M E Grow

I left the relaxation of Tigard to head further north to Washington (specifically Whidbey Island). After a relatively short drive I stopped at Pike Place Market, in Seattle. Got a mocha at the first ever Starbucks (tasted the same) and wandered around the shops. Found a few christmas presents (no telling what they are...the recipients might be reading!). I got back on the road after i spent just a little bit too much money. The trip up to the island was mostly uneventful. Saw a fun sign that apparently is put up by an extreme right winger that I somehow actually agreed with. Go fig. My issuses didn't start until I got closer to the island. I ran into a road block just east of the ferry and had to be talked back to the right ... read more

Today was nice and chill. Good way to warm up back into the roadtrippin' mode. Went shopping for a little while, visited some people, then rounded out the day w/ some pupusas (yeah El Salvadoran food!). They were lovely, although the fried plantains were highlight of my meal. seriously, the only thing I like more than plantains is mango. Mmmmm...mango... We came back home and watched the Tonys. I think I saw one of my friends, who was doing the seat filler thing. And I saw my other friend's name in the credits (didn't see her title...i think it was along the lines of production assistant). Back on the road tomorrow for a short hop up to Washington. We'll see how much time I can kill on this trip!... read more

Today I took a vacation from my vacation. Slept in until noon. Stayed in my pjs all day. It was fabulous.... read more

I felt a lot better in the morning. Dunno what it was the night before, but some cola and a good night’s sleep (sleeping in an extra 2 hours) did the trick! Mom and I checked out of the hotel and then went our separate ways; her on a taxi to the airport, me back in my car and further up the coast. It was good to get some personal space back. The drive up to Crescent City was really nice. I went through a bit of the wine country, with vines stretching out for rows and rows. Then I entered the National Redwood Forest. Wow. It was like driving through another world at some points. The best part was when there was a 2 mile stretch where the trees were so tall and so close ... read more

The first part was pretty fun. We were still up in the mountains/hills west of Flagstaff and started to come down. That made for some fun driving, aka truck dodging. Now, I understand that they’re trying to save on gas by getting everything out of a downhill they can. It’s still damn scary when you’re driving along and a semi comes racing up on your rear and you can’t get over because of the traffic! I was wishing for flatter ground every time that happened. Be careful what you wish for. We dropped out of the hills right into desert, with mountains off in the distance. It got really boring, really fast. I think the 7 mile long construction zone, where we were going 45mph through very repetitive terrain, was the height of boredom on this ... read more

We woke up to a sunny day, without a clue of the evil that would present itself in a short time. Blissfully unaware, Mom and I headed to the deluxe continental breakfast. They weren’t lying, it was deluxe. There were waffle makers and biscuits & gravy. The only thing missing was skim milk. Had to choke down the 2%. Blech! Dressed and ready to go (including my Target argyle flip-flops), I headed out to load the car (notice a trend here?). I was nearly done, taking one of the last loads out, when I went down. Hard. It seems that there was a chunk of pavement missing where I stepped. My foot rolled onto my ankle, and into the hole, and I landed smack on my knees. Somehow I kept enough composure to keep from swearing ... read more