Bike Trip Tuesday #7-Little Bikes on the Prairie

When we last left our group of cyclists they were entertaining themselves by using a tape measure to determine the winner of a contest....no you pervs, they weren't measuring THAT! It was their bellies, remember?



From Minnesota we moved on to South Dakota where we had our first up close and personal experience with the prairies. Now if you've grown up surrounded by trees (keep in mind I come from Pennsylvania, which means Penn's woods, ergo lotsa trees) it is a rather amazing thing to suddenly be in country where the only shade is under a cow. First I was once again stunned by a view my eye simply could not take in, an endless sea of grasses and grains. Oh yeah! O beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain...NOW I get it! All you had to do was find a slight hill and you could watch the wind ripple the waves across the prairie. It really was a magnificent sight.



That being said, SD was one of the most difficult weeks for the cyclists. Believe it or not, cycling across the continent is not an entirely unheard of activity. It's just that the vast majority of cyclists travel from west to east so they are moving along with the currents of the Jet Stream. We were going 'backwards' and SD is where folks could really feel the work of moving against prevailing winds. It was wearying for them and the intense sun and 90+ heat did not help matters. During the trek across SD several of the cyclists took turns having Gus pedal their bikes (he'd gotten the itch AND we were seriously getting on each other's nerves by then) while they rode with me in the car. We also encountered our first SD traffic jam!


If you recall, the car was a Chevy Citation, not exactly luxury cruising but there was no pedalling involved so it was a break. There was also no AC involved so it was still beastly hot. As I said, SD is where we first encountered the vastness of land. It's also where we first discovered the sparseness of population. It was nothing to drive 50-100 miles between towns of 300 people, interminable prairie between them. One particularly oven like day Kristen was riding with me and we were desperate for a break from the heat. We decided that at the first farmhouse with trees next to the road we were going to stop and ask if we could just sit under the tree for some shade, no other request. We drove on for rather a while and finally spotted a place with a couple of kids playing in the yard and we pulled over to ask for one of their parents. They brought their mother out and we explained how we were travelling with the group of cyclists and dying for a bit of shade and made our request. Mom eyed us a little bit saw the PA license plate and decided that would be ok. We thanked her profusely and sat down in a tiny slice of blissful shade. The kids kept playing, occasionally looking over to see if they had an audience in us, then slowly started coming over to talk.



After a little conversation, the girl asked if we'd like a bit to drink. We were parched but declined, not wanting to ask anymore than we already had. She insisted and brought back a couple tall glasses loaded with ice. ICE!!!! Man, that was a luxury. Even with a cooler, it didn't seem to keep long in the car. After a while, Mom came back out to check on all of us and we sat and chatted about where we were headed. We told her the plans long and short term. She was a little concerned about where we planned to stop for the night and informed us if at all possible it would be best if we pushed a bit farther to find a place with more available to us. We agreed that maybe we should alter our course but we'd need to tell the cyclists. The way we communicated where we'd be staying in those pre-cellphone days was by leaving notes on the first sign into whatever town we'd agreed to stop in for the night. Gus and I would find lodgings go back to the town limits and tack up a note saying where to find us. Each cyclist would put a tick mark on the note as they came into town and the last person would take the note down. Knowing how exhausted the cyclists were already, Kristen and I didn't want to make a unilateral decision. We asked Mom if we could just stick around until the first wave of friends came through so we could consult with them, make sure they understood the situation. She said that was fine and invited us to come inside the house and enjoy the blessed AC. We offered to help around the house if there was anything we could do for her. She declined.

We talked the afternoon away and finally the first wave of exhausted riders came through and the alterations to plans were agreed upon. At this point, Mom not only invited, she all but demanded we stay for dinner. Again, I knew what it was to feed this hungry mob and I could not ask that of anyone. She told me that was nonsense and pulled out a mountain of hamburger and began grilling. She grilled as long as the cyclists ate and kept insisting we have more. During dinner she said she was calling her friend from the local newspaper over to meet us. I guess we were big news in that part of the world. We helped her clean up and I asked if I could please leave some money with her to help pay for all that food. She'd hear none of that. The friend came, took pictures, and interviewed us. Mom took the location of what would be our first mail drop in Wyoming and promised to send us copies of the paper. We thanked her and pulled out, once again amazed by the incredibly gracious generosity a complete stranger had shown us all.



South Dakota had some other unique stops and sights. One morning at dawn we drove west toward the Badlands. Seeing the sandstone mountains lit up by the rising sun behind us was unspeakably beautiful and no picture I took begins to do justice to the shifting electric colors. We spent a couple nights camped out in a town park and later had people tell us that was a terribly dangerous place to have slept. We spent another night in the home of a priest on a reservation. He was quite an amusing character. South Dakota is also where those of us from the east coast began to have our eyes opened to the reality for Native Americans, the discrimination, racism and poverty that occurs. It's just not an issue that's really understood well on the east coast because there aren't large populations of Native Americans here.



