July 17 to 19...Raleigh

So, Sunday the 17th was my 29th birthday.  In some ways I feel like my 20s should be winding down, and in others, I feel like I was 22 just a few months ago.  After lunch with Tolberts and Tolberts, I drove down to Raleigh.  I set up camp at William Umstead state park, then went out to dinner with the old vet tech crew.  Thanks for sharing it with me: Alyssa, Heather, Mandy, McNair, Emily/Adam/baby Daniel!

The next day I drove down to Sanford and saw all of the teachers at my old school.  Everyone was there except Tina.  It was great to catch up with everyone, and discuss what I have been doing since I was a student and now I am teaching.

That evening I went out to dinner with my former father and sister in law.  I was surprised to walk in the door to see Wayne.  He has lost 120 pounds!  So proud that he decided it was time to get healthy.  He even had a framed photo in his living room from his 5k last week.  I was shocked, in the best way possible.  :)

I'm not sure what I was doing on this Raleigh trip...but I didn't take any photos, except this one with my phone.

July 11 to 16th...Welcome baby Cricket!

Mid afternoon on July 11th, I arrived in Colonial Heights in VA.  It was wonderful to be near Cris, Mike and Caleb.  I've missed them since they moved from Hawaii three and half months ago.  She said, "It doesn't feel weird at all to me that you are here."  Doesn't feel weird to me either.  :)

Things were pretty busy with shopping, making and freezing meals, plumbers and satellite people.  They just moved into the house, then the a/c went out, so they had to go back to her parents.  They pretty much just moved in the day I got down here.  Talk about cutting things close.  But they are settling well, even though their household goods are still in limbo (messy, attorneys have been contacted, etc.), but the church, family, and friends have all made sure that they have beds and somewhere to sit.

We all thought July 13th was gonna be the day, but nope, July 14th at 2:31 pm little baby Cricket (aka: Corrie Faith Tolbert) joined us after a relatively easy labor.  Four hours and two pushes later, she was here.  Momma and baby are doing well. 

As I write this there is banana bread in the oven, the house is quiet.  Oh wait, her family just walked in...let me finish up when they leave...

A few baby pics... 

July 9 to July 11...Mountains = playground

On Saturday morning, McNair and I got up early and headed east.  Near a town called Whitesburg and the Virginia border there is an amazing spot called Bad Branch State Nature Preserve.  I discovered it in 2008 when I was driving back to Minnesota from North Carolina after Alyssa and David's wedding in October.  Then the fall was just about as powerful as a shower.  It looked a little like this:

This trip the falls were much more intense.  After a little coaxing I got McNair to walk behind the falls and come sit on a rock in the sunshine.  I played around in the water and we both enjoyed the serenity of this place.  

  After playing in the falls for a bit, McNair and I parted ways.  She drove home to Chapel Hill and I decided to camp up in the mountains to stay cool.  I looked around on the map, the closest place was called "Wiley's Last Resort" and after a quick peek there, I knew it was not the place for me.  So, on to National Forest land to a campground called Cane Patch.  It was primitive, but I set up camp right next to a stream and admired the lightning bugs.

The next morning, which was Sunday the 10th of July, I kinda meandered through the mountains and drove up to a waterfall at another nature preserve in Virginia called Falls Ridge Preserve.  The falls were nothing like Bad Branch, and you are not allowed to go into the water...not that you'd want to.  Here are a few pics:

As I was leaving the preserve, there was a train. A really close train.  A really close, loud, intense train.  It may have been as cool as the waterfalls.  

That afternoon I drove up the Blue Ridge Parkway and stopped at a camp called Otter Peaks.  I was pleasantly surprised at how empty it was, even for a Sunday.  I could only see one other person.  I lit a fire with huge pieces of very wet wood and boiled some carrots.  

Then...I had a few beers.  A few beers at almost 3,000 feet is just a little bit different than where I normally have a few beers.  On the beach.  So, I started playing with sticks.  Yup. 

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked. Some windows are lighted. But mostly they’re darked. A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin! Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in? How much can you lose? How much can you win?

