to feel I was a great help to her these two days. She was kind enough to hook me up with a room at the Family Inn near Black Hawk South Dakota. She also gave me 20 dollars and a hug.

If anyone is interested in this fabulous bus get in touch with me and I'll forward your e-mail to Ann. Right now I believe she's asking 3000 or best offer.

A Merry Prankster (Day 22)

2005-05-27T13:12:00.000-05:00

Anna fed me another wonderful Breakfast. She was kind enough to make some much needed repairs to my backpack. She wanted to make sure I knew I didn't have to leave. She told me she could get me a job at the 10,000 Silver $ Casino and save some money wile I helped out around the house. She slipped me a ten dollar bill, then drove me to the 10,000 Silver $ right off I-90 so I could hitch a ride. I stood on the edge of the freeway in the cold Montana rain waiting for a ride. A giant 71 California Crown Coach hit its air breaks and pulled to the side of the road. As I ran to the bus a young lady hopped out and told me there was a little girl in the bus and she didn't want any trouble. Lori Casey and her daughter Abigail were on there way to Missoula to sell this gutted bus. Lori had dreamt of getting a new bus and traveling with the circus. I didn't speak with Lori very much because the bus was too loud to allow for extensive conversation. In Missoula I was dropped at the exit. I worked the exit for about 30 minutes. Lori parked her bus at a gas station across the street from my exit. I stood watching the business transaction take place. I remember Lori telling me the lady buying the bus was from South Dakota witch would imply she was going my way, at least for a little bit.
I decided to go over to the bus and talk to the new owner, Ann Hovdenes. By the time I arrived the transaction had taken place and Ann was about to take off when I rapped on her door. I explained to her I caught a ride with the previous owner. I asked her if she would take me as far as Billings. She agreed, as long as I didn't kill her.
Ann was being followed by her friend Kara who was driving the van that brought them to Missoula. I wouldn't meet Kara until we got to Billings. Ann was a nice lady it took her a wile get the hang of shifting, and turning without power steering. Ann already has a bus similar to this one, hers of course is in much better condition although I didn't get to see it, Ann and Kara spoke very highly of it. Apparently decking out old buses is a hobby of Ann and her husband John. "Old School" is the name of there current bus, witch is a Harley Davidson themed converted school bus. Ann had hoped to turn this new bus into a Nascar themed bus, but Ann had been dooped by low resolution images on eBay and was led to believe the bus was in much better condition than it actually was. Ann was prepared to back out of the deal until Lori pleated with her to buy the bus. Ann's good heart over powered her good since. A decision that literally, down the road blew up in her face. When we got to billings Ann switched the driving over to Kara and on our way out of town one of the rear duallys blow and knocked a drain plug off the gas tank causing diesel fuel to spill out onto the highway. Luckily Ann was able to plug the hole using tape and a screw.
Ann was breaking down as we waited for the tow truck. Kara and I did out best to console her.
The bus wasn't going any where tonight, witch sucked for Kara, Kara is a high school teacher in Rapid City. She hadn't missed a day of school yet and had only 4 more days to go be for she could cash in her $400 reward for perfect attendance.
Ann and Kara checked into a Sleep Inn and Ann allowed me to sleep in her bus in the tow yard.

what the bus looked like on eBay:
Click Here

Day 21

2005-05-27T12:07:00.000-05:00

Anna had breakfast ready when I woke up. She explained to me the goals she had in mind for the day. I removed an old out of service smoke stack from her roof then covered the void. I chopped more wood and moved more stuff around. Anna told me of a lake seven miles south of her home that was only accessible by foot and ATV, she said all who see it agree it is the most beautiful place on earth.
I set out on this seven mile hike, Anna didn't mention how steep the climb was. Almost all of the seven mile was a 40 degree angle. The higher i climbed the deeper the snow. There were several points where I considered turning around. Three hours in I finely reached the lake. the site was spectacular. It had to have been the first time in my life I had seen a body of water who's shore line was completely undeveloped. aside from an empty beer can here and there the lake appeared untouched.
I made it back in time for dinner. Anna had invited her friends from a neighboring town over for supper. One of the two gents who arrived was a wealthy land owner from Idaho who, once informed of my hitchhikingness, peered at me with distrusting eyes. The other man had a long beard, and was rail thin. He helped me with yard work wile we waited for dinner. He was from Kalamazoo and spoke to me of the importance of the second amendment and little else. Finishing dinner marked the end of another day. Anna's friends went home and i went to bed.