Being able to travel slowly across the country and meet and observe people provided an education about geography and culture than nothing else could have. Even the perspectives on trees was an education. I met one lady who said she had lived 'back east' for a while and she just had to return to the prairie because she felt so claustrophobic being closed in on by all the trees in Pennsylvania and New York. By that time I was just aching for a forest so it was with much joy that we entered the Black Hills National Forest and I got my 'tree fix' as we visited Mt. Rushmore.

At the intersection of dead fish, textiles, and Jesus

Last week, I was a busy girl who didn't get around to visit you all very much. Why? I was busy coming up with and executing outrageous arts & crafts projects to cause alarm during our church's annual Vacation Bible School. Last year I jokingly suggested having the kids make penis gourds to acknowledge our visitors from Papua New Guinea. They called my bluff and presented me with my very own to keep forever and ever. This year I just decided to stick with dead fish and tie dyeing with the kids. No burnt match crosses or Bible verse bookmarks for this crafty lady. I have to entertain myself when I plan this stuff because if I am not enthused about it there ain't no way the kids will be.

So first off, here I am mixing up my concoction of tie dye brew chemicals after the kids have dumped their tied up doo rags into the bucket. This stuff has to be stirred forever and a day so we used child labor and enthusiasm for that dull bit and they all were happy to be a part of the process. I took home a couple buckets of dye wet rags and washed them all up that night.

They were REALLY happy when I brought back their washed doo-rags the next day and they saw all the groovy designs that came out. I let them each pick one of 4 patterns, stripes, circles, swirls, or scrunches. I was tickled with how well it went and the kids were happy. Score!

Next we have here fish print t-shirts. Yes, real fish covered in real paint and printed onto real t-shirts.

There were one or two who were kind of skeeved out by the process but none to the extent that they refused to participate.

I did warn the kids ahead of time that any terrorizing of neighbors with dead fish or shoving at the tables or general flinging of paint and wet shirts would result in the loss of craft time for the day. No one wanted to escape dead fish enough to resort to bad behavior. Several were digging the various anatomical fish bits as they showed up on the t-shirts. It's art! It's science! It's fun!

Even though I was pretty strict about what I wouldn't tolerate during fish painting day I'm still goofy enough to pause and make fish lips with the kids.

Friday 55 & Da Count: Good Vibrations

I did another Friday 55 on this painting before but I just keep coming back to this image....so here's another one to go with it.

*Egon Schiele's 'Embrace'

I close my eyes and taste your kiss.

My head rests against your hand.

I arch toward your lips

as they travel my body.

I feel the breeze,

open my eyes to the sunlight falling over us

through the canopy of leaves.

I see your face,

feel your embrace,

and know love.

Goodthomas did a meme where he had to share 5 ways he revs his vibrations. Now if ever there was a meme to have an awful lot of fun with this is it so I tagged myself and I am using it as springboard for Da Count.

Music: I have to agree with this part of his list. I love music. I love listening. I love singing along (most people don't enjoy this part of my personal vibrations). I love dancing whether on a real dance floor or in my kitchen. It soothes me, energizes me, makes me dream.

Fresh batteries: Nuff said *wink wink*

The woods or a little known beach: There is something about being surrounded by nature that calms me yet makes me feel alive. It clears my head.

Hugs and Kisses, etc...: Mmmmmm......I seriously do not understand how anyone can not enjoy a nice warm hug and a tender kiss and whatever it leads to.

Laughter: If I am angry or feeling blue make me laugh and life looks so much brighter. I've found it works well for my son too, if I can make the boy laugh, all is right in his world. I also have this tendency to laugh at times when others find it not such a good time. My best friend and I cannot sit together in church, my kids scold me for giggling too much with her. I've also had the pastor scowl at me from the pulpit but that just makes me want to snort out loud. I am telling you though, at my grandmother's funeral, laughter was the only way I endured it.

Chocolate: I swear I can almost feel all the fabulous post orgasmic brain chemicals release into my bloodstream when I am stressed (yeah, according to studies sex and chocolate cause the same set of brain chemicals to be released) and the chocolate lays on my tongue and just begins to melt...mmmmm......It's not a high rev vibe, just that low, constant, and very pleasant hum....

Hhmm, I am realizing that energize/soothe thing is pretty much the definition of good vibrations for me.

Ok if you'll excuse me, Prince's 'Kiss' just came on my iPod, I just recharged my batteries, and I have some fabu chocolate. Meet me for a hike in the woods later?*giggles*

HNT-Mini Vacation

Earlier this week I shared about my weekend getaway and how therapeutic it was. It felt good to stroll down to the beach and sit my butt down with a good book. When I got overly warm I walked my butt out into the water and floated along happily. Just like last year though I managed to forget sunblock on one spot. How do ya like them pink leggies? Pass the aloe.

