On the blog again

Much has happened since I last wrote.

I drove the Oregon Trail, made some yard sale cash, saw friendly faces, and made some trouble here in K.C.

Before driving out from Poulsbo, my brother, his wife, and I had a yard sale. Lessons were learned and I will have to remember, Saturday is the most lucrative day. My brother took most of my money on Sunday as "dues" so I left early to pack for my trip.

Sunday night my good friend Tami and I met up for some navy bar escapades and in the early morn, my mom and I left for Kansas City.

Monday, August 24th
One month since the day I left Kansas City, I left Poulsbo. Monday I was sick from allergies and so I didn't drive much. The drive was the same one we took in May - Poulsbo to Bozeman. The Motel 8 had Golden Girls and I fell asleep watching them.

Tuesday, August 25
Bozeman, MT to Scott's Bluff, NE. The drive was much shorter. This time instead of crossing into the Dakotas, our trek took us south into Wyoming and from there into Nebraska. We met the Oregon Trail at Fort Laramie near the Nebraska border and followed it to our day's destination at Scott's Bluff.

We weren't purposely tracing the trail, but today's modern-day highway follows it because of the natural ease of the land - the very reason pioneers chose the route. Although coincidental, the historical part of it was the most exciting part about our trip.

In Fort Laramie, the rain was pouring hard enough we were unable look at the site (no umbrellas) although I did strike up enough courage to hike a short distance to Oregon Trail tracks that had been cut into solid rock. A mile or so away was Register Cliff, a cliff face (go figure) that contained the signatures of thousands in its side. There were many from the 1800's (the earliest I saw was from 1820), although sadly I saw one carved as recently as 2005. Near the tracks I found a very faded, but distinguishable signature from JR - 1888 next to a much larger and legible Sam and Peggy - 1979.

"The sandstone rocks near Guernsey .... Here, the trail ruts are not to be missed since they are carved into the stone. Some gouges are more than four feet deep! These deep ruts result from years of wagon wear and from intentional cutting by emigrants attempting to ease the steep passage up from the level river bottom to the High Plains. .... A short drive from the trail ruts back through Guernsey takes visitors to Register Cliff, .... Following a day’s journey from Fort Laramie, emigrants spent the night at Register Cliff and inscribed their names into the rock face. The earliest signatures date to the late 1820s when trappers and fur traders passed through the area, but most of the names visible today were carved during the 1840s and 1850s when the Oregon Trail was at its height. Today, visitors can walk along the cliff base to view the signatures up close."

Wednesday, August 26th
We started the day at Scott's Bluff National Monument. The fog was so thick nothing could be seen until we were upon it. Then the fog cleared to reveal a bright blue sky with the fog cloud hovering inbetween the towering rock formations of the bluff. It was awe inspiring to stand there were at one point a good 150 thousand plus people traveled through to the west. We walked the tracks from a few yards and then were on our way.

The second stop of the day was at Chimney Rock - another monument on the Oregon Trail. We arrived as the museum opened. I was surprised to find out that Chimney Rock is significantly shorter than it was when the pioneers rode by - I'd say maybe even 50 - 60 feet shorter.

We didn't stop at Courthouse Rock, but did at a Pony Express station. After said Station we booked it across the rest of Nebraska to Lincoln and from there to Kansas City. We arrived late in the night and rose again early to take my mom to the airport.

Thursday, August 27th, I slept. Oh, and started Travels with Charley

Friday, August 28th
I met Halliday and we went to a basement show where I oddly enough ran into a new hiree at Hammerpress. Eric, was hired to run the larger automatic platen presses by Brady and it is he who vies for my hours. I crushed him and then laughed at his remains. No not really, we laughed about our meeting and had a good time. He might come to the show on Tuesday at the Pistol.

Speaking of the Pistol. I should be cleaning it right now. Joe has lived here more or less alone for a month and it looks it. I need some air fresheners too. Uriah is moving out with his girlfriend Jenny. Lame.

The Golden State

August 6th - I arrived in San Francisco at 9:30am. I was flying there to meet Adam so we could go to his older sister's wedding on the 8th. We planned a day for ourselves on the 6th.

Adam was already in California being a glass star with Loren Stump and Emilio Santini. His class had finished on Sunday and he'd since been hanging out at Loren's studio waiting for me to arrive.

Our goal was to see as much of San Fran as physically possible in one day, and I think we did a good job. We started at the Fisherman's Wharf (I got to drive down Lombard Street on the way there), shared a bread bowl for lunch, then walked the financial district and ended in China Town for dinner. After potstickers, we were both too tired and poor to continue, so we went to our hotel and fell fast asleep.

