Wherein I edit together a mix of slow-paced video and brief glimpses of pictures from the Creation Museum with no regard to your sensibilities (into a rather large file).
Link
Saturday, August 4
An Aside
The Creation Museum (I can't stop thinking about it) was ABSOLUTELY OBSESSED with dinosaurs. I can't really blame it. It's only a few years old. I was absolutely obsessed with dinosaurs until I was maybe twelve (maybe I still am a little), maybe it'll grow out of it soon.
One of the exciting things about going there, however, was learning about how dinosaurs and people lived together. They were all about it. There were more dinosaurs than in anything even vaguely religious ever before. Maybe to appeal to children, but more likely because dinosaurs are vital to their concepts. Right? No. Not really. We thought we'd learn all about the dynamics of the people-dinosaurs relationship, but mostly what they did was just show biblical scenes with dinosaurs lurking around near them. Also there were cave-people in the lobby, but they got no mention anywhere in the actual museum.
What we did learn about dinosaur-man coexistence were the simple basic facts: dinosaurs were all vegetarians until Adam sinned, at which point they got mad and ate people. They survived the Great Flood aboard the ark (except the ones who died, they made fossils), and somehow died out shortly thereafter. Presumably because they were bad sinners. They ate people. That's greed and gluttony and wrath. And it was probably spawned of pride and envy.
One of the exciting things about going there, however, was learning about how dinosaurs and people lived together. They were all about it. There were more dinosaurs than in anything even vaguely religious ever before. Maybe to appeal to children, but more likely because dinosaurs are vital to their concepts. Right? No. Not really. We thought we'd learn all about the dynamics of the people-dinosaurs relationship, but mostly what they did was just show biblical scenes with dinosaurs lurking around near them. Also there were cave-people in the lobby, but they got no mention anywhere in the actual museum.
What we did learn about dinosaur-man coexistence were the simple basic facts: dinosaurs were all vegetarians until Adam sinned, at which point they got mad and ate people. They survived the Great Flood aboard the ark (except the ones who died, they made fossils), and somehow died out shortly thereafter. Presumably because they were bad sinners. They ate people. That's greed and gluttony and wrath. And it was probably spawned of pride and envy.
Other Minutia
Jimbo has taken on the task of photographing all the "Welcome to (Insert Your State Here)" signs (as you may have noticed from his earlier post). Today we got a bonus and a let down.
The bonus was that the unexpected venture to the Creation museum took us into the very northernmost tip of Kentucky so we got an extra sign.
The disappointment was that we never got welcomed into Illinois. There was a "Welcome to Chicago" sign that Jim refused to snap (on principle, I think) but the state of Illinois never welcomed us. I believe that you can hear us complaining about briefly on the audio podcast that Jim is putting up.
I have put Jim in charge of the media postings so don't expect any pictures, movies, or audio from me. I'll be contributing (most of the video will probably be me) but he'll do the editing and posting. Today we felt really technologically superior to almost everyone else on the road because, as I was driving, Jim was busily working on editing the new audio and video podcasts (expect them soon, if he hasn't posted them already).
Last thing that we wanted to mention was the strange things that we are overhearing as we sit here in the tent working on our laptops. There is a family two tents over and the kid, Kevin, is real loud and excitable. Not long ago we also hear weird moaning sounds and thought maybe that one of the kids was crying. Shortly thereafter we realized that the noises were actually coming from the tent next door and that they were not noises of displeasure coming from a child. There is clearly a couple next door having a grand old time.
Ah, the joys of camping.
The bonus was that the unexpected venture to the Creation museum took us into the very northernmost tip of Kentucky so we got an extra sign.
The disappointment was that we never got welcomed into Illinois. There was a "Welcome to Chicago" sign that Jim refused to snap (on principle, I think) but the state of Illinois never welcomed us. I believe that you can hear us complaining about briefly on the audio podcast that Jim is putting up.
I have put Jim in charge of the media postings so don't expect any pictures, movies, or audio from me. I'll be contributing (most of the video will probably be me) but he'll do the editing and posting. Today we felt really technologically superior to almost everyone else on the road because, as I was driving, Jim was busily working on editing the new audio and video podcasts (expect them soon, if he hasn't posted them already).