Oh and since I am feeling so relaxed and therefore generous here's a bonus shot of me observing the apres swim one garment rule...of course it is tie dyed......

HHNT

It's Schmoozy, Creative AND Thoughtful!

Out there in a blogosphere exists a Dorky Dad who has the internet's #1 site for Lobster Panties, a man who does even crazier things to memes than I do, a man who when he perceives injustice is forced to add a paragraph in my defense and then award me this....

Now I am supposed to award 5 other people with this glorious award for the ability to generate interactions and increasing social interaction on the web with their fabulously schmoozerific ways. I know about half the blogosphere has been awarded this thing already and YOU may already be a winner...simply agree to buy 12 tie dye shirts from me in the next 6 months for 24 easy monthly installments of $49.95 to be entered in the sweepstakes. No? Ok, I'll just get on with it then...

Gman has got to be the schmooziest schmoozer going. He's been blogging less than a year and already seems to know everyone and all about them. His comment section is like a party every day.

Dan is another schmoozer extraordinaire. The guy is just hilarious and even though he posts infrequently he gets absurdly high numbers of comments and RESPONDS to them...much to the chagrin of his cat.

Susie is the queen of schmooze. I find a new blog to read and I often find she has already been there or follows close behind. She and Mr. Ratburn do some of the most fun-loving HNTs I've ever seen.

Top Cat who is just such a welcoming fellow he makes everyone feel comfortable at his place. He'd certainly get special mention below as a thoughtful blogger too.

Lecram who also qualifies for the creative blogger award below because how can you NOT qualify when you write a musical about frogs? But he's also all about promoting arts and artists and getting the word out for artistic types.

Then I saw that Myutopia awarded me as a Thoughtful and Creative Blogger and I am supposed to give those out to 5 people.

You know...I couldn't read any of you if I didn't see a sense of thoughtfulness in you and I'm not going to try to narrow it down any further.

James has to get this partly because he is a tremendous writer. He also managed to get me to read a genre I never ever thought I would enjoy, horror. He's put up some hard punching vignettes and teased us with beginnings to novels. I was privileged enough to read one of his unpublished full novels about vampires and LOVED it. This is no small thing since I swore off vampire books when I was 10 and read one that kept me up with nightmares for days after!

Mark is another horror writer who astonishes me. He is also one of the silliest guys doing HNT. He comes up with extended series involving Darth Tater and the Spudtroopers. It is gut busting funny. They way he marvels over his little boy makes me smile a mile wide too.

Keyser Soze has been having blog problems lately but he is a gifted musician. He paints and writes too so he hits just about every way a person can be artistically creative. If that doesn't qualify him I don't know what would! I stand in awe of people who are so multi-talented.

Nana-G is a new blogger and in the short time I have been reading her I am simply blown away by her poetic way with words.

Pauline and Cathy get votes too for their writing. Poetry, Friday 55s and short stories fill the blogs of these two gals who just happen to be related to each other. Creativity must run in their family.




And if all that is not good enough, it seems Cooper is not satisfied with the amount of factoids about me here on my own blog. I've done 100 things about me twice. I've done a variation of 8 random facts 4 times already. I think there is enough information about me to make me a trivia category all by myself. 'Yes Alex, I'll take Lime for $500.' Honey, if you think I can be bought you are sadly mistaken... Ok, maybe in doing this meme again I will qualify for the Narcissistic Blogger Award, but Cooper is new and I AM thoughtful so I guess I'd better get creative now too.

1. Blood type is O+. I have been a blood donor since I was 17. I have my 5 gallon pin. I was interrupted by pregnancy, foreign travel, and anti-malarial meds. Finally, they decided I was anemic. I tried to donate for another year and kept getting deferred and haven't been back since. I'm a little bummed by that. Not because I enjoy having large bore needles rammed into my veins but because it is a simple act that can save a life and you know, there are also times when it's not so bad to endure that just so someone checks to make sure you are still living and then feeds you free donuts after it all.

2. Shoe size was 7.5 but after bearing a 9.5 lb baby my feet permanently widened and now I wear an 8.

3. Mother's maiden name has a meaning related to fiddle playing. Father's last name is different but has the same meaning. In spite of this, they did NOT make beautiful music together.

4. Urine samples. When I was preggers the first time I was on bed rest for pre-eclampsia and had to do several 24 hour urine samples, which meant collecting every drop for the day and keeping it in the fridge so it didn't spoil before It could go to the lab. Isn't THAT special? It was even more special to try to aim the pee into a 3 inch diameter opening while working around an 8.5 month pregnant belly. I really wished I could just whip it out like you guys at that point. I used a big funnel instead.

5. Name. In my family, first born daughters get mother's name as middle name.

6. Rank. Yes, If I fail to bathe.

7. Serial Number. L6293. Ok, actually that is military humor combined with extremely arcane librarian humor that I don't really expect anyone to get.

8. Totally random factoid. I love dandelions. A world without them is a world without daily mommy bouquets.


Phew....that's all done...I feel drained. Someone gimme a donut please....

