A Virtual Journey Awaits You
I got a text from Rachel last week: "You might find this exciting. Remember nate melhoff? He's walking from mn to San Francisco." She then gave me a link to Nate's blog that he'll be updating along the way: Seeing It Slowly. (Edit: the link is now gone.)
I've often dreamt of doing a cross-country trip by bike but never on foot although there's certainly something about that which appeals to me as well.
Nate's father is also an air traffic controller in Farmington where I work but I don't really know him. It's a big facility. I believe Rachel and Nate dated once in high school.
I intend to walk the country along with him through his writings and invite you to do the same if you feel so inclined. It's quite a journey he's committed to taking on and I would guess that any words of encouragement you might have for him along the way would be welcome.
Tammy was having internet connectivity issues last week while working from home causing her to have to go into the office, 15 minutes to the north in Bloomington. She made arrangements to have a Charter Cable tech come out to the house and troubleshoot the problem. I figured he'd be in and out in a minimal amount of time after maybe changing out the cable fitting coming into our home but I couldn't have been more wrong. Andy was here for 5 hours changing out each TV and cable connection we have in addition to replacing the router she uses for her work connection. The results are noticeable with HD signals where they didn't exist before. The next time I hear someone complain about Charter service I'll mention my experience.
We went down to Rochester last Thursday to spend a few hours with Rachel, something we don't get to do often enough. We took in the sights and sounds of Thursdays on First & 3rd before making our way to the local bike shop where we made arrangements to have Rachel's bike outfitted with rear baskets so she can more easily carry groceries home. She's happy! We didn't think of it at the time but her bike also needs a light. She'll be getting one added soon.
She's been moving around a lot from house to house as she finds places to stay temporarily. Such is the life of a college student. Tammy asked her if she was going to keep her violin with her in Rochester and she said yes. She said she'd like to do some public events in Rochester. I took that to mean busking but I could be wrong. I could definitely see her picking up some quick and fun cash that way as she saves for a car. I do wish she could find a place of more permanence to stay. She said she'll be homeless when she returns from New York in December.
Rachel urged me to download Candy Crush a few weeks ago. I did but didn't really care for it so I uninstalled it from my phone. Tammy picked up on it a little later and was really enjoying it so I thought I'd give it one more chance. What an addictive little game. I'm hooked! There's clearly a certain amount of luck you need to be successful but lots of strategies also come into play. I'm on level 57.
If you connect on Facebook you can see where your friends are along the Candy Crush highway. It's fun! Hmm—perhaps that's why I'm a little behind with this blog post.
I was out mowing a couple days ago when a neighbor pointed out a painted turtle crossing the street in front of our house heading for my lawn. Haha...oh great, another rescue job for me. I can't remember a year when I've found myself in a position so many times to feel a sense of obligation to help some form of wildlife make its way back to safer territory. Just a couple days earlier on a walk, I found a baby robin huddled in the street gutter chirping for its mother. I took it away from the street and placed it in a more sheltered area between some large boulders beneath the nearest tree that I assumed it leaped from.
But my biggest animal rescue this year occurred last Friday afternoon as Tammy and I were exiting 35W at County Rd 46. As we neared the off-ramp I noticed a family of geese walking along the shoulder of the off-ramp and heading toward the freeway and certain death. My heart sank. I got off the freeway and continued toward home while sending up a quick prayer that they'd turn back but also realizing that they could maybe use my help in making that happen. I did a u-turn and crossed back over the freeway and got on the frontage road and parked above where I'd seen them. I jumped the fence and made my way along the shoulder until I saw them...all two families of geese—not just one. In addition to the four adults, there must have been at least 15 little ones.
They were grouped on the shoulder facing the freeway when I came upon them, no doubt waiting to pick their moment to cross. But when they saw me they immediately turned around and headed back through the tall grass and away from traffic: that's where my video below picks up. I was relieved. I kept walking toward them with my main concern being that they kept moving in a direction away from the freeway but unsure of where that would lead.