Anastasia Romanov (Day 20)

2005-05-26T22:40:00.000-05:00

I didn't catch a ride out of Spokane until around noon. Doug was a paramedic on his way to help a kid who was having an asthma attack in Coeur D' Alene. I found it took forever to get a lift out of Coeur D' Alene. Its not very often I have to wait more than two hours for a ride. Apparently Coeur D' Alene recently sufferer a triple homicide and the kidnapping of two children. I would like to think that the recent tragedies were the cause for peoples reluctance to pick up strangers on the side of the freeway. By the grace of God I was picked up by a gentleman the same age as I by the name of Josh. Josh was driving a panel van filled with carpentry supplies and pulling an empty trailer. Josh would take me as far as Wallace, his home town. Josh took me to his house, after our religious discussion he saw it fit to give me a Bible and a 7up. We parted ways. I walked back to the Eastern most on ramp to find another hitcher, Eric. Eric was traveling light carrying only a 4" by 10" black hand bag. Eric looked in his late 40's, balding and badly burnt by the sun causing his skin to peal. He was headed to Chicago. we worked out a situation where, since he was first to the exit, he would take the freeway traffic and I the ramp traffic. I was picked up by a fellow named Scott. Scott also picked up Eric on the top of the ramp. On our way to Mullan I didn't talk much because Eric was a chatty guy. He explained to us his philosophy on hitchhiking laws. More of a strategy I guess. He intentionally walks the freeway slightly intoxicated in hopes of getting stopped by the police, he feels police stations are the best places to sleep because of the hot meal provided in the morning. I have yet to sleep in a police station.
Once dropped off in Mullan I began to feel i had made a mistake in excepting the ride. the exit was vacant. only a factory, but no traffic on the eastern ramp. It was raining and the Wallace exit provided a unique shelter as the on ramp passed under a bridge. Luckily Eric found a ride fast. I ran as fast as i could to the bottom of the ramp with my arm extended and my thumb out. before I hit the bottom a Plymouth van stopped to assist me. An elderly woman pointed at the rear sliding door instructing me to use it instead of the front. the vans interior contained only one seat for the driver and nothing else. the woman introduced herself to me as Anastasia Romanov and told me I was dealing with a "true Grand Duchess". Anna, as her friends call her, was a charming lady with a thick German accent. on the way to Saltese Montana she offered me work in exchange for food and shelter. it was getting late and I could use a place to sleep so i excepted her offer.
At her house, a rugged converted trailer home, I spent the rest of the daylight hours chopping and splitting logs for her wood burning stove. Once darkness fell I helped her rearrange some bulky furniture she couldn't move on her own. We spent the rest of the night drinking tea next to the fire as she read to me from the book she was writing. Anna has a bunch of stories, she told me of the Nazi prison camp, Buchwald, she was in when she was just a child, the several attempts on her life perpetrated by the Bolsheviks, how she is good friend with Tom Hanks Cousin, and her relation to the Romanov family. She had so many stories. the notes I took that night turned out to be rubbish because I couldn't remember the significance of the peoples names i wrote down. She hopes to have her book published soon and promised to contact me when its finished. "Avenue of the Giants" is the working title.

Day 19

2005-05-26T10:34:00.000-05:00

Jim took me a bit past the cascade mountains before returning to Seattle. I didn't have to stand on my exit too long before I was picked up by Nathan. Nathan Is a student of the University of Idaho. He and his two dogs, Reagen and Zanthis, were on there way to Moscow ID. Nathan didn't tell me that Moscow was off I-90 and I didn't thank to ask. I didn't like the Idea of hitching through deep Idaho so I had Nathan drop me off in Colfax Washington. From here I headed north on 195 to Spokane. I found a cozy spot to start thumbing. It was here I was approached By a Whitman County Sheriff. Mike was his name. Mike did the usual run of the ID. When he gave it back to me he asked if I'd been smoking any dope. I said no, because I hadn't. Mike said he would give me a ride to the county line if I forfeited my 4th amendment rights over to him. Knowing he would find nothing I, on this rare occasion, allowed him to search my belongings.
Mike was positive he was going to find dope. When he found nothing he still assumed I had some, but he just couldn't find it. He told me he always finds something on a hitchhiker when he searches one. On the whole way to the county line, he kept saying that I wouldn't get in trouble if I fessed up. he just had to know. Mike will probably die absolutely positive that I had weed on me that day.
Mike took me to the Spokane / Whitman County line like he said he would. the line was in the middle of nowhere so I took to walking towards Spokane. I made it a couple of miles before I was picked up by Steve in his old school Audi.
Steve was on his way to Spokane to boot his Basest, Dustin, out of his band, Zero Effect (www.zeroeffectmusic.com). I tagged along. When Steve and I arrived at Denny's Dustin was already there. the rest of the band was to show up later. Steve unloaded the bad news on to Dustin. The band it seemed, was on there way to bigger and better things. Dustin couldn't play Bass very well so the band thought it would be a good idea to replace him. that was one of the reasons at least. Dustin was upset and left Denny's without saying goodbye. Steve and I, two other members of the band, Chris, Jacob, went over to Steve's place. Jacob and Steve went over some new licks wile Chris installed a new Rockford Fosgate amplifier into his Jeep. After we drank some Ice House and watched some New episodes of Family Guy my little brother had taped for me Steve let me crash on his couch.