Vacation

Like I said, I bugged out early Friday morning for a trip to the beach. It's a long drive but I only had myself. There was no husband to whine about traffic, no kids to break up arguments between. I meandered along through beautiful countryside avoiding major highways and driving only secondary, sometimes tertiary roads.

I pulled in at the cottage where my dad and step mom were staying and they greeted me happily and without demands...what a novel concept. I had a big smile on my face from the relaxing tour on the way down already and the happiness continued after the greeting and quick unpacking. Had a bite to eat, put on my bathing suit, and we headed off to the beach.

My step mom's sister owns a nearby cottage and there were several other of her family members there the same weekend who joined us on the beach. We pack a cooler of snacks to munch on while the sun sets. My step mom being the generous sort needs to share her snacks with the seagulls too.


Apparently one on the beach has developed quite a sense of territory and entitlement due to SM. The bird sees her coming and rushes up to her with a very hopeful look and waits for her to peel off part of her string cheese to toss to him. He also gets quite irate with anyone else who tries to horn in on the string cheese action and manages to chase them off. SM's nephew wondered what the bird would do at the end of the summer when the string cheese supplier went home for good. I said I could just imagine the poor addicted bird walking back and forth on the beach trembling, wide eyed and desperate, shaking down anyone within wing's length for spare change. SM has clearly only provided a gateway drug for this poor creature who will probably be stealing cheese balls from kids to feed his habit. We also decided he needed a name....Cheddar, which was shortened to Chet. Then I thought maybe he was really a she and should be called Brie. I dunno. Clearly the sun was affecting us all.






We also instituted some rules at the beach. It is vacation after all and isn't laundry a pain in the butt when you get home? Well, let's avoid a big pile and just wear a few clothes as possible. Yes, we could have gone with Lori and Tony's Nudity Rules, but quite honestly I don't really need to see my dad and SM naked and I don't think they really want to see me. So we had the apres swim One Garment Rule. No more, no less than one garment per person was allowed. Here SM is demonstrating her adherence to the rule since she has an unnatural affection for socks even in 90 degree weather..look Ma, no socks (or undies...but no pics of lack of VPL or bras out of respect for SM).




Saturday night Dad and SM treated me to a FABULOUS meal and at a really wonderful restaurant. I just can't say anything bad about the food. It was incredible. Good wine, good food, good conversation. We drove there in Dad's convertible during which time SM quipped that convertible drivers and passengers have a whole new appreciation for what a blow job is. Yes, she really said that. Have I mentioned how much SM makes me laugh and how much she rocks? There's Dad up there driving along and me pondering SM's remark. Hehehe.






It all came to an end too soon but it sure was fun while it lasted there were some other epiphanies during my weekend too...I don't know if it is just the season for it or what....I may or may not write about those later. Regardless, it was quite a perfect weekend. I'm so grateful for the time and for SM's generosity to let me join everyone.

I'm Baaaack.

After this post many people advised a vacation for me. I took that advice and bugged outta here early Friday morning before I even had a chance to post and let you all know. I ran off without my husband or children and spent a weekend with my dad and step mom at the beach where no one made any demands of me. It was glorious. It was a good mental health break but I think I needed a few more days of it.





This week I have to run the crafts program (check the link...go ahead...see what kind of weird stuff I do) at our church's VBS so I will be making rounds to all of your places more slowly than usual. Rest assured I am not going off the deep end, just crazy busy. A fuller report, including pictures from the weekend, will be forthcoming sometime this afternoon.

HNT-Summertime Routine

Well, it's time for hot weather so I just have to be doing this a little bit more often. Not exactly the flexible type of post that was requested, but hey my leg is up on the sink...

HHNT

Bike Trip #6-Weirdness!

Some would say wanting to bicycle across the continent is plenty weird enough but pedalling 70 miles a day in the sun can do even weirder things to your mind. For example, what do you do for fun and to unwind after a long day bicycling? You can't carry a TV. iPods were not around. We were on a tight budget. Heeeeeyyyy....Ya know...When I pull my pants up high then suck my belly in they fall down really low. Oh yeah well, look how far I can puff my belly out? Heck anyone can do that, let me show you how far in I can suck my belly. Anyone have a tape measure? Let's see who can make the biggest/skinniest bellies and who can get the greatest variations in measurements. Yes, you too can hours of endless fun with just a tape measure and your own belly!!! Trish worked as our official measurer since she was a nurse and all. As you see our fattest belly puffer was Mike. Our skinniest belly sucker was Pete. How could their mothers be anything but proud?

