Flintstones - Meet the Flintstones

I'm pretty sure we drove through Bedrock today. We stopped for lunch in a cool little town called Rock Springs & it felt like Fred & Barney could have been there, working at Slate Quarry. Actually, I shouldn't say stuff like that b/c with our crappy U-Haul, we may have to start powering the truck with our feet soon like they did on the Flintstones.

The drive through Wyoming today was absolutely beautiful & full of incredible scenery that I couldn't take my eyes off of. The best way I can describe it is that it looks fake; like an Acme backdrop that Wile E. Coyote set up to catch Road Runner. We're seeing more color in the landscape now rather than the 'plains brown' of the past few days & the mountains look like watercolor paintings. We were at 7000 feet above sea level today & it's pretty cool to be surrounded by such wide open space. Aside from a few telephone poles, technology out here is almost non-existent. All day long, I just kept saying, "Look at where we are!".

Since John is doing all of the driving (thank god! I wouldn't want to be behind the wheel of this thing), over the past few days, I've settled into something of a routine to help pass the hours (aside from my DJ & navigating duties of course). When we start out in the morning, I look out the window for about the first hour, just sitting & enjoying the view. I feel bad for John that he can't do the same b/c he actually has to pay attention...I can zone out if I want. Then, I pull out my crossword puzzle or Sudoku book to make sure my brain doesn't turn to mush. Is it possible that I'm getting worse at Sudoku the more I try it? I can't even finish one puzzle & I'm still in the easy section! Once I get frustrated at my lack of Sudoku skills, I put the puzzle away for a while & look at a magazine instead. Five minutes later, I feel carsick from reading & put that away too. After that, I talk to John for a while about whatever topic happens to come up. Then, I lather, rinse & repeat. It's a good little sequence of activities & so far, it has served me well.

We made it to Salt Lake City, Utah today & we're spending the night with my good friend Amy (Hoeppner) Taylor & her family at their UNBELIEVEABLE house. I have pictures & I'll try to post them soon b/c I don't think I can describe their view better than a picture can. Their house is brand new & it sits in a canyon...getting up here in our rattletrap truck made me a bit nervous b/c at one point, it felt like we were going straight up along the edge & I could just see us falling right off! Amy & I haven't seen each other for 9 years & it's so great to see her & get caught up. Her husband Ryan is a really nice guy & their two kids, Zach & Kaitlyn, are totally cute!

We went out for dinner at Ruth's Diner, which is just down the canyon road from their place. It doesn't look like much from the front, but out back is a fabulous patio with twinkly lights & a small stage for live music. It felt great to be outside, surrounded by towering trees & cool, fresh air. Utah really is a beautiful state...if you can go, you should! Of course, the evening went by far too quickly as is usually the case when you have lots to talk about. I wish I could have hit the pause button to have more time with Amy. But, now that we'll be living on the same side of the country, we're hoping to be able to see each other more often.

I've been thinking about the saying, "Life's a journey, not a destination" (I may have paraphrased there, or I'm just ripping off Aerosmith lyrics) today. I think the saying is true, but in the case of our road trip, it's about both. I've really been enjoying this time with John & I've been trying to stay in the moment & appreciate the journey. But, every once in a while, I let my mind wander forward a few days to the destination, to when we actually arrive in Portland, & it gives me butterflies in my stomach. I can't belive we're almost there!

Later,
PortlandGirl