Jimmy

2005-05-18T23:12:00.000-05:00

I posted a photo of Jimmy on Lookthedrifter and I thought I should explain who he is. Jimmy Picked me in Santa Rosa CA. I had just got to the 101 on ramp after getting of a bus I took from Richmond. Jimmy saw me walking towards the ramp when he asked me if i needed a lift. He said he could take me to Eureka, then told me he was going to Portland. Jimmy was jumpy. He had to really concentrate on the road or his van would drift into the other lanes. Travel with this guy was slow travel. We wouldn't get very far before Jimmy would need to stop. sometimes he would just stand around and stretch, some times he go into the back of the van and make a pot of coffee. Once at a rest stop he combed the ground for roached. He didn't find any, but he did find a guy willing to trade some pot for a Skynyrd CD. Later on down the road we pulled over again because I didn't know how to roll a "fattie" and me holding the wheel wile he rolled wasn't working out. Jimmy stopped for gas about 20 miles south of Eureka. I went in to use the the facilities. when I came out Jimmy asked if I paid for gas. Jimmy was such a shady character I should have seen something like this coming. I was temped to bail on him then and there but I didn't. Reluctantly I coughed up the dough for gas. We got to Eureka Late in the day. All that time in the side of the road added up. It took 9 hours for Jimmy to drive 160 miles. Jimmy had got from Alabama to California by holding cardboard signs that read "got gas?" wile he stood next to his disabled vehicle on the side of the road. He invited me to work the south side of the street wile he the north. I said I would think about it. I told him i was going to get something to eat. I couldn't stand to move at such a slow pace, and with such unstable company. Jimmy is what some might consider a classic "Redneck".

Day what, 18?

2005-05-18T20:20:00.000-05:00

I've been here in Seattle since Saturday night. Thanks to Uncle Jim and my Father, who flew in on Tuesday, my stay has been very comfortable. I've had a lot of fun here exploring the city with family. Pops is flying back to Omaha in the morning so we're just going to take it easy in his hotel room. We both have a long day tomorrow. I'm headed down I-90 towards Spokane.
If anyone has any spots they think I should check out feel free to suggest.

The bluest sky... Day 16

2005-05-16T14:39:00.000-05:00

I'm in Seattle now.

Day Nine

2005-05-11T12:06:00.000-05:00

Gery knocked on my door at 7:00am. He wanted to know if i was still down with going out to San Francisco with him. I was. I had been watching the weather channel and it looked like rain all day for northern Nevada.
we took off from Sparks NV. at 7:35. Gery was concerned about the weather as we headed into the mountains. The radio said the area was looking at 10 inches of snow. We made it as far as Donner Pass before we hit a wall of traffic.
9:40am: Traffic started moving again, just in time too, Gery Had been threatening to go to the bathroom on the shoulder of the road.
11:30am: Gery dropped me off at a gas station in union city. I hung around the area until my buddy Adam returned home from school. Once he did we caught up on old time and watched TV.

I Love It! (Day 8)