And where did it lead? To a little slice of heaven where I didn't expect to find it...
I've often dreamt of doing a cross-country trip by bike but never on foot although there's certainly something about that which appeals to me as well.
Nate's father is also an air traffic controller in Farmington where I work but I don't really know him. It's a big facility. I believe Rachel and Nate dated once in high school.
I intend to walk the country along with him through his writings and invite you to do the same if you feel so inclined. It's quite a journey he's committed to taking on and I would guess that any words of encouragement you might have for him along the way would be welcome.
Tammy was having internet connectivity issues last week while working from home causing her to have to go into the office, 15 minutes to the north in Bloomington. She made arrangements to have a Charter Cable tech come out to the house and troubleshoot the problem. I figured he'd be in and out in a minimal amount of time after maybe changing out the cable fitting coming into our home but I couldn't have been more wrong. Andy was here for 5 hours changing out each TV and cable connection we have in addition to replacing the router she uses for her work connection. The results are noticeable with HD signals where they didn't exist before. The next time I hear someone complain about Charter service I'll mention my experience.
We went down to Rochester last Thursday to spend a few hours with Rachel, something we don't get to do often enough. We took in the sights and sounds of Thursdays on First & 3rd before making our way to the local bike shop where we made arrangements to have Rachel's bike outfitted with rear baskets so she can more easily carry groceries home. She's happy! We didn't think of it at the time but her bike also needs a light. She'll be getting one added soon.She's been moving around a lot from house to house as she finds places to stay temporarily. Such is the life of a college student. Tammy asked her if she was going to keep her violin with her in Rochester and she said yes. She said she'd like to do some public events in Rochester. I took that to mean busking but I could be wrong. I could definitely see her picking up some quick and fun cash that way as she saves for a car. I do wish she could find a place of more permanence to stay. She said she'll be homeless when she returns from New York in December.
Rachel urged me to download Candy Crush a few weeks ago. I did but didn't really care for it so I uninstalled it from my phone. Tammy picked up on it a little later and was really enjoying it so I thought I'd give it one more chance. What an addictive little game. I'm hooked! There's clearly a certain amount of luck you need to be successful but lots of strategies also come into play. I'm on level 57.
If you connect on Facebook you can see where your friends are along the Candy Crush highway. It's fun! Hmm—perhaps that's why I'm a little behind with this blog post.I was out mowing a couple days ago when a neighbor pointed out a painted turtle crossing the street in front of our house heading for my lawn. Haha...oh great, another rescue job for me. I can't remember a year when I've found myself in a position so many times to feel a sense of obligation to help some form of wildlife make its way back to safer territory. Just a couple days earlier on a walk, I found a baby robin huddled in the street gutter chirping for its mother. I took it away from the street and placed it in a more sheltered area between some large boulders beneath the nearest tree that I assumed it leaped from.
But my biggest animal rescue this year occurred last Friday afternoon as Tammy and I were exiting 35W at County Rd 46. As we neared the off-ramp I noticed a family of geese walking along the shoulder of the off-ramp and heading toward the freeway and certain death. My heart sank. I got off the freeway and continued toward home while sending up a quick prayer that they'd turn back but also realizing that they could maybe use my help in making that happen. I did a u-turn and crossed back over the freeway and got on the frontage road and parked above where I'd seen them. I jumped the fence and made my way along the shoulder until I saw them...all two families of geese—not just one. In addition to the four adults, there must have been at least 15 little ones.
They were grouped on the shoulder facing the freeway when I came upon them, no doubt waiting to pick their moment to cross. But when they saw me they immediately turned around and headed back through the tall grass and away from traffic: that's where my video below picks up. I was relieved. I kept walking toward them with my main concern being that they kept moving in a direction away from the freeway but unsure of where that would lead.
And where did it lead? To a little slice of heaven where I didn't expect to find it...
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