I am seriously freaking out right now. Through this entire process I have been fine. Absolutely fine. Now though, I am on the edge of my seat and CAN. NOT. WAIT. I wish I could say it was due to excitement, but I'm afraid it is due to dread.
Yes, we found a place and have made an offer. The counter-offering has begun. Ugghhh. So I am going to try and distract myself as my palms sweat and I feel like the one being hunted. Yes, I am going to go quilt (aren't I so domestic) and attempt to not second guess my every action.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Is this really a house hunt?
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Road Trip - Part 2
Day 4: Possible solution and fast forward through Yellowstone
Let me put your mind at ease....our car did not break down. However we did find a service station inside of Yellowstone and decided it would be best to have it checked out. They were able to reassure us it was NOT the coolant, but a much much bigger problem...most likely. Basically whatever the problem was, they wouldn't be able to really know unless they took the entire engine out. AWESOME! Yeah, not really. They told us that it was probably an issue with the head gasket and if they ordered a part for us it would take 3 days! Rather than sit around at Yellowstone for 3 more days (we had places to go, people to see) we decided to sit around in Cody, WY for an entire day. After frantically calling service station after service station we found one that could overnight the part and could work on the car (it would be a 7-9 hr job). We also found a hotel after many, many attempts. Did you know Cody, WY is a major tourist town and hotels are often booked throughout the summer? Yeah, me neither.
So by now it is 3 o'clock and we have the rest of the day to explore Yellowstone....without putting to much extra ware on the car. We got to see Old Faithful - which honestly was a bit of a let down. I had seen it go off before and remembered it going much higher. Oh well, still cool.
We also saw tons of thermal pools. Ask Neile to describe Yellowstone and he might just tell you it was stinky (hmmmm the smell of rotten eggs - gotta love it).
Then we saw some most amazing waterfalls and canyons. Beautiful.
Day 5: Goodbye Yellowstone, stranded in Cody
Early, early, early we get up and pack all of our stuff in the car. I may not have mentioned it yet, but this is now day 3 without showers. Also at this point I definitely have a cold and all I want to do is sleep (do you feel sorry for me yet?!?). We get to Cody (just under 200 miles - some of which went straight over the Bighorn mountains - from our campsite) around 10:30. The service place shuttles us to our hotel where we find out we can't check in until at least 1pm. So we decide to just start walking.
I have no idea how many miles we walked that day, but we did go to a Sierra Trading Post outlet store on the complete opposite side of town. We also stopped for lunch at a cute little Mexican restaurant. Well, it was cute until they ran out of Salsa! Yes, it is true and very very bad as I love my salsa dearly. As the customer sitting across from us said, "that's like a Chinese restaurant running out of rice". After that fiasco it was almost 1 so we headed back in the direction of our hotel. Thankfully, when we got there a room was ready and I was able to bathe and pass out on our bed. So nice.
At this point we still didn't know if we would be in Cody longer than one day as we hadn't heard how our car was doing. But our fears were put to rest just before 6 as they called to tell us it would be ready soon! That was exciting...much more exciting than the bill they also told us about=(.
Day 6: Colorado here we come!
Due to our automobile difficulties we had to scrap one day of our trip. All in all it worked out amazingly well (it was only 1 day after all), but we were both bummed to miss the Tetons. This night we were set to stay way up in Rocky Mountain National Park. This was a new place for me. Absolutely beautiful. Honestly, the drive into the park was just breathtaking. I only wish we weren't so tired at this point....I'm sure we would have enjoyed it more. Also, we only had 1 more picture remaining on our camera and knew we wanted to save that for some very special people.
Day 7: Ahhh so cute
We didn't have to do too much driving as our destination was Colorado Springs. It was here that we got to see my dear friend Liz. This is the girl I have known since I was 9! AND she just had her first baby. A precious little girl, Eleanor. It was just so amazing to see her and to spend time with Liz and Jeremiah. Even though it was a short stay (less than 24 hours) it was still very rich and full. 