The next day, August 7th, we drove to Monterey and took part in pre-wedding parties. There was the wedding rehearsal, rehearsal barbeque, and after barbeque drinks. I met Adam's dad's large side of the family and ate more Mexican food.

Speaking of food, I haven't eaten yet. I'll finish this up after I do.

Okay, August 8th - Andrea's wedding was lovely. It was held at this beach side resort in a spot overlooking the water. The resort catered and provided almost everything. The wedding was picturesque to say the least. Adam made glass flowers for Andrea's bridal bouquet and they were ooh'ed and ahh'ed over by everyone. The photographer said he'd been doing wedding's along time and had never seen anything like it. He also mentioned that Adam should go into business making glass bridal bouquets, Adam though this would be a good idea.

There was much dancing at the reception and everyone left feeling the wedding went very well.

The 9th and 10th were spent with Adam's family exploring Monterey. We went swimming at Lover's Point, explored tide pools, watched beautiful sunsets and traversed the aquarium. Adam felt at home in Monterey, one of the place he grew up, and was obviously excited to see the aquarium and tide pools.

The evening of the 10th, the two of us said goodbye to Adam's family and drove up the coast to Humboldt State Park. (When crossing the Golden Gate Bridge, there was so much fog, we couldn't even see it.) We arrived too late to find a real camping spot, so we pitched our tent on the side of the road.

The next day we signed up for environmental camping at the ranger station and spent our one day in the woods tromping through redwood trails and streams. I think we are going to attempt to go every year. My heart hurt leaving so early.

Yesterday, we drove home. Last night I had to say goodbye....

This land is my land...

The last three months: Portland to Poulsbo, WA - Bozeman, MT - Murdo, SD - Kansas City, Mo - Dodge City KS, - Santa Fe, NM - Taos, NM - Abiquiu, NM - Moab, UT - Price, UT - Salt Lake City, UT - Boise, ID - Poulsbo, WA - Portland, OR - San Francisco, CA - Monterey, CA - Humboldt State Park, CA - Grants Pass, OR - Portland, OR. (From Dodge City to Portland within a span of the last three weeks) 

I've traveled through Washington, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Oregon, and California. 

I've driven many miles and have more to go, but for a few days I get to relax and stay here in Portland. I'm feeling a little down and I'll explain why in paragraphs to come...

July 23rd- With my mom in tow, we left Kansas City for Dodge City, Kansas. I would have thought there would be more "Western" tourist cashing in, but there ended up being only one block wide area that was gated in and looked like something from Knotts Berry farm. It was eight or so dollars to go in, so my mom and I passed it up. Some new facts about Dodge City: 1. D.C. is home to two meat packing plants, one of which is the second largest in the United States. 2. Between 1871 and 1875 D.C. was the hub for the mass slaughter of a couple million buffalo. Within four years the trade boomed and died out, so through was the hunting and killing of the buffalo.

July 24th - included driving. We went from Dodge City to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Coincidentally, we we arrived in Santa Fe on the weekend of the Spanish Market. The Spanish Market is a big street fair focused on Hispanic Art, much of which is Catholic/Saint themed.

July 25th and 26th - Spent the days between Santa Fe and Taos. Both cities are quite overrun with tourism. That set aside, (as hard as it might be) the spirit of the of the area was wonderful. The artistic culture includes a fair amount of Dia De Los Muertos, Santos, and general Catholic themes. I enjoyed seeing pictures of saints in many stores and statues dressed with symbolic clothing in the churches. 

On the 26th my mother and I went to Taos Pueblo, very interesting to see an active dwelling like that.

Ate much good mexican food. Had the best tamale's in a alley way cantina. If only I could eat them everyday... goal for me: learn to make killer tamales.

July 27th - August 1st - Ghost Ranch (http://www.ghostranch.org/). This time period I was out of cell and internet service, except if I drove out a few mile and then I could make a phone call. The land was awe-inspiringly beautiful and the location peaceful. We took a watercolor class as part of the retreat center and I realized how much it is I know about painting, I was honestly kind of surprised. I was more advance than the class so instead I worked on my scratchboards and walked around thinking. There was a great deal of thinking and talking with my mom. The weather was wild, hot and sunny in the morning, cold(ish) and stormy at night.

On the 31st my good friends moved me out of my apartment and I thank them very much. I owe you guys. I was stressed out beyond belief wondering how I'd get myself out of there.

August 2nd.  - More driving. From Abiquiu to Price. We stopped in Moab to see Arches National Park. Well worth seeing and even more worth going back to. Next time I will have to take rock climbing shoes. It was like the world's best jungle gym, and the nicest part is, it's okay to climb on the rocks!

More good mexican food.