Here we have one of Del's ingenuities. Many of the cyclists liked to take a dip whenever they found a water hole they could dunk into. There was a problem of wet clothes though. Sometimes the sweat alone soaked shirts and wadding up wet cloths to stuff into a pannier bag was kind of yucko. Del rigged up his own personal mini wash line on the back of his bike and had no compunction about hanging his undies on it as he pedalled along. In spite of that he was sort of shy in some ways. My sense of humor required female representation on his wash line so one day when he had gone into a store I grabbed one of my bras and quietly pinned it to his wash line. He turned about as red as that background when he discovered it later. Oh, and this pile of crap is all the junk 11 people needed for a bike trip across the USA. THAT is what I shoved into that little car every day, and unloaded every night. May I also point out that I was such an efficient stuff packer that I could still use the rear view mirror.

By now we had crossed Wisconsin and were well into Minnesota. Greg and Mr. Lime took a brief detour from the rest of the group in Minnesota to go way into the north and visit some dear family friends of Mr. Lime while the rest of us took a more southerly route through the state. They camped in odd places along the way and did not always find bathroom facilities where they could wash up. When they got to Lake Superior Greg remembered reading or hearing that in a pinch sand would work well as soap. The two guys...er...'lathered up'...and tried to rinse off but were shocked to find that vigorous rubbing of sand onto one's body really only results in removing several of the top layers of epidermis.



What other adventures will these weird people have as they cruise along the country? Tune in next week...

They got me!!!

Yes, I know it's Tuesday and I owe you tales of Bike Trips, look for that tomorrow, ok? And may I just again thank everyone for the kind comments and emails and for helping a girl find her smile again. In the meantime....

It seems I have been tagged by that 8 random things about yourself meme...thanks, James! This is becoming increasingly difficult since I have done a variation on it several times. Here is a link that contains all of them. Cooper also got me with a different tag to follow.

Ok, 8 random facts...I'm thinking...

1. My physical therapists and massage therapists all have remarked on how very flexible I am, which surprises me. I am considerably less flexible than I once was...I used to be able to put both my feet behind my head at the same time. If I tried to do that now I'm quite sure I'd not only fail but also be paying for it for a month or more.

2. When I was a teenager I remarked in front of my WW2 Navy vet grandfather that I wanted to get a tattoo. He was a very quiet and calm man but I watched his blood boil before he declared tattoos a thing only for drunken sailors NOT young ladies and then removed his shirt to demonstrate his own clear skin. Now that everyone and their sister has a tattoo there is no appeal to me whatsoever. I'll be a rebel by refusing to get one. I was especially vocal in my refusal to get 'Mr Lime's property' inked onto my behind when he made the suggestion. I may have also suggested an 'interesting' placement for a corresponding tattoo on him to emphasize my point. Mwahahaha!

3. My dad offered me the chance to travel to Rwanda with him a couple years after the genocide. I declined on the grounds that I was not so interested in going some place where they tend to hack you to bits if you are the wrong ethnic group. After hearing about his trip though I wish I had gone.

4. I have salt and pepper shakers a friend, who was a Peace Corps volunteer in Botswana, brought me from Malawi.

5. I have no intention of ever moving to Nebraska and here is another reason why. One of these days I will start a formal list of reasons not to move to Nebraska. I have nothing against the good people of Nebraska. I just don't want to live there.

6. Before my wisdom teeth came in I had a big gap in my front teeth. It was good for shooting streams of water and making brid calls during 8th grade algebra so as to distract the dingbat teacher into looking outside the window to find the pretty birdies.

7. Speaking of distractions, in 12th grade public speaking class I had to give a demonstration type speech. I demonstrated how to make a mess. I prepared by filling a trash bag with all the junk on my bedrooom floor. I began by draping a bra over the podium. I continued by tossing stuff from the bag all around the room while I was speaking.

8. I was born on October 12.




Ok, so Cooper is a fairly new blogger who just got tagged for the first time. He was so proud and excited AND he decided to tag me. Ok, how can ya quench that sort of enthusiasm? So according to him I am supposed to play the Wikipedia Game....To play, look up your birthday at the Wikipedia site and write down five events that happened that day in history, two births (besides your own) and one holiday. Then tag five more people....

HISTORICAL EVENTS

539 BC - The army of Cyrus the Great of Persia takes Babylon. Where'd he take it I wonder? Did he put it back when he was finished? Or was it more like taking a bath? Ooooh, or like taking a lover?

1582 - Due to the implementation of the Gregorian calendar this day does not exist in this year in Italy, Poland, Portugal and Spain. Well, I never! The nerve! See if i ever sing a Gregorian chant again!


1609 - "Three Blind Mice" published by London teenage songwriter Thomas Ravenscroft. I don't want to know what this kid did in his spare time if he wrote songs about visually impaired rodents being tormented my vicsious farmwomen.


1681 - A London woman is publicly flogged for the crime of "involving herself in politics." I can think of a few politicians who out to be flogged for all sorts of offenses.


1773 - America's first insane asylum opens for 'Persons of Insane and Disordered Minds' in Virginia. Alright, you all keep quiet now! Hush!


1968 - Equatorial Guinea becomes independent from Spain.