Day 8: And back again
Our return to the Black Hills. By now, we were both pretty exhausted and definitely ready to be home. We stayed at the now deserted science station and got some needed sleep. It is so strange to go to a place after it is closed down for the season...the quiet is so unexpected.
Day 9 and 10: Set out on our separate ways
Not too much exciting these days. Just straight driving and in separate vehicles at that. We offered to take a truck back to the college which meant we got to be bored alone rather than together though all of SD and MN. So by the time Monday rolled around we were more than ready to be done with the car.
~~~~~~~~~
Man our trip was longer than I thought (are you even still reading??), but soo good and needed. We were soo relaxed after this and really ready to kick off our next big thing. Finding a house. Yes the hunt is on!
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Road Trip - Part 1
Day 1: Goodbye Science Station, hello open road
After waking up early we head over to the kitchen for our final meal at the science station and to do the finishing touches on closing down the kitchen. All in all, by the time our packing and cleaning was done it was nearly 1pm....so we quick made ourselves a sandwich before heading out onto the road. Our first stop - Custer State Park. I have to highly recommend this park. Absolutely beautiful, and for a mere $5 per person you could spend at least 1 full day exploring and driving around.
Some of our highlights were driving through a herd of buffalo and seeing the beautiful Needles (weathered granite).
That night we camped outside of Devil's Tower. This was a blast as it was our first time actually camping together....and our first time on the trip to eat a buffalo burger. (although we weren't sure if it was actually buffalo meat or if it was just called that because the patty was the shape of a buffalo...I kid you not)
Day 2: Devil's Tower and head toward Yellowstone
We spent the morning hiking around (I use the term hiking very loosely here) Devil's tower and dreaming of climbing...it's true I was not involved in the dreaming as I have no desire AT ALL, but the mountain is yours Neile and you can conquer it to your hearts content!
After exploring most of what the Tower had to offer we headed west once again. Our goal - get close to Yellowstone so that the following day we could get in early.
That night we ended up getting a hotel in Bozeman, MT. I think that was my first time there and man we were really in the mountains at that point. Cute town though. Oddly enough, this was the only bad weather night of our trip and thankfully we didn't have to camp out in it. Oh but that didn't stop us from driving to a local park and cooking our first "camp" dinner.
Day 3: Yellowstone and "What's that smell"
After enjoying our evening in the hotel...and television for the first time all summer...we headed for Yellowstone. Neile's first time ever! We didn't end up getting to the entrance until about 11, but you could tell the excitement was building.
Here's where I offer some advice for all you travelers out there. Don't drive through the park passing up 1, 2, and even 3 open campsites before deciding to find one for yourself. They will not be open later on and you will then proceed to spend the next 3 hours driving around looking for another open camp site. Plus, who needs the "where am I going to sleep" stress on their vacation. So yeah, don't do that.
We did eventually find a spot that was beautiful and the last remaining site in all of Yellowstone (okay that may be an exaggeration, but at that point it is what it felt like). The only problem with the site (and probably why it was still open) was that it was a handicap site. BUT we read the fine print and it said we could stay there if it was the last one open...I swear. It also said we had to share if someone that was handicap happened to need a spot, but at that point we would have shared with just about anyone - we just didn't care so long as we had a place to sleep.
Now as we were driving and frantically looking for camping sites we did get to see more buffalo, some coyote, and a grizzly and her baby cub. That was pretty awesome I have to say. We also got to drive up and down some steep hills for long periods of time. This is where the "what is that smell" comes into play.
We began to smell something pretty stinky coming from the car. Initially we thought it was the breaks, but then we heard a faint bubbling sound. After further investigation we discovered that our coolant was boiling and man did it stink. This is where we decided to drive outside of the park and into a small town in hopes of finding a service station of some kind. Alas, there was no help to be found. So we drove back to our campsite and decided to try and enjoy the rest of our trip - praying that the car would not break down.