Last thing that we wanted to mention was the strange things that we are overhearing as we sit here in the tent working on our laptops. There is a family two tents over and the kid, Kevin, is real loud and excitable. Not long ago we also hear weird moaning sounds and thought maybe that one of the kids was crying. Shortly thereafter we realized that the noises were actually coming from the tent next door and that they were not noises of displeasure coming from a child. There is clearly a couple next door having a grand old time.
Ah, the joys of camping.
Podcast Three - Baroque Chicago
Wherein Trefor and I have a noisy and ill-recorded dialogue pertaining to the baroque music we listened to last night, sandwiched by said music.
Link
Link
Sign From God
Just wanted to point out a couple of details that I thought were important about the trip to the Creation museum.
We saw the sign for the Creation museum on the road and had not originally planned to go there (unlike the incredible hot sauce festival). I think this makes it the first truly roadside piece of our trip. An important milestone I think.
Also, Jim did not convey in his post how worried I was about not making it to our campsite on time. We found out while we were at the hot sauce festival that the check-in here at Chicago Northwest KOA is 9pm. We were cutting it kind of close because the Creation museum was about a half hour away from the festival and then we had the five and half/six hour drive up to Chicago. At about 8.30 (according to the clock in the cruiser) I flipped open my phone to make a quick call and I was about to have Jim call the campsite but I noticed that the phone read 7.30. We had plenty of time to reach the campsite! We had changed timezones when we crossed into the northwest piece of Indiana (I just checked the timezone map, weird breakdown).
We like to think that God actually changed time by an hour for us. As a reward for laying down $36 for His museum. Thanks God.
We saw the sign for the Creation museum on the road and had not originally planned to go there (unlike the incredible hot sauce festival). I think this makes it the first truly roadside piece of our trip. An important milestone I think.
Also, Jim did not convey in his post how worried I was about not making it to our campsite on time. We found out while we were at the hot sauce festival that the check-in here at Chicago Northwest KOA is 9pm. We were cutting it kind of close because the Creation museum was about a half hour away from the festival and then we had the five and half/six hour drive up to Chicago. At about 8.30 (according to the clock in the cruiser) I flipped open my phone to make a quick call and I was about to have Jim call the campsite but I noticed that the phone read 7.30. We had plenty of time to reach the campsite! We had changed timezones when we crossed into the northwest piece of Indiana (I just checked the timezone map, weird breakdown).
We like to think that God actually changed time by an hour for us. As a reward for laying down $36 for His museum. Thanks God.
Day number amazing
Wow. Awesome.
You should be jealous.
We had a day.
Boy-diggity.
Our morning was brief but nice. Breakfast at Karen's: eggs and fresh vegetables and juice and toast. She then gave us some homemade pesto and fresh tomatoes and sent us on our way. Our way was out to a hot sauce festival in a place called Jungle Jim's, which is the most extravagantly absurd grocery store I've ever seen. They have sections for various countries and a huge cheese selection and singing animatronics, including a band made of General Mills cereal pushers.
The festival was wonderful. We tried a great many sauces. Several of which were uncomfortably hot. Trefor definitely got the worst of the intense heat, and therefore the best bragging rights, with an innocently labeled bottle that took him down for quite some time. There were many chilis and salsas and sauces and two crafty teenage girls selling lemonade. We each took home two bottles of Flavor Before Fire sauce (two for five, hot and atomic), and Trefor also got something called (I believe) Lucifer's Blood. We split a bottle of apple hot sauce which was not too hot but delicious. We intend to throw some on ice cream at a later time in the trip.
Leaving the festival we decided to run over to the Creation Museum, which we had seen a billboard for driving into Cincinnati. We weren't sure if we'd have enough time to get there, see it, and make it to our Chicago campsite in time to check in. But we decided to do it anyway. Worth the risk. So we headed over. It was incredible. And I mean that in the most literal sense. It was eighteen dollars apiece (with discount for filling out a form telling them where we live) to get in, followed by an enormous line of people. It seems that the Creation Museum can't handle its own popularity. There were a bunch of families and dozens of church groups and Trefor and I. They had some great displays. Animatronics and live finches and a chameleon. The first half of the museum (which is essentially a long twisting hallway) was totally packed. In the middle was a video ("The Sixth Day": an absurdly dramatic reading of the beginning of Genesis), and after that it was a thick but manageable crowd. We split up, mostly unintentionally, and I got pretty far ahead of Trefor, but I got some nice pictures and he shot a bunch of great video. It was an enlightening experience. For instance: fossils? Made by Noah's flood.