2005-05-10T13:32:00.000-05:00

6:04am: I opened my eyes and all but three of us were still in our beds. Every one else was sitting in chairs that could be considered pews, looking at us. In a sleepy daze i folded my blanket at mat. the guy who checked me in last night didn't say much about what to do in the morning, this place was a lot more laxed that the rapid city shelter. I followed the leader to the laundry room where we stacked or blankets. I went out the door others used to go smoke, but I just kept walking. I walked from down town Boise to Garden city. the Boise Police stopped me as i was walking on the city connector. they told me hitchhiking is illegal in Boise and if they caught me they would give me a $50 dollar fine. I didn't like that idea but I walked down Franklin st. to the Milwaukee exit and sure enough there were two officers at the Sinclair right next to the ramp. I decided to continue down Franklin to the first exit out of town, there are only 3 or so exits in Boise. I walked down Eagle st. next to a hospital. I found an exit.
11:09am: Micheal, An employee or Micron, was in his Sunday best. he had 3 kids in the back and was on his way to Nampa. Micheal and his family were on there way to the Golden Corral to celebrate Mothers day. They Invited me to come along. I accepted there invitation.
This was by far the best meal I had since I left home. I filled my plate with Baked Potato's, fruits, veggies and rice. I was one happy camper.
1:15pm: Micheal dropped me of at the 95/ID55 junction. I thanked him for the meal and the ride.
2:00pm: It starts raining
2:35pm: Gery drove a Ford Explorer sport. He was also an ex drug enforcement officer for the SFPD, now in his retired years he travels the glove from American airlines making sure there security systems are up to par. he was on his way to Venezuela when he picked me up. Gery didn't listen to music but loved sports. He has a Seris Satellite Radio and the whole way to Reno we listened to sports, and Fox news. Gery has an extensive knowledge of the aria. he kept me Entertained with trivia and stories of strange things that have happened to him on this road. he said the only reason he was driving down to San Fransisco, and not talking a Plane out of Boise was because Beer was some much cheaper in California, he said if you buy 4 cases you've paid for your gas.
7:00pm: we arrive in Reno. Gery takes us to a Motel 6 and uses his AARP card to get the rooms for 30 bucks. The weather was bad. Gery said he would knock on my door in the morning to see if I wanted to continue on to San Fransisco with him. he then Invited me to a two for one stack dinner witch i declined. I took a shower then walked the streets of Reno, actually, We were just out side Reno in a suburb called Sparks. I walked by a building with a bunch of kids out side. I tried to get in but the bouncer told me I needed to go around to the alley. I went to the corner store next door, purchased a Pepsi, then tried the alley. A young man who looked like Ryan Davis stopped me from walking in. I Guess I needed a ticket, a wrist band, or $28. A band by the name of MudVayne was about to go on. I wasn't about to pay any amount of money to see these guys play. the door to the joint was wide open. I could see just about anything I wanted to see.
I stood out side Observing the crowd. Two Bouncers were extracting a rail thin unruly. He was clearly under the influence of some kind of drug. He laid down in the alley. the bouncers tried to help him up. he simply told them to "suck my cock". Fed up with this youngsters shenanigans, the bouncers left him to himself. Shortly after the Sparks police showed up in a squad car. A female officer got out of the driver side, male out of the passenger, and a third male officer showed up a minute later. One cop talks to the guard, the other to the man laying down on the street. The third walks around with a smirk on his face.
From what I can tell the cops are having a blast with this guy, they get his ID from him. they start calling him Joel. Joel makes passes at the female officer wile she tries to administer a Breathalyzer test. he blew a .12. His behavior continues to be ridiculous. He shows the officers his penis and the fun is over. They plopped him on the hood of there car, searched him.
Its at this exact moment Munvayne (I'm assuming) starts playing "on the road again".
before they through him into the back seat I asked one of the officers if I could have his wrist band. The officer told me that that would be steeling.
Wile all this commotion was going on there was a man in the alley collecting cans. Once the cops were gone he came up to me and started to explain how lucrative can collecting was. Gordy was his name. Gordy had the smell of vodka on his breath. He was bragging about all the stuff he would find in trash cans. TVs, watches, blankets, even food. Gordy cant remember the last time he had to pay money for food. Gordy claimed to have exclusive can rights to the alley we were in. he also had a Cadillac (or a shopping cart) and a luxurious 400sf home under a bridge down the road a piece. Gordy carried on about how dangerous and hard his job was. he showed me his ear, covered in blood. I asked why he did such a job if the risks were so high. He replied, "Because I love it."

Day Seven

2005-05-10T12:48:00.000-05:00

6:00am: Samuel woke me up by raping on the window from the cap to the bed. He told me he was going to Mc Donald's and Invited me to come up to the front of the truck, I stayed in the back. Samuel must have thought the Mc Donald's in view was only accessible from the Freeway. It didn't take long for a Utah Police officer to spot me in the bed and Pull us over. He let Samuel off with a warning after he explained he maid a wrong turn and was just trying to get to Mickey D's. We never made it to Mc Donald's but Burger King was an acceptable runner up. I didn't eat anything but Samuel got some kind of egg and bacon sandwich with several cups of coffee with 3 creams and 2 sugars. Sam was a self proclaimed caffeine junkie and would rave about his French press. After eating we ran into the same car trouble we did before. We asked around and got our jump. this would happen two more times before we got to Twin Falls ID.
11:00am: Samuel dropped me on the east end of town. I considered staying here in Twin Falls. I did mill around for a bit, ate Jame's pears, and Mikes fruit snacks. I took some photos of Snake River, The spot where Evil Conevil tried to jump the void but failed. It was about a Three mile walk to the nearest Interstate exit.
4:47pm: Rob, a local traveler gave me a lift to Jerome.
5:15pm: Mr. Quigley gave me a lift and a Business opportunity to sell "just about anything you can get your hands on". Quick Start I'm assuming.
5:54pm: The exit Mr. Quigley left me at was dead, not a car in sight. I started waling to the next exit via Freeway I-84. I got about half way to the next exit when i spotted an RV park with its very own Muffler Man. I took a snap shot, then continued walking.
6:47pm: I got into an 89 Maxima, at the wheel was a chubby guy who didn't bother to turn his radio down. He preferred to shout over the music, the Deftones, I believe. Frank was his name. Frank was Five weeks out of the "Grey Bar Motel". he had just got done with a three year stint for cooking Meth. His wife had left him, wasn't aloud to see his kids, and running late to an AA meeting. he said he would drop me off at the shelter but he was running late and couldn't do so. I asked him if he minded if i came with him to the AA meeting and then he could take me to the shelter. He didn't mind.
8:30pm: The AA meeting was kind of sad. We went thought chapter 8 of the big book. The chapter was about what to do with your spouse if you think he or she is a victim of this powerful affliction. It seemed almost all are or were married and shared there storey of woe.
10:00pm: Frank took me to the shelter but first he gave me a tour of the Boise Saturday night life. showed me all the bars I could go to and the cheep places i could eat.
The shelter had a bid neon sign out side that read "Jesus Saves". I went inside for a bed but the place was packed. they had 6'x3' mats that you had to grab and find a spot on the chapel floor. they gave me a blanket and a pillow. One my head hit the pillow I was out like a light.

