My favorite thing about driving across the country with someone is you get to hear stories. Stories you wouldn't normally hear seeing someone at a dog show, or thru casual email. The Good, the Bad, the Ugly. Ha ha ha.....And the horribly funny.
I told Laura some of my stories and a couple I have only repeated a few times to a few people in my life. The Ugly. She told me many also. The F-ing FUNNY story in particular that I had to think would make a good scene in a movie.
She told me that her father (who bless his soul is still alive), liked to partake in um, alcohol. I had a father also who did such a thing and after my mom died, got into her Firebird (which was now mine, as I had to get to Art Center to go to school) and backed it out of the driveway, mistook the gas for the clutch and flew the car out at high speed across the street to land on the neighbor's brick wall. All I remember is my older brother laughing and saying "You should have seen it!!!!". This was not funny to me as it was my only means of transportation. Luckily I was on break and it could be pulled off the wall and somewhat fixed enough to drive. But, it always had the pushed up rear and drove funky. (I STILL had people wanting to buy it though, as it was a very cool car.) I hated my brother and couldn't deal with my dad and this was the last straw. I moved out shortly after that and lied that I had income to pay my rent just to get away from them.
Laura's story really made me laugh. She said when she was growing up her parents had an RV and they used to go camping a lot in it. Happy little camping family. One day she came home from school and the RV was parked in it's usual spot in the driveway. The only problem with it was the whole side was peeled back like a sardine can and she said you could see the inside. She walked inside the house to get the scoop and her father was passed out on the couch. Apparently they lived near the BART Station in the Bay area and BART was in the process of being built. There was a wall that bordered the road right before their house. The wall went straight, she said, then you made a left turn to go over a bridge to their house. Her father was driving the RV slowly along this road (going straight) and decided to get up and run to the back to grab a beer in the fridge while the RV was still in motion. WTF???? I couldn't even get out of my seat in Winnie fast enough to not kill myself, much less run back to the fridge. I laughed my ass off. This is the kind of stuff that families are made of. Interesting and creative living at it's best.
On to the trip home. All the way thru Kansas it was windy. Really windy. I really loved the rainy, snowy weather. It was more interesting. Kelly Neeley was not too far in front of us. They were in the HUMONGO Toy Hauler RV and somehow made a wrong turn after stopping at a McDonald's. 47 miles later they came to a stop sign and realized this shouldn't be on the Interstate. At close to $4.00 a gallon WHAT FUN!!! 2 hours later, we were close behind, even though they had left the night before. Anyway, we ended up stopping at her house for the night, seeing her beautiful kennel, house, dogs & the prairie she lives on. Pretty. I really enjoyed that night. Full moon and windy. The dogs got to run in a couple of her yards so they were happy about that.
Colorado. Not a lot of big trees where we drove thru, but vast and pretty nevertheless.
The weather was starting up again!!! Yippie!!!!
Going into the Medicine Bow National Forest. I'm feeling another dog walk is due.
Snow fencing. They were all over. Someone please explain.
Laura and Flint waited in Winnie. It was cold but surprisingly non-muddy for the punkies.
Squinty!! I saw a few of these at the CCA! Hahahaha!!!!!!!!! Did I say that??????
Just like the opening scenes of Bonanza! Tirzah's in her position again! Cardiff is winning!! Go Dogs Go!!!!
Back in Winnie and we drove.
And drove.
And drove.
We were getting hungry. Those advertisers.
Ok. Maybe we should Eat Fresh. Out in the middle of nowhere. Like they grow strawberries on the windy prairies.
But, we stopped anyway because they had 50 cent ice cream cones......................yum.
I looked at something to bring home for T.
Instead I made some minimum wage clerk find a certain "Call of the Wild" Wolf sculpture for him. Then we had our ice cream cones. They were huge. Laura thought for sure they'd be 1/2" high. They were like a foot high. Then it started to storm and I thought I'd walk the dogs again and dodge piles of dog shit on my way out to the sage brush. They had fun. I had to clean my Ugg Boots. Ugg.
We're off again. Wyoming is very high. We went over several "passes" of 7200+ feet and you don't know you're that high because the whole state is high and the grades are LONG and gradual. This one pass was more obvious. At lot of the times I knew we were climbing was only when Winnie switched gears. Winnie was a machine.
Love the light.
And the mountains.
More pretty lighting. Coming into Coalville, Utah.
Again, Coalville, where we spent the first night in the snow. I had no idea what it looked like there. Very pretty, lots of irrigated land and cows & sheep & fishermen.
Park City, Utah. Missed this on the way out also as that's when the snow started with the crappy wiper blades. That's when I scared Laura.
This is how we felt after 14 hours of driving. Psychedelic. Dinner in Montego Bay in Bendover, wait, Wendover, NV at 10:30 at night. Soleil couldn't pee on the dirt, so later I took her over to the fake grass in front of the casino and she liked that. What bladders they have. I'd take one of my bitch's bladders in a heart beat. Thank God for Winnie. But I always stopped the RV before leaving my seat.
Somewhere in Nevada. 3 or so hours from home. Except for Coalville, we started to see green. By the time I got home I felt like I was in a Photoshop photo ~ our property is sooooooooo vibrant and lush!!!!!
This is my birthday present from Sue Larson. I just love it!! It looks like what I see outside my window everyday! Thank you AGAIN Sue for taking all of the photos of my dogs and my present!!
Also, for Secret Service for all of her photos. She's a great bucket bitch too and she is the reason I brought more wine home than when I started. I miss my Southern California friends.
And Laura for the laughs and displaying my artwork in her booth. And, for getting me stuff while we drove so I didn't have to get it myself........and taking almost all of the photos of the country. I really appreciated that!!
And for T for taking care of SeaB & Lana and 2 horses on meds and telling me how cute our baby is and how she shed out (she did) and that SeaB slept on my pillow every night. I love you T!!!!!! You are the bomb!!
And, last but not least.......
Cardiff's Trophy & beautiful blue rosette!
Funna Funna Funna!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The End for another year!!!!
