One Week Down

By

The drive from Oklahoma to Arizona was long, but interesting.  I encountered dramatic storms, construction traffic, and an ever-changing climate and terrain.


On Thursday, I crossed the border from New Mexico into Arizona.  Once I crossed the state line, I spotted my first saguaro cactus which dots the roadside like pine trees in the northeast.


I checked into my hotel and parked the car/trailer so I could settle in for a couple of days in Tempe.  Patrick and Amelia picked me up so we could go get some dinner.

On Friday morning, we met as early as we could muster to unload the trailer before the stifling Arizona heat could make such work intolerable.  I unloaded the trailer and moved boxes to the bottom of the stairs and Patrick lugged everything to his third floor apartment.  Amelia pitched in where she could, but those boxes were packed pretty heavy, and some of them were large and/or awkward.

With the back of the car empty and the trailer emptied of everything except the motorcycle, we started to look for a way to get the bike down to the ground.  Even with a very low deck, the trailer was just a little too high to just drop the bike to the ground.  While we had been unloading, another moving truck pulled in to move someone into another apartment.  They offered their help "for a fee" and we had a good laugh, but when they saw us discussing options for the motorcycle they offered again.  We asked if they had a ramp and sure enough they did!  They brought it over and the three of them rolled the bike right out of the trailer.  Mission accomplished.  We thanked them with a cash tip and a handshake and I took the trailer around the corner to return it. (The U-haul station was literally right next door.)

Patrick's stuff is now in his apartment which is now dominated by bikes, motorcycle gear, and guitars (and a few more clothes).

Once the work was done, we each went to our places for showers and fresh clothes and then reconvened to take care of some things that Patrick wanted some help with while I was in town.  For lunch, we stopped at Santa Madre Taco Shop.  I thought a lunch place called Blessed Mother was a good way to celebrate the successful cross-country journey of his mother with the rest of his belongings.  (Although I'm guessing I was not the Blessed Mother they had in mind when they named the shop. :D)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How quickly it turns.

By
Image
As long as I'm in Montana, I might as well be productive. I met with our draftsman in Billings to make some changes to the exterior of the house plan and talk about some interior changes.  Once I was done there I was able to schedule a meeting with our builder to meet at the property to discuss house placement and orientation on the lot.  Joining us was our excavator. As I drove from Billings to Absarokee (pronounced ub-ZOR-kee), I thought I would document how long it takes to get from the highway to our property.  No sooner had I hit the stopwatch, I encountered an obstacle...one of Montana's (and the west in general) extremely long freight trains.     A few minutes down the road (after the train passed and I could make my turn) I cross the Yellowstone River.  This river runs straight through Livingston (where we will live while we build the house) as well. In Vermont, we had an art installation known as The Whale Tails.  In Absarokee we have a tall white cross.  I haven't
Read more

Surprise!

By
Image
 Life in Grand Rapids is, well, grand.  Great conversation, lots of room to spread out, space for an office, big windows for views of the outside, yummy food, dogs to pet, and a completely different pace from what December and January were. To break up all that monotony ☺ I decided it was time for a road trip.  I could meet with the draftsman helping us bring our home design dream into reality, I could wrap up some business at the bank, and I could visit family. Katherine and I hit the road on Thursday. On Friday, we arrived in Livingston Montana and surprised everyone.  The drive was lovely.  Time with Katherine was fun.  And the plan was a success! On our way to Livingston, we drove through Billings and would pass right by Absarokee.  Since we were good for time, we decided to stop and see the property on Plenty Coups Road.  For Katherine, this was the first time seeing the place where our house would go.  I'm only sorry that pictures don't accurately convey how beautiful and
Read more

Calm after the storm

By
Image
For weeks (actually months) we have been sorting, packing, pitching, selling, and pitching some more.  For the last two days those efforts were kicked into high gear as the movers arrived to load all that hard work into their truck and haul it away.  Once they were gone and the house was clean and the car loaded with stuff we need for the winter, and our final farewell was said, the urgency of the day was past.  That constant driving to fill one more dumpster, load one more box, or say good bye to one more friend lifted like a fog when the sun rises. Today, Katherine and I had a truly leisurely start to the day.  Eventually, I went out to run some final errands, fill the car with gas, and buy a little driving food.  As I drove around town I realized that I felt oddly disconnected.  These roads, the buildings, the views as I drove around town were very familiar yet somehow they feel foreign to me now.  "My" church is now just a building.  The people in it are and always will b
Read more