Day Six

2005-05-09T16:55:00.000-05:00

6:00am: James woke me up on his way out the door and we said our good byes. I packed my bag and wrapped the Ace bandage James gave me around my ankle.
I hoped on the bus that takes you to Golden CO. And was drop at the Denver West shopping mall.
7:00am: I walked to the I-70 exit I wanted to use. There was already a hitcher posted at the exit when I got there. I had yet to see a fellow hitchhiker in my six days of travel and was curious to know what he was like. I went up to him and introduced myself. I extended my hand. He continued to pull the hair out of his brush and said his name was John. I asked him some questions about hitchhiking, asked him if it was a foe pah for to hikers to work the same exit. He said there was no way in hell any one would stop for two guys, "its never happened". I could tell he was annoyed with my presence so I asked him if he could provide me with an alternative route to Utah, he didn't give me any roads by name, just told me I wanted to go through the dessert. he said I wanted to bring lots of water and to stick to my exits.
I walked down high way 40 till it met with another I-70 on ramp. the ramp was sandwiched in between two Sites of interests, a T-Rex site and and a brontosaurus I think.
9:30am: I was picked up by Lee. He was driving a work truck with "no balls" and was listing to a Modest Mouse CD. on the way to Evergreen he pointed out a glass house on the hill. He told me that the film Austen Powers, Charles angels and a film he cant remember were filmed in part that exact location.
9:55am: After I was dropped on at evergreen I made my way to the west bound exit a mile down the road.
10:00am: I am picked up by Chad. Chad is a consultant for a company that had something to do with modules. Hes a troubleshooter. he was with him two dog, JJ and Woodrow. Woodrow was very rambunctious being only a pup. Chad gave me a Banana. he was sure to point out the Continental Divide as we passed under it. He dropped me off at the Dillon exit, gave me his phone number in case I got stranded on my exit. He also gave me twenty dollars and wished me luck.
10:42am: Dan. Dan immediately upon picking me up chastised me for not having a sign but gave me a ride to Frisco anyway. It was a town just on the top of the hill. I got to the exit at 10:55. I couldn't help but notice all the remnants of hitchhikers who had passed, the side of the road was littered with signs, one reading "We have needs at least we leave (you're town) thank you!".
and some words up inspiration to other hikers written in sharpie on the "no pedestrians beyond this point" poll.
11:30am: A 2000 Dodge Caravan pulled over. I asked the gentleman, Mike, If he would take me to Grand Junction. He moved his snacks and snowboards into the back and told me he was on his way to Cortez. I was invited to come along if i desired. I Know it was a drastic deviation of my original course but I had a good feeling about this guy. On our way to Cortex Mike popped into the cassette deck a book on tape. John Grisham "the chamber". We listened to it off and on all the way. Mike and I stopped mid-way for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich break and a designated stop for a scenic view. Mikes wife had just gone to Costco before he took off from Montana, so he had a van full of goodies he didn't mind sharing. I had some fruit snacks (gelatin free) some nuts and some O.J. It was a very good time.
6:00pm: I was dropped off by mike on the east end of town and made my way to the north. According to Mikes old AAA road Atlas I was looking for Highway 666 but I couldn't find it. I eventually went into a gas station and asked for directions. I was told 666 was now 491.
7:28pm: Ernie Mason, an Oil surveyor gave me a short ride to his town. Aeriela.
7:35pm: A 24 year old man by the name of Samuel Picked me up in his 82 GMC Sierra. I had to move some VHS tapes and some Cd's to get in. he was smoking Marlboro reds and listening to Cristian Rap, or as J.P. referred to it, Crap.
Samuel was on his way to Portland from Albuquerque. He didn't talk much at first the only time he said anything was when he needed me to change his cd, or find his ash tray. Samuel was proud of his GMC. some one had donated the vehicle to his Church. His Pasture sold it to him for only a dollar.
We were almost to Salt Lake City when we had to stop for gas. Samuel's car wouldn't start. We must have sat there for a half hour before some one gave us a jump.
Once we got back on the road we noticed the front headlights getting dim and the CD player cut out. We pulled over to a gas station and shut off all batteries draining devices and Samuel watched the battery gauge very closely for some sign of improvement, There was little. so we parked the truck and stayed the night. Samuel slept on the cab wile I took the truck bed.