SHARED BIRTHDAYS
1904 - Ding Ling, Chinese writer (d. 1986) I just really liked his name.

1968 - Hugh Jackman, Australian actor and singer. I just think he is really quite delectable.



HOLIDAY
Malawi - Mother's Day. I think my salt and pepper shakers should somehow figure into next year's celebration.


THE TAGS
Anyone born in October
Anyone born on the 12 of their birthmonth
Anyone born in the 1960s
Anyone born on a Tuesday
Anyone born to a redheaded mother

Doing Better

I haven't been carted away in one of these.

Nor have I done anything to get tossed in one of these.

The kindness and all of your encouraging words and emails made me look like one of these....

...well, minus the excess hair and odd nostrils...it's the smile, ya know....

I'd like to say thanks and give you all one of these.

Tired

I'm tired of...

Being left to carry a load by myself.

Disrespectful words.

Bad attitudes.

Ingratitude.

People trying to manipulate me.

Being told whatever is convenient at the time, whether it is true or not.

Demanding things be done NOW.

A lack of a sense of personal responsibility.

A sense of entitlement.


I'm fucking tired of it ALL.

HNT-I Get Dyed With a Little Help From My Friend

It has been said that my fascination with all things tie dyed is bordering on pathological. However, it was also suggested a number of weeks ago in an offhand comment by Jocelyn that I tie dye my eyelashes. Well, that just got the creative juices flowing (no, not the squeeze bottles of dye...though I have been doing that again too) and I took a couple pictures and sent them off to my photoshopping wizard pal, Bsoholic. I had a couple of ideas and he worked his magic on those and then added some of his own twists.

I don't wear make-up but get a load of this eyeshadow! Pretty cool huh?

I know not everyone shares my appreciation of tie dye, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. It's just how I see things.

Color me impressed with Bsoholic's mad skillz!




HHNT!

Weird Side of Gettysburg

On Tuesday the Lime Family took a day trip to Gettysburg. We decided to do the deal where you buy a cassette or CD and follow the map and the recording through the park. It was the first time the darling Limelets had the opportunity to experience the grand history that is Gettysburg. It was as exciting and moving and educational as you would expect such an important site to be, but knowing us you also have to expect some weirdness....Come along for our field trip, won't you?

Nothing weird in this shot. It's just an example of what I find so beautiful about my state, the rolling farmlands. Gettysburg is surrounded by scenes like this. So many of the battlefields were basically on farmland.

Here's something else distinctive in Pennsylvania, a group of Amish or Mennonite folks. I can identify which of those two sects by the buggies they drive. Unfortunately, this was weirdness #1, they came in on an air conditioned tour bus so I can't tell you if the are Amish or Mennonite. They arrived at the Eternal Light Peace Memorial as we were leaving it.

Another person we met at that site was an Irish fellow who participates in US civil War re-enactments in the UK. That quite honestly astonished me and also qualifies as weirdness in my book (although a nice kind). I am so accustomed to Europeans who find the American sense of history laughable since we can't go back 1000 years in recorded time. It was really touching to hear about this fellow's exploits as re-enactor and witness his thrill at being able to come see these sites with his own eyes after having studied them from afar for so long.

Here is the inscription at the base of the Eternal Peace Light Memorial. It reads "Peace Eternal in a Nation United." It was dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt 75 years after the end of the war. It was kind of amazing to think that 1800 veterans from both sides of the conflict attended the dedication just a short time before we entered WW2.

There are lots of low stone walls all over the battlefields. One thing Pennsylvania is noted for besides rolling farmlands is rocky soil. All those nice ice age glaciers blessed us with what Pennsylvania farmers refer to as our most prolific crop...rocks. Here we see one of the casualties of a 95 degree July day in Gettysburg slumped over a battlefield stone wall near the 20th Maine memorial. Just imagine marching or fighting in that kind of heat in a wool uniform, which is what the soldiers did since the battle took place July 1-3, 1863. Come on, kiddo, you can walk around a little while longer.

Here we have a 5 second re-enactment of Pickett's Charge by Mr. Lime and Isaac. Please disregard they are running the wrong way so it would more likely be a retreat than a charge (picky lot aren't you?), have no weapons, and there are only two of them. Isn't revisionist history wonderfully fun?

Of all the minor weirdness we saw at Gettysburg, nothing quite compared to this sight we witnessed at Little Round Top where Brig. General Meade defended the Union position. I dunno, I guess you'd call it Big Round Bottom, but I personally find it in defensible. As I was writing this post I thought of how wonderfully informative RennyBA is in his posts about Norway. I thought, gee it would be nice to do a post of that caliber. Then I realized it was Wednesday, which requires weirdness, and saw this guy in his very special underpants and thought of Simply Me and her fascination with BTExpress's behind and combined information with weirdness and derrieres. See what the heat does to my blogging process?....Warps it terribly! Hope you enjoyed the tour.