That night we camped outside of Devil's Tower. This was a blast as it was our first time actually camping together....and our first time on the trip to eat a buffalo burger. (although we weren't sure if it was actually buffalo meat or if it was just called that because the patty was the shape of a buffalo...I kid you not)
Day 2: Devil's Tower and head toward Yellowstone
We spent the morning hiking around (I use the term hiking very loosely here) Devil's tower and dreaming of climbing...it's true I was not involved in the dreaming as I have no desire AT ALL, but the mountain is yours Neile and you can conquer it to your hearts content!
After exploring most of what the Tower had to offer we headed west once again. Our goal - get close to Yellowstone so that the following day we could get in early.
That night we ended up getting a hotel in Bozeman, MT. I think that was my first time there and man we were really in the mountains at that point. Cute town though. Oddly enough, this was the only bad weather night of our trip and thankfully we didn't have to camp out in it. Oh but that didn't stop us from driving to a local park and cooking our first "camp" dinner.
Day 3: Yellowstone and "What's that smell"
After enjoying our evening in the hotel...and television for the first time all summer...we headed for Yellowstone. Neile's first time ever! We didn't end up getting to the entrance until about 11, but you could tell the excitement was building.
Here's where I offer some advice for all you travelers out there. Don't drive through the park passing up 1, 2, and even 3 open campsites before deciding to find one for yourself. They will not be open later on and you will then proceed to spend the next 3 hours driving around looking for another open camp site. Plus, who needs the "where am I going to sleep" stress on their vacation. So yeah, don't do that.
We did eventually find a spot that was beautiful and the last remaining site in all of Yellowstone (okay that may be an exaggeration, but at that point it is what it felt like). The only problem with the site (and probably why it was still open) was that it was a handicap site. BUT we read the fine print and it said we could stay there if it was the last one open...I swear. It also said we had to share if someone that was handicap happened to need a spot, but at that point we would have shared with just about anyone - we just didn't care so long as we had a place to sleep.
Now as we were driving and frantically looking for camping sites we did get to see more buffalo, some coyote, and a grizzly and her baby cub. That was pretty awesome I have to say. We also got to drive up and down some steep hills for long periods of time. This is where the "what is that smell" comes into play.
We began to smell something pretty stinky coming from the car. Initially we thought it was the breaks, but then we heard a faint bubbling sound. After further investigation we discovered that our coolant was boiling and man did it stink. This is where we decided to drive outside of the park and into a small town in hopes of finding a service station of some kind. Alas, there was no help to be found. So we drove back to our campsite and decided to try and enjoy the rest of our trip - praying that the car would not break down.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Super Cool
That's right...I feel super cool right now. I just dropped off one of my dear friends at the airport so she could fly away and begin a new life in Japan. Amazing.
Millie, the last 3 1/2 years have flown by and I wish you only the best. You were an amazing roommate, are an amazing friend, and are just an amazing woman. Simply amazing. Thanks for pursuing your dreams and having the faith to step out of the boat. Watching you is such an encouragement to those around you...and yes that includes me. Love you and can't wait to hear about your AMAZING adventure.
If you want to hear about Millie's journey, check out her blog Confessions of a Water Walker
Saturday, August 18, 2007
We're back
I know it has been a long time, but we are back. We have returned to Illinois and will most likely be here indefinitely. Neile has accepted a job here in the suburbs and we are now just attempting to get settled into life and our new home....in my parents basement. Yes, that's right. After completing our stint at a "summer job" we have both moved into my parents' basement. Now I can see how it would be easy to look at this and think "gosh they are sure moving up in the world" but don't be deceived. Our next big thing is attempting to BUY a place of our own. Right now, this is a bit overwhelming. There are so many scenarios of how this might happen and I have no idea which one is going to play out. So for now, my parents have generously allowed us to live here for the time being....let's just hope "the time being" isn't longer than 6 months for all of our sakes. So that is our quick update right now, but I will be writing soon about our recent vacation/road trip.
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