Day Five

2005-05-09T16:07:00.000-05:00

I didn't do any traveling on my fifth day on the road, but instead, did some lounging around Boulder and James’ apartment. I spent a great deal of time at the Boulder Public Library. I had high hopes of my foot feeling better. At this point, I had a pretty swollen ankle and was glad to be able to rest.
James had to work, so I was alone until he returned home at 6pm. He took me tp the restaurant he most frequently patronized, The Tra-Lings Oriental Cafe. The food was good and surprisingly inexpensive. The two of us ate for 6 dollars. Later we went down to a local pantry known as Bova's. James bought some Sleepy Time Tea to help him rest better. James had come down with some kind of illness that he thinks is a result of stress from college finals. He insisted on purchasing something for me Bova's. I took two cans of Del Monte Pears.
After returning to his apartment, James and I shared some conversation over a few cups of tea. James is weeks away from moving and had to decide whether or not he feels he should move to Denver and stay close to his friends or be adventurous and move to southern California and take a job that he's not sure he will like. This decision was heavy on James’ mind when I saw him and seemed to be the source of some stress.
This is as close as I have been to home in 5 long days and It felt nice to a familiar face. I was very pleased that James was kind enough to let me stay another night.

Day Four

2005-05-08T00:33:00.000-05:00

Wake up call at the homeless shelter was at 6am. You had until 6:10 to get out of bed. I don't know what they expected you to do until 8:30, which is when they served breakfast, but I didn't really care to find out. I made my bed as I was instructed and started down the street. I walked down Omaha Street until I got to a local coffee house. There, I sewed the strap of my backpack that had broken the night before. They wouldn't just let me sit there for an hour unless I bought something, so I coughed up two dollars for a twenty oz. bottle of coca-cola. After that, I started working the I-90 on ramp. I didn't do a good job keeping the names of the people I met this day. It may have been because I was anxious to see my friend James in Boulder, CO. I decided I was going to do my best to get there as fast as I could.
I got a boost from a laborer to a nearby town about 15 miles north/west of Rapid City. From there I got a ride from my first trucker. He was a funny guy and made jokes like my father. At times, we would attempt to do impressions but they all sounded the same. He reminded me of a Nathan Lane, except skinny, balding, and long hair. He was very proud of his annual income of 150,000 a year and boasted that he could get his kids out of any trouble they find themselves in. Our ride lasted awhile. We made a stop or two and he bought me a couple of bean burritos from Taco Bell in Gellette WY. This is about the time he invited me to go with him to Montana, and eventually back to Sioux Falls, where he lived. He said he might get a call to go down to Denver and he could give me a lift in a couple of days...maybe. I declined, telling him I must be moving on. He tried to guilt me into staying with him longer by saying "Do you mean to tell me you're going to make me drink beer alone tonight." He dropped me off at the I-25 junction just north of Buffalo WY.
I walked to Buffalo and stood on the off ramp with my thumb in the air. Traffic was light and mostly truckers. After about 50 minutes a man in a newer Honda stopped. He got out of his car and asked me my age and if I had any weapons or drugs. I put my bag in his trunk and we were off. He listened to jazz on his kid's boom box because his tape deck was busted. He popped open a bottle of Guinness and confessed, that if I had had some weed, he would have smoked some. He was an archeologist and on his way to Rollins. He was willing to drop me off in Casper, WY. We talked about his field of study, the Chimney Rocks, and the glory days of hitching before our ways parted around 4pm.
I got a lift from one side of Casper to the other, where there was a bigger truck stop with more traffic, from an Explorer with three enthusiastic cowboy-hat-waring teens. They offered me bud light, mountain dew, and a little money. They insisted I take their 6 dollars and so I did.
I was out side Casper for a bit when an old-school suburban pulled over to give me a lift. Driving, was and elderly Native American woman with stringy hair and few teeth. In the passenger seat was her son, and his son was in the backseat next to his girlfriend. There was also a young boy in the car, but I'm not sure of his relationship with the others. The sign I had made read, Cheyenne, but these guys were going to some town south of Denver and were willing to make a slight detour to boulder where my friend, James, lives. On the way, I was witness to typical family behavior. Kids bickering in the back seat and the like, but then the mother and son rolled and smoked a few joints together. After about three joints the son ate some Wendy’s and was asleep for most of the drive.
I arrived in boulder 11:30ish. I got a hold of James and crashed on his futon in his living room.