Bike Trip Tuesday #5-Going the Extra Mile in Michigan

We'd enjoyed our visit in Canada and now it was back to the USA. Christy's parents had recently moved to Michigan so they were our first stop. They had put out signs and balloons to welcome us. I still remember her mom running down the driveway to hug her and welcome us all when we arrived. After meeting the family it was really obvious to see where Christy's naturally bubbly personality had come from. Her mom and dad and brother were just sweet, hospitable people who could not do enough for all of us. They indulged us in every way they could.


By the time we had reached Michigan we had covered around 1000 miles as a unified group and were really feeling like a single unit. We decided to make matching t-shirts to show visually that we were all one group. We cut stencils and spent all night in Christy's parent's garage hand painting the shirts. Extreme fatigue set in and we were overcome with great silliness that led to the formation of the 'Caveman Dogbashers Club.' The name designated the way we often smelled after pedalling in the hot sun and the need to fend off aggressive dogs with bike pumps when the dogs decided to give chase. A special pocket insignia was designed and added to the t-shirts that obviously fit so very well.




I really have to say the good folks of Michigan were consistently among the most generous and welcoming. As I mentioned, we spent a lot of nights sleeping on church floors. In Alpena we had a hard time finding a church and when we asked the last one, the pastor (the guy on the motorcycle) said he'd need to call his trustees and check with them before giving an answer. He responded by saying no we could not stay in the church building because the one trustee owned a local motel and he wanted to provide 3 rooms free of charge to us. We were astonished by the generosity. The lady at the bottom of the picture was someone we met a few night later. The church we asked that night said they'd let us stay in the private school affiliated with the church so we could have access to a locker room with showers. This lady was given the key to let us in and out. She offered to bring us all pizza at her own expense that night. I had already cooked and knew darned well how much food our group could eat and since she was a single mom working for a private school I knew she couldn't have too much extra cash on hand so I declined for the group. When the group got wind of that I thought they'd lynch me. Note to self: never deny hungry cyclists the opportunity for free pizza. She saved my neck my bringing us the makings for ice cream sundaes instead and the next morning at 6am bringing us all bread she had baked that was still warm. Again, I was just astonished at the incredible kindness and selfless service to us.


We eventually made it to the top of the lower peninsula and decided to take a day trip to Mackinac Island, which allows no motor vehicles except emergency vehicles. We had not planned to spend the night on the island but part of the group missed the last ferry back due to a misunderstanding. We had nothing with us except the bicycles and a few bucks for the day. The accommodations on the island are not exactly cheap. Greg and Mr. Lime had the brilliant idea to ask a gardener at the governor's mansion if we could sleep on the mansion porch. The request was met with stunned silence at the audacity and then hearty laughter. We found no churches. Then someone contacted the Lion's Club. The fellow there was happy to let us sleep in the building and found our dilemma a bit amusing. He thought it was even funnier that our sleeping arrangements would be as depicted in this picture. The red thing is some dusty old stage curtain we found and the blanket was one long huge thing we all fit under. There wasn't really a lot of sleeping that night but there also wasn't any hanky panky. It was just more or less a night of dusty, musty discomfort, but we were grateful for the guy who let us use the floor.


Finally, as we travelled though Michigan we kept seeing signs for 'pasties.' Initially I thought the fine people of MI must be a bit progressive in their thinking to so openly sell the sequined, tasseled nipple adornments favored by strippers but I was laughingly corrected in pronunciation. It wasn't PAY-stee. It was PAH-stee. Pasties are a meat pie that are quite popular locally. Once that misunderstanding was cleared up we decided we had to taste some. We asked around for the name of the best Mom & Pop place to serve them and were directed to 'Ruth's Pasties.' We were quite disappointed to arrive just after they had closed. The owners, in the picture, asked about our group since they saw several of us wearing our new shirts. When we explained how we had come to Michigan and how we'd been referred to her she said she was re-opening just for us. They cooked us pasties and we ate until we were near to bursting. Good eating!

I must say, (and it's not just because I have several Michigan readers who also have distinguished themselves as one fine and caring lot of people) if these various folks are any indication of the true culture of Michigan I think it would be a fine place to call home.

WARNING* Weird Post on Monday

*Do not read this post until you are fully caffeinated if you are the type who needs that sort of thing in the morning. Failure to heed warning may cause severe disorientation, shock, hallucinations, simple chronic hallitosis, skin eruptions, acid reflux, and nervous tics. It is HIGHLY unlikely to result in erections lasting even 4 seconds, let alone 4 hours but one never knows. Should this occur, see me immediately.

Ok, it's not enough that human bloggers tag me, now I have been tagged by Sudiegirl's cat, Chelmsford. And let me say, that cat is weird in its tags. Chelmsford wants to know what I would do with this little lovely if I had it. Where would I put it in my house, what would I do with it, and would it be given a martini glass to hold or something else? Chelmsford thinks this thing is so beautiful he can't live without it. I think Chelmsford is a little touched in the head.