We then drove to (and through) Chicago, and made it to our campsite shortly before they shut down. We set up the tent and had a dinner of pesto and tomato sandwiches (delicious, thank you) and we are now sitting in the tent using the internet. Because that is camping now. We're maybe ten feet from the next tent and twenty from a playground and there are fireworks going off outside. It's wonderful. All day has been wonderful. Incidentally, the tent we are in is made for two people, but the two people it was made for are more intimate than Trefor and I are. It's amusing to see our tiny tent beside the behemoth one lot over.
I'm going to go sit on the swings and maybe take some pictures of the campgrounds. Also maybe eventually sleep.
You should be jealous.
We had a day.
Boy-diggity.
Our morning was brief but nice. Breakfast at Karen's: eggs and fresh vegetables and juice and toast. She then gave us some homemade pesto and fresh tomatoes and sent us on our way. Our way was out to a hot sauce festival in a place called Jungle Jim's, which is the most extravagantly absurd grocery store I've ever seen. They have sections for various countries and a huge cheese selection and singing animatronics, including a band made of General Mills cereal pushers.
The festival was wonderful. We tried a great many sauces. Several of which were uncomfortably hot. Trefor definitely got the worst of the intense heat, and therefore the best bragging rights, with an innocently labeled bottle that took him down for quite some time. There were many chilis and salsas and sauces and two crafty teenage girls selling lemonade. We each took home two bottles of Flavor Before Fire sauce (two for five, hot and atomic), and Trefor also got something called (I believe) Lucifer's Blood. We split a bottle of apple hot sauce which was not too hot but delicious. We intend to throw some on ice cream at a later time in the trip.
Leaving the festival we decided to run over to the Creation Museum, which we had seen a billboard for driving into Cincinnati. We weren't sure if we'd have enough time to get there, see it, and make it to our Chicago campsite in time to check in. But we decided to do it anyway. Worth the risk. So we headed over. It was incredible. And I mean that in the most literal sense. It was eighteen dollars apiece (with discount for filling out a form telling them where we live) to get in, followed by an enormous line of people. It seems that the Creation Museum can't handle its own popularity. There were a bunch of families and dozens of church groups and Trefor and I. They had some great displays. Animatronics and live finches and a chameleon. The first half of the museum (which is essentially a long twisting hallway) was totally packed. In the middle was a video ("The Sixth Day": an absurdly dramatic reading of the beginning of Genesis), and after that it was a thick but manageable crowd. We split up, mostly unintentionally, and I got pretty far ahead of Trefor, but I got some nice pictures and he shot a bunch of great video. It was an enlightening experience. For instance: fossils? Made by Noah's flood.
We then drove to (and through) Chicago, and made it to our campsite shortly before they shut down. We set up the tent and had a dinner of pesto and tomato sandwiches (delicious, thank you) and we are now sitting in the tent using the internet. Because that is camping now. We're maybe ten feet from the next tent and twenty from a playground and there are fireworks going off outside. It's wonderful. All day has been wonderful. Incidentally, the tent we are in is made for two people, but the two people it was made for are more intimate than Trefor and I are. It's amusing to see our tiny tent beside the behemoth one lot over.
I'm going to go sit on the swings and maybe take some pictures of the campgrounds. Also maybe eventually sleep.
A day in pictures
Can I even do this?
I am giving up all sleep to bring you pictures.
We had a great day today. And we haven't even gotten to the exciting stuff yet. Trefor has already given you a rundown and told me I can't podcast until tomorrow, so all that's left is some photos for you. Here we go:
Us with the car, prepared to leave DC:
A rundown of states we drove through today:
Sideling Hill, home of the Sideling Hill Exhibit Center:
We pulled off the highway into a shopping plaza for lunch and gas, and I noticed that the shopping cart corral sign in front of us wasn't an image of a shopping cart at all, but actually a really cute upside-down frog:
Karen, who we are staying with, is wonderful. She brought us out to her baroque music ensemble and they were great. I took a couple pictures, but nothing too interesting in the interest of not being intrusive. I'll have a sample of music for you later. This is Karen and a couple of the other women. The one in the back with the viol was super-feisty and a gem to talk to:
Karen also has a great house:
And beautiful gardens:
And the cutest dog (who really wanted to get in the blog):
I'm uploading all the pictures in higher quality to flickr, so if you want to see them larger, or see the couple others I'm ignoring, feel free to look there.