Day Three

2005-05-05T20:49:00.000-05:00

J.P. and I woke up at 10 am and hung around camp until about 11:30. His family stayed behind at the camp when he took me into town. Yesterday, J.P. had expressed interest in hiking with me for a day or two and I didn't really have a problem with it, but his wife didn't think Jesus thought it was a good idea. J.P. (John Paul) asked me where I wanted to go. I told him I preferred Bridgeport, only 25 miles or so away. He agreed. When we got within a mile of the town, he offered to take me North to Alliance. We stopped By Carhenge when in Alliance and then he said he could take me to Chadron. We had some good conversations. I thought it was interesting that the two of us could agree on so many topics as long as we kept things pretty vague. It seemed we both despised what the church stood for, hated the direction America was going, and didn't understand this war. I think we both had different reasons for thinking this way, but we never got into that. I was comfortable letting J.P. think our reasons were the same. Maybe they were.
In Chadron we went to an Art gallery at his old University, He got gas at the northern most station and we would have parted then if I didn't forget my bread and noodles in his car. He had told me he was going to the Wal-Mart across the street. I went in and found him. He was excited to see me. We went to his car I got my stuff, I thanked him for the Duct tape wallet he gave me and everything else. We parted with a Hug and I pressed on.
I went back to the gas station he dropped me off at and Amanda, a local high school girl, asked me if I needed a ride somewhere. She took me to the Library and said she could give me a ride north. I guess she waited for me in her Daytona and ate a meatball sub from Subway. She ended up just driving me around town showing me her friends’ houses and telling me their names. She needed to pick up her mom from work, so she dropped me off at a gas station and said she would be back in 5 minutes. I didn't like this girl, she was weirding me out. I decided when she came back to get me, I would tell her I would just try to get a ride all the way to Rapid City from some one who wasn't going to charge me 9 bucks. She looked disappointed when I told her, and took me back north where we started.
I walked down 383 and in no time at all got a ride from a couple moving to a town north of Rapid City. There were three of us crammed in an S15 cab. After a mile or two it wasn't too uncomfortable. They dropped me off at the junction to Hot Springs, South Dakota and told me Rushmore was just Five miles away. I learned shortly after that if I had wanted to see Mt. Rushmore, I should have held out till the Keystone exit. No bother, I got a ride from two college girls to the west side of hot springs, then a ride from Hot springs to Pringle from an explosives expert, Murray.
Murray gave me a Bush light, and made jokes about tourists and buffalo. It started to get dark and I tend to get lonesome when the sun goes down and the traffic thins. I was thinking maybe I should have stayed in Hot Springs where there were more bars and fewer mountain lions. I called Dana. Then my pack strap broke. I saw something in the distance that looked like an open sign; it was the only light I could see.
I walked towards it as a Jeep Cherokee pulled out of its driveway. He said he was going all the way to Rapid City and was willing to take me. His name was Little Horse and was very nice. He drove past Crazy Horse after I had expressed interest in seeing it. He stopped and then drove me past a metal sign of what it should look like when its done except with "more detail". Mr. Horse was kind enough to take me downtown and helped me look for a homeless shelter neither one of us had seen before. We eventually found it and I checked in at 10:45 after passing my drug and alcohol test. They gave me a pillow, a blanket, and bunk 14. There were about 40-50 men in the room sleeping. About 6 were snoring.

Don't Drink the KoolAid (Day two)

2005-05-05T19:03:00.000-05:00

I started out towards the Ogallala library after checking out from my hotel and receiving my complimentary cup of Joe. By the time I got to the library I had finished my cup of coffee.
Around 9:30am I started to walk down west 26. I didn't make it too far before a kind young man who goes by the name of Bo (who is on MySpace) stopped to see if I needed a lift. I got into his car and he took me well past his destination, telling me stories of the local hills. He left me at a trading post just east of Lewellen, NE. I walked through Lewellen and proceeded to what has been the worst part of my trip so far. It took about six hours for anyone to pick me up, and during that time I got quarter sized blisters on my left foot and twisted, spraining my ankle.
An elderly gentleman, Mr. Johnson and his wife were kind enough to give me a lift to the next town, Oshkosh. They told me they were going to do some shopping and if I was still on the road they would pick me up. By the time I made it to the west side of Oshkosh they had finished up their shopping and took me to Bridgeport.
From Bridgeport I started walking to Chimney Rock, got about 3 miles and was picked up by 3 young men in a Pick-up. Chimney Rock didn't have the Awe inspiring power I had expected, but I chose to photograph it anyway.
By this time its getting dark and cold. There is a closed camp ground with running water, electricity, fire wood and a Pepsi machine charging a buck ten a pop. If I were to get stranded in the middle of nowhere this would be the place to be. I decide to push my luck and thumb my way out of there.
The road I was on would either take me to Bridge Port or Scotts bluff, So I work both lanes of traffic. I get nothing and it's getting colder. There are no cars in sight so I lay down on the shoulder. I must have drifted off because when I came to, there was a big ford coming towards me. Once he saw I was alive, he gave me an angry look and drove off. He had an "I love Beef" bumper sticker.
No cars, but there is a Cole train working it’s way down the track to Bridge Port and I started to get ready to hop on as it approaches. This is when a Sheriff arrives in a timely manner. He was called about a 10-14 on the side of the road and didn't want a fatal in his county. He took me to the county line and dropped me off. Scotts Bluff is only 8 miles away so I start to walk.
I get about 2 miles in before a Ford Tempo pulls over and offers their assistance. Six of them, and I, a seventh, all squeeze in. JP, while not the driver, does most of the talking and is the only one I get to know. He introduced me to his wife, two kids, Albanian Nanny, and the passenger in the front passenger seat named Bernie. Bernie is a victim of a malfunctioning 79 ford pick-up truck. We were taking him to Scotts Bluff to find a mechanic for him. And to make a long story short this doesn't happen. We end up back at his ford and I'm using my Fathers AAA card to get the poor man a tow. Everything is set and before we leave Bernie to himself, J.P. gives him the word of Jesus. Bernie had kind of a weird smile on his face and thanked JP and Co. and myself for our help.
J.P. Talks a lot, is very excited about the Lord Jesus Christ and doesn't hold back. We went to Wal-Mart and they bought me some soymilk, bananas, Noodles, and Bread. They invited me to the camp that they volunteer at and said I could stay as long as I like, J.P. even invited me to go to Nepal with them and do some Mission work. I gave him my E-mail address.
The man let me cook my food in the mess hall and even gave me a bed for the night. Actually, he gave me his bed and he slept on the floor. We read from the Bible and talked about John the Baptist. I tended to the blisters on my foot and then we hit the hey.