Holy Moses on a pogo stick! My first inclination is to put it in the attic or the crawl space so I never have to look at it. However, I do have a practical side and when given a gift I try to find some way to use it gratefully even if I find it really odd so on second thought I'd probably use it as a guard creature of some sort. I'd stick him out in the yard instead of one of those non-PC lawn jockeys and give him a shotgun to keep trespassers away. He'd have to prove himself trustworthy though, I can't have him shooting at me when I try to pull into my own driveway. Once I am convinced he is a valuable member of my security personnel I'd also give him all the bananas he'd want, or whatever it is he eats. I dunno, with fangs like that I am betting he wants something more than a nanner...maybe Paris Hilton...yes that's it! I will feed him all the vapid celebrities I get sick of reading about in the news when there is real news to be had.

Ya know, Chelmsford, I think this was a useful gift after all. I am beginning to see the beauty in it....but I still don't think I am going to tag anyone else. Just tell me in the comments who you'd like this rabid flying guard monkey to devour to make your world a happier place.

Da Count- a Hug

If you read this post you know how I feel about touch. It's been a long week. I've been surrounded by bad attitudes and rude demands and I have been fighting a migraine for days. The combination makes me want to crawl in a hole and stay there until everyone goes away.

Today I just want to count the person who gave me a gentle hug out of the blue. I didn't ask for it or expect it, but I sure did appreciate it. It meant an awful lot.

HNT-Short Notice

I got notification from and ooooold Yahoo account that their photo storage site is being wiped out and I could opt to transfer whatever pictures I had over there to Flickr. I couldn't even remember what I might have had there but figured it was free so why not.

I had hair to between my waist and middle of my back for 20 years before cutting it super short. I kept it short for about a year or so. In the photo transfer I discovered this from about 5 years ago when I had short hair (my hair had actually grown out a good bit when this was taken). I didn't have time to take anything else, it has a campfire/cookout element to it that seems fitting for a summer holiday, and since I am missing a lot of hair we will call it my half nekkid noggin.

P.S. If you look really closely you can see a peek of a tie dye shirt sticking out at the neckline.

HHNT

*image from www.flickr.com/photos/lslphoto/83649329/

Happy Fourth of July!

Bike Trip Tuesday #4-Big Water

When last we left our intrepid cyclists they were departing Olean, NY and preventing me from dashing my head open and spilling my brains in the depths of an ancient seabed.

Now we headed on toward Niagara Falls and the section of Ontario, Canada between Niagara and Michigan. Crossing into Canada would be the first time I left the USA and I was a bit excited about that. Unfortunately for Gus it would prove to be a very frustrating experience since he was from Paraguay and studying in the USA on a student visa. The Immigrations officials saw our loaded down Chevy and thought we were lying about how long we planned to stay in Canada. When we indicated we were with the group of cyclists that had just gone through they we less suspicious but still told Gus he'd have to come have a little chat inside the offices. None of us were allowed to accompany him and after what seemed forever he came out and exclaimed in exasperation that he was given a 3 day visa only.

We had viewed the falls from the American side and now we spent time unwinding and enjoying the view from the Canadian side. It had been kind of unnerving to stand on the American side and see them so close and realize there wasn't much to keep anyone from just hopping into the Falls and plunging to their death. We got a real feel for the power and danger with the water roaring by your feet. On the Canadian side we got a more panoramic view of their vastness and beauty.

We trekked across southern Ontario, visited some friends of Tricia's for one night and then found the shores of Lake Huron. We decided we needed to all swim in Lake Huron. Mind you it was May...the water was, shall we say, less than warm. I'm thinking in August it must still be 'less than warm.' However in May, it is, as one of the guy cyclists described, 'make yer balls retract all the way to your throat cold!' Yes, this is where all you Great Lakes dwellers get to laugh at us and tell us what wussies we were because we each took a dip lasting roughly about half a second. Picture 10 of us running into the water yelling excitedly about dipping into a Great Lake, getting wet, and exiting like bats out of hell (although had we actually been departing the biblical lake of fire we wouldn't have been so cold...in fact at that very moment a lake of fire might have sounded downright enticing) and screaming like maniacs about the water temperature.

Notice I said 10 of us. If you recall correctly, there were 11 on the trip. Tricia, that exercising madwoman, decided the Lake Huron was nothing compared to the icy waters of the North Atlantic and proceeded to swim back and forth parallel to the shore for about 30 minutes. Among a group of so clearly strange people wanting to punish themselves by cycling 4000+ miles and even between the two who had a bizarre need to exercise each night after pedalling 70 miles, she stood out as uniquely disturbed with regard to enjoying swimming in icy water.

Will our frozen cyclists ever thaw out? Will they continue to pedal westward? Will Gus be deported from Canada? Will Lime find more creative ways to bring grave injury upon herself? Tune in next week for the next leg of Bike Trip Madness....