I am giving up all sleep to bring you pictures.
We had a great day today. And we haven't even gotten to the exciting stuff yet. Trefor has already given you a rundown and told me I can't podcast until tomorrow, so all that's left is some photos for you. Here we go:
Us with the car, prepared to leave DC:
A rundown of states we drove through today:
Sideling Hill, home of the Sideling Hill Exhibit Center:
We pulled off the highway into a shopping plaza for lunch and gas, and I noticed that the shopping cart corral sign in front of us wasn't an image of a shopping cart at all, but actually a really cute upside-down frog:
Karen, who we are staying with, is wonderful. She brought us out to her baroque music ensemble and they were great. I took a couple pictures, but nothing too interesting in the interest of not being intrusive. I'll have a sample of music for you later. This is Karen and a couple of the other women. The one in the back with the viol was super-feisty and a gem to talk to:
Karen also has a great house:
And beautiful gardens:
And the cutest dog (who really wanted to get in the blog):
I'm uploading all the pictures in higher quality to flickr, so if you want to see them larger, or see the couple others I'm ignoring, feel free to look there.
Friday, August 3
And Away We Go...
Awesome first day.
Beautiful drive from Virginia to Cincinnati. We had super short, super intense rain shower for about fifteen minutes this afternoon but otherwise it was clear skies and clear sailing. There was almost no traffic. If only the whole trip would be this easy!
We saw what I believe is going to be the first of many small disappointing (for you) incredibles. Around noon we crested a hill in Maryland just before exit 33 on Rt. 68 and saw a sign for the Ark of Safety Church. There was a giant metal frame nearby with a sign that read "Noah's Ark Being Rebuilt Here." As I said, incredible. But we were past it too fast to snap a photo so you all don't get to see it.
We arrived at my aunt Karen's house here in Cincinnati about 6:30 and had a quick dinner (made and eaten in under half an hour!) then were whisked away to her Friday night Renaissance music practice. The small group of music lovers played for a couple of hours so we sat and relaxed on our first night to tunes from a couple of hundred years ago. The group consisted of four recorders, a flute, a bass viol, and a harpsichord. I love that there are places in our country where people just decide to get together on a Friday night and play Purcell in a friend's living room.
Beautiful drive from Virginia to Cincinnati. We had super short, super intense rain shower for about fifteen minutes this afternoon but otherwise it was clear skies and clear sailing. There was almost no traffic. If only the whole trip would be this easy!
We saw what I believe is going to be the first of many small disappointing (for you) incredibles. Around noon we crested a hill in Maryland just before exit 33 on Rt. 68 and saw a sign for the Ark of Safety Church. There was a giant metal frame nearby with a sign that read "Noah's Ark Being Rebuilt Here." As I said, incredible. But we were past it too fast to snap a photo so you all don't get to see it.
We arrived at my aunt Karen's house here in Cincinnati about 6:30 and had a quick dinner (made and eaten in under half an hour!) then were whisked away to her Friday night Renaissance music practice. The small group of music lovers played for a couple of hours so we sat and relaxed on our first night to tunes from a couple of hundred years ago. The group consisted of four recorders, a flute, a bass viol, and a harpsichord. I love that there are places in our country where people just decide to get together on a Friday night and play Purcell in a friend's living room.
Thursday, August 2
Planning is intense
A decision has been made (I am posting near-constantly now because I am afraid I will fail to once the trip begins and I want to encourage good habits).
We just discovered that we are in Deadwood in the middle of the Sturgis Bike Rally, which should be incredible. We are going to not book lodging and bank on our ability to sleep in a bike tent city.
Dangerous. But exciting.
We just discovered that we are in Deadwood in the middle of the Sturgis Bike Rally, which should be incredible. We are going to not book lodging and bank on our ability to sleep in a bike tent city.