August 3rd - Saw my old friend Katie Wiseman and her new baby girl, Sophie!!! I spent two hours with her just out side Salt Lake and saw that she is doing very well. Her husband Ben is very nice and I look forwards to when they live closer. Her baby slept the whole time and never pooped on me once.

August 4th and 5th - Arrived in Poulsbo around dinner time. Had pizza with my parents. The next morning I went into the Toyota dealership to have the spark plugs on my car fixed then drove to Portland. Arrived around 5pm, just in time to catch Jenny, Uriah, and Tyler. Went out to Indian food with them and Jenny's sister. After, I gave them a small tour of Portland. Stayed up until 2am hanging out, only to get up at 4 so I could drop my car off at Adam Poolman's. The off to the airport....

KCMO tie up.

So I haven't posted in some time, but now I'll start back up.

To tie up my last week in KCMO, I took part in a dance show, did well enough that the troupe asked me to join while I'm in town. Carla, from PNCA, showed up at Hammerpress and started interning in Wendy's spot on Tuesday and Thursdays. I left on Thursday the 23rd and have been gone for three weeks. I've been in and out of cell service/internet and have traveled many miles....

Catching up - Part 2

Okay, so after driving approx 1850 miles, I was in Kansas City.

Tuesday, May 26th
Spent most of the day sight seeing. Mom wanted to see both Truman's home and Jesse James' farm, which conveniently happen to be in/near Independence. Truman's home was interesting although most of it was under construction so we were unable to see much of it. Jesse James' farm was simple, but really, there isn't too much to say on the matter except what was said in a short movie shown just before the tour of the farm house.

The most interesting part of Independence sadly didn't have much information on it. Independence is where many, if not most, of the Oregon and Santa Fe Trail pioneers started. Coming from where they ended, if was pretty cool to be there thinking about what it took to found my home.

The evening was spent picking up essentials that I'd essentially forgotten to pack. I briefly dropped off what I did pack at the Pistol Social Club (more about the Pistol later) and went back to the Quality Inn. Went to Walmart to get an air mattress and lights because my new room lacked furniture of any kind.

Early the next morning I dropped off my Mom at the airport and went to my first day of work...

Now for the really interesting stuff. What should I say first? Do I talk about the Pistol, Hammerpress or Kansas City first? Since I know most of you are interested to learn about the happenings at Hammerpress, that is the last thing I will describe. Haha! Actually, it makes sense to talk about things in order as I came across them, and well, that still puts Hammerpress last.

Kansas City
is not surrounded by amber wave of grain. Surprise! Surprise! It actually is very leafy and the suburbs remind me a little of North Carolina. The drive into town is obscuring since all the trees are the same height and one can't see beyond them. Kansas City itself (Missouri side, I've yet to really explore the Kansas side) is slightly smaller than Seattle, but the downtown is only slightly larger than Portland. The architecture is industrial chic. Joe (you'll get to know who he is soon) told me that Kansas City has enough concrete to rival Los Angeles (I only sort of doubt it) and is second to Chicago for trains passing though (I don't doubt it, I get to hear many of them personally). Either way, both statements reflect the culture of the place, if that makes any sense.

Neighborhoods are somewhat ethnically divided. There is a distinct mexican quarter, black quarter, italian quarter, etc. Joe says Kansas City it isn't as segregated as it looks off the bat, but no city is. However the cultural "districts" seem to make it so that each part of the city is vibrant in distinctly different ways.

Hammerpress is in a place called the Crossroad Arts District. It is what the Pearl is to Portland, but not yet as pricey. Once upon a time the warehouses were cheap rental space for artists, then fancy galleries moved in raising the rent and what we all know to be gentrification set in. Like I mentioned, the ritz that oozes from some places in the Pearl does not yet inhabit the Crossorads, but Kansas City is still in the revitalization stage.

Once booted from Crossroads alot of the artists moved to the West Bottoms, which is where I am now....

The Pistol Social Club
is both home and music venue. Actually, music venues are holed up and down this place. The section that I live in is drywalled apart from the show space. First I think I need to describe West Bottoms to really describe my home.

When Kansas City was a fledgling town, and even when it was not such a fledgling town one of the huge markets was livestock. In fact, I believe it was the market. Anyways, West Bottoms was the stockyards until Kansas City had no stockyards anymore. Already cris-crossed with train tracks/yards, they took over and the only thing to make it's home in West Bottoms that was not a warehouse or train related, was a rodeo area, now rarely used.

So I live in a section of warehouse surrounded by train tracks, and thus frequent trains. It's somewhat surreal. Upon first look, it seems sketchy, but really isn't. People look out for each other and there are almost no homeless or wandering souls. Joe says the surrounding warehouses are filled to capacity with a variety of people and venues. There is an auction house, screen printing studio, apartments, and an architectural salvage store to name a few.