So much to do...

2005-05-03T17:57:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry, I don't have time to write today, Im at the Chadron Library and there is a kid waiting in a car eating a meatball sub who is willing to take me north.

see ya!

day one

2005-05-02T10:09:00.000-05:00

Matt Rooney and I left Omaha to Lincoln on his BMW motorcycle, It was the most excruciating pain I have ever endured on a motor vehicle. My empty canteen on my backpack kept hitting the back of my arms wile Mr. Rooney's ponytail continued to whip me in the face. I made the mistake of waring a ball cap under my helmet. The wend pushed back the bill witch in turn pulled my helmet back causing the helmet to strangle me. it was 47 degrees out. We got to Lincoln all right. Mr. Rooney treated me to De Leon's, A Mexican restaurant on the west side of town. After, we said our goodbyes and I started on foot down west O st. I walked down west O for about four hours with no indication at anyone would be stopping soon, the amount of traffic was pathetic compared to I-80, a quarter mile from where i stood, i could see potential rides flowing just out of reach. I started to get hungry again. I could see a gas/camp sign just off the interstate and decided to Head north via 138 / 6 junction. When i arrived I found the station had been abandons for what looked like some time. there was junk all over. I pick up a piece of plastic about 1'x2' and wrote with a sharpie "grand island" as big as i could, i stood by the on ramp and within 15 minutes I had a ride, a woman by the name of Jenny was having trouble with her caravan running at too high of an rpm. she waved for me to come over, restarted her car and told me it seemed to be fixed. she drove me from 138/I80 junction to the next rest area west. when she told be she would drop me off at the rest area I just assumed she meant a truck stop. there was a vending machine, I has some nutter-butters. After eating the butters I started walking to the interstate. It seemed before I even got off the on ramp A Four-Runner pulled over to give me a lift. The driver Introduced himself as Thore. I was pleased to find he was heading all the way past Denver and was willing to give me a ride to Ogallala. by the time I make it to Ogallala it started to get dark. I walk to the edge of town in hopes of finding a ride before it got to late. no such luck. It got cold so I found a spot of dry mud under a highway light. I grabbed a bunch of dry tender to make a fire. I try to use this opportunity to brush up on my harmonica. The shoulder is too sad and the air is too cold (26 degrees) so I put it away when a sheriff rolled by. he seemed confused, and asks for my ID. He gave me a ride back into town and tries to convince me to stay at the econo lodge. I ask if he could provide me with a cell instead, he refused. It is cold, so I go into a TA truck stop and grab a soda wile I worm up. the locals inform me econo is the cheapest room in town, I Don't have a sleeping bag and by now its 12:30. I'm sleepy and decide to go ahead and pay up. 35 bucks and check out is at 11. I took a shower and used the sink to brush my teeth. I got bummed out by watching the weather channel, then fell asleep.

I'll probably never get my security deposit back...

2005-04-30T14:05:00.000-05:00

thanks to everyone who was at my wicked party last night. you made me feel spechel:

if you can't see these .gifs just go to : www.geocities.com/freepepsifree/friends

Business cards

2005-03-31T12:21:00.000-06:00

All right, last Friday I had a rubber stamp made by J.P. Cooke. It will be used to promote my website wile I'm on the road this year.