Dangerous. But exciting.
I Blag Therefore I Am
Just tooting the blagosphere horn to let everyone know that I will also be posting here.
We are still busily working on organizing the trip so there isn't much to report. Jim told me that I should come post something just to make sure I knew how. So, now that part is done...only about fifty more things to do...
We are still busily working on organizing the trip so there isn't much to report. Jim told me that I should come post something just to make sure I knew how. So, now that part is done...only about fifty more things to do...
Our itinerary, as of right now
This is our driving plan. We have a giant list of things to look at and walk into and touch and talk to, but I won't expound upon those until we've done them.
August 3: Washington, DC to Cincinnati, OH
August 4: Cincinnati to Chicago, IL
August 5: Chicago
August 6: Chicago to St. Paul, MN
August 7: St. Paul to Deadwood, SD
August 8: Deadwood
August 9: Deadwood to Deer Lodge, MT
August 10: Deer Lodge to Hell's Canyon, OR/ID
August 11: Hell's Canyon
August 12: Hell's Canyon
August 13: Hell's Canyon to Cascade Locks, OR
August 14: Cascade Locks to Gold Hill, OR
August 15: Gold Hill to San Francisco, CA
August 16: San Francisco
August 17: San Francisco
August 18: San Francisco to the Mojave Desert, CA
August 19: the Mojave Desert to Las Vegas, NV
August 20: Las Vegas to Holbrook, AZ
August 21: Holbrook to Amarillo, TX
August 22: Amarillo to Tulsa, OK
August 23: Tulsa to Branson, MO
August 24: Branson
August 25: Branson to Nashville, TN
August 26: Nashville to Washington
August 3: Washington, DC to Cincinnati, OH
August 4: Cincinnati to Chicago, IL
August 5: Chicago
August 6: Chicago to St. Paul, MN
August 7: St. Paul to Deadwood, SD
August 8: Deadwood
August 9: Deadwood to Deer Lodge, MT
August 10: Deer Lodge to Hell's Canyon, OR/ID
August 11: Hell's Canyon
August 12: Hell's Canyon
August 13: Hell's Canyon to Cascade Locks, OR
August 14: Cascade Locks to Gold Hill, OR
August 15: Gold Hill to San Francisco, CA
August 16: San Francisco
August 17: San Francisco
August 18: San Francisco to the Mojave Desert, CA
August 19: the Mojave Desert to Las Vegas, NV
August 20: Las Vegas to Holbrook, AZ
August 21: Holbrook to Amarillo, TX
August 22: Amarillo to Tulsa, OK
August 23: Tulsa to Branson, MO
August 24: Branson
August 25: Branson to Nashville, TN
August 26: Nashville to Washington
A Word of Explanation
I am Jim.
My friend is Trefor.
We have decided to go on an Americana Blitz.
We want to see what this grand country of ours has to offer us, and we want to do it fast.
Over the course of the next three weeks or so we intend to drive from DC to California and back and get a taste of everything in the middle, all while spending as little money as possible.
This blog will be an outlet for us to express out interest in America and our inevitable eventual distaste for one another and the act of driving. Also, assuming I learn (in the next couple hours) how to do it, we will have some video podcasts for you all as well.
The blog is also important because by the time we're finished I expect that I won't be able to remember much of anything that happened without assistance.
We won't have internet access frequently, so the updates may be sporadic and clumpy. Likewise, we'll be quite busy, so they may be short. I make no promises. Except this: we love you.
My friend is Trefor.
We have decided to go on an Americana Blitz.
We want to see what this grand country of ours has to offer us, and we want to do it fast.
Over the course of the next three weeks or so we intend to drive from DC to California and back and get a taste of everything in the middle, all while spending as little money as possible.
This blog will be an outlet for us to express out interest in America and our inevitable eventual distaste for one another and the act of driving. Also, assuming I learn (in the next couple hours) how to do it, we will have some video podcasts for you all as well.
The blog is also important because by the time we're finished I expect that I won't be able to remember much of anything that happened without assistance.
We won't have internet access frequently, so the updates may be sporadic and clumpy. Likewise, we'll be quite busy, so they may be short. I make no promises. Except this: we love you.
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