The loft I live in consists of drywall made rooms, an old kitchen and communal bathroom. My room is huge with a brick wall, old wood floors, and gigantic windows that get glorious sun all day long. Alas, I have nothing to furnish it will, but my air mattress and plank shelves will do. The communal room is also a bit surreal. It seems like a set from a movie. It contains alot of large mismatched furniture that some how all pulls together to create a perfectly bohemian setting, although I think it became so by chance verses purpose. "Everything is here because it's too big to go anywhere else." Pictures will explain much better than I can.

I have two-four roommates depending on who is here. Joe is my only consistent roommate so far. Joe Hammer (fate says that is not a coincidence) is the manager of the Pistol Social Club and is the caretaker of the building. I gather he's in his early 30's or late 20's. His girlfriend Halliday spends time here often, but she has a place of her own too. She uses the space as a studio for her fashion line. Uriah and his girlfriend are here sometimes (Uriah is my third actual roommate) but I've yet to meet either. It seems he's been staying with his girlfriend and then they went to the lakes. They're supposed to be back on Sunday. Joe and Halliday are fantastic and have taken it upon themselves to include me the the local scene. They're into Rockabilly which is refreshing to get a dose of from time to time (again, fate says this is not a coincidence).

Did I mention the Pistol Social Club has a giant cap gun outside the building? Well it does.

Alright, well I have to go to a Led Zeppelin themed party and then a few shows or something, I'm honestly not quite sure. I'll finish this up later. Keep you waiting....

Catching up - Part 1

I have quite a bit to write about. Sadly I forgot the charger to my camera, so pictures will accompany the blog later, once I've had it mailed to me. I'm not really sure how to go about accounting for all that has happened in the past week, but I guess starting at the beginning is always the best.

Saturday, May 23rd
All I did on this day was drive from Bremerton, Washington to Bozeman, Montana. Didn't stop for anything except gas and lunch. The weather was great for driving and I found out that Montana's big cities aren't all that big.

Sunday, May 24th
This day was the shortest driver of all, going from Bozeman to Murdo, South Dakota. The reason being that I stopped at Little Bighorn Battle site, Wall Drug, and the Badlands. All essential sites that aren't worth missing.

Little Bighorn is, of course, where Custer had his last stand. It's on a hill just off the freeway. In the 1890's, markers were erected where soldiers presumably fell, although 20 years after the fact, it is hard to be sure. Sometime in the 1970's a few markers were put out for natives. Reading Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee was good preparation for this site. The outright hate that men like Custer had for Indians is staggering and one can't help but be glad in this case, he was wiped out instead.

Wall Drug is classic roadside America. I've been wanting to see it since there was a kitch special on Travel Channel ages ago. There is nothing that anyone could possibly need inside, but that doesn't make it any less appealing. Starting as a small, one room, turn of the century drugstore, Wall Drug has expanded into a labyrinth of touristy corniness. The center part is an aisle way of storefronts and there are alleyways that lead off into a cafe, boot store, post office, etc. The items they carry are about as random as possible, cowchip frisbees and jackalope heads as example. Behind Wall Drug resides something called "The Backyard". Personally, one of the best parts, it is home to giant fiberglass animals and a "live" T-Rex. One odd fact: Wall Drug is home to one of the largest collections of golden age western Illustrations in America. Awesomely, I got to see some N.C. Wyeth while I ate dinner.

Since the drive was not as far this day, we capped it off at the Badlands National Park. I can't really describe what I saw and give you an adequate idea, so I'll let the pictures do the talking when I get them. All I can say is this, they came out of nowhere. One minute you're on the prairie and the next...

Monday, May 25th
Other than arriving in Kansas City, the most important part if this day was the Corn Palace. No, actually, I'd rate the Corn Palace in front of arriving in Kansas City. Originally, the Corn Palace was just that - a palace entirely made out of corn, but after fires completely demolishing it, twice, the little town of Mitchell, South Dakota, decided to build a brick palace and just cover it in corn. The murals across the Corn Palace, changed once a year, are made in a fashion kind of like corn-by-number. They nail the nine different corns, by color code, where there needs to go. The lady in the gift shop called it; "the world biggest bird-feeder", I call it; "Karen's roadside mecca".

After waving the Corn Palace goodbye, it was an easy, boring, drive to Kansas City. Didn't really arrive in Kansas City, instead we went directly to Independence, Missouri, where a Quality Inn awaited.

Well now I have to go get ready for work, I will keep this adventure telling going when I return.

and now it's time to leave

Spent the night driving home and in about fifteen minutes, I'll be heading out of here. Hopefully I'll be able to update on my drive over, but if not. I'll post again when I am in Kansas City!