July 8th...Mammoth Cave

On Friday morning, McNair and I got up and picked up our tickets for the Grand Avenue tour.  We ate a little watermelon and oatmeal for breakfast and got ready for our cave adventure.  Once again, I am sooo glad I brought BOTH long sleeve shirts and my bandana to keep my ears warm.  That humid 54 degrees was chilly for this Hawaii resident.  :)

Sitting down on a bench in front of Shelter B, with 70-some other people on the tour, I noticed a ranger with an awesome beard.  McNair and I have an understanding that we both love people watching, so I instantly pointed him out.  She very slowly and casually turned to look at him, turned back, we both smiled.  Just so happened, this wonderfully whiskered man was our tour guide.  (By the end, I was really tempted to ask him to be my grandpa.)

Rick, our guide, and his partner led us through 4 miles weaving up and down through the cave.  It is a spectacular place to be.  I can't imagine being one of the first people in using little handfuls of sticks and bamboo from down by the river to light my way.  Towards the end of the tour they turned out the lights to give us an idea of the depth of the darkness, and the fact that there is literally no light for your eyes to adjust to. 

I think the pictures will just have to do the talking:

Once back out in the light of day, we had lunch and sat outside on the lanai, I mean balcony, of the room.  Then decided to walk down and see the "historic entrance" where the cave was discovered.  The other entrances have been man made.  Once we got down there, we decided we needed our cameras, so we ran back up to take pictures of the "steam ceiling" and the sunset.  The best part about the sunset was watching the fog come up from the valley to the top where we were, slowly engulfing the mountain across the valley and the trees on our side.

On our way back to the room we were chatting and walking, and we almost stepped on a copperhead.  Scared the mess out of both of us.  Maybe 50 feet later, a deer gave us another startle.

McNair decided that we'd had enough nature for the day and wanted to go back to the room.  I decided I was going to go to the store and grab some beer.  She wanted to ride along, but the store was closed, so we went into Cave City which, the gas station attendant let us know was in a dry county and the closest place to buy alcohol was 32 miles south.  Ugh.  Then she said, "Well, actually, it's a moist county, so you can get it in restaurants, just not take-out."  Hmm...off to the local Mexican joint.  As 3 or 4 young mothers brought their tiny children and babies into the smoking section (they still have smoking sections??), we became aware that they do things a lit-tle different 'round here.
After paying the bill and winding our way back through the fog to Mammoth Cave hotel, we slept with more adventures planned for the next day.

I’m sorry to say so but, sadly, it’s true that Bang-ups and Hang-ups can happen to you.

You can get all hung up in a prickle-ly perch. And your gang will fly on. You’ll be left in a Lurch.

You’ll come down from the Lurch with an unpleasant bump. And the chances are, then, that you’ll be in a Slump.

And when you’re in a Slump, you’re not in for much fun. Un-slumping yourself is not easily done.

 

July 3rd to July 7th...Hawaii to Kentucky

This leg of the journey went as simply and wonderfully uneventful as can be. I don't really mind flying, but uneventful flying is always best.  I flew out of Honolulu on the 3rd at 9:00 pm, Salt Lake at 9:55 am, and Phoenix at 3:35 pm. I arrived in Minneapolis at a little after 8:00 pm, and Spike and Brian came to pick me up.

I insisted on a shower before we scooted over to Gold Metal Park to watch the fireworks. The fireworks was a good show, the sliver moon over the Gold Metal Flour sign as it was getting dark at, oh, 9:30 was a lovely sight. After the fireworks, and a quick stop at Jimmy John's, Spike and I went back to his place and crashed.

Tuesday we all went to work, left early and brought Mora (Spike's rescue greyhound) to a quick vet appointment and gave her a bath, then we drove up to St. Cloud to pick up my mom's car. Once back in Minneapolis, we narrowly avoided rain and had tasty burgers and beverages at Town Hall Brewery.

The next morning I decided to paint Spike's living room orange. I think it is still growing on him, but in the gray winters the warmth of that room will be welcoming.

Thursday, July 7th, I drove. A long way. From Minneapolis, through Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and into Kentucky. Total, 846 miles.

There were a few funny things that, had I not been on a mission, I would have stopped to take pictures of. One: a sign right before an intersection that had a left arrow pointing to Indianapolis, and a right arrow pointing to...Brazil. Hmm, I wonder where I'd rather go. I mean, Indy 500? No contest.

You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed. You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead. Wherever you fly, you’ll be best of the best. Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don’t.
Because, sometimes, you won’t.