Road Trip Pt. 2

The alarm went off on Day 4 at 6:00 in the morning.  By 7:00, we were dressed, fed, and back in the car with the gas tank filled. We were headed for Banff National Park, somewhere the three of us had always wanted to go.

DD2 in particular liked the wildlife bridges that had been built in several locations around the park. She had seen models of them, but never the real deal, so was quite excited to see them for herself.

Unfortunately, it was raining more often than not. So we didn't get out to do any real hiking.  As the morning progressed, the skies cleared, and we did make a short jaunt up a trail (where we decided it was too steep, too wet, and we weren't properly equipped) and made a few stops for photos.

Several times, we had to stop for construction, and once for a very recent rock slide to be cleared.  If I couldn't get out of the car to take photos, I often took them out of the rolled down window.  I looked like this a lot:

 Even with the cloud cover and peek a boo sun, the scenery was awesome.

snow on the mountain!

There were also many waterfalls, some we could view right from the road, and others we had to take a short (or not so short) hike to.  As the day went on, the sun came mostly out, we drove from Banff National Park into Jasper National Park.  Honestly, the day ran together and I'm having a hard time now remembering which waterfall was which and in what park.

At the Athabascan Falls, we could view the river and falls from several locations.  First, atop the falls.  Then, we walked down through the old abandoned river channel, where steps had been built to aide in navigation, and viewed the scenery from the river bottom.

down the stairs

looking up the stairs

breath taking view of the river from near the bottom

While our mileage only ticked off about eight hours from our total journey, it was a long day.  Many stops for photo ops, pauses for construction, and dinner in Jasper.  As the sun was getting low, and the light slanted across the mountains, we made our way to Grande Cache where we stopped for the night.

Nearly to our final destination of the day, we spotted our first bears!  Far off the road was a black bear, that I managed to (kind of) get a picture of.

We also saw our first grizzly bear, right on the embankment beside the road at dusk.  DH turned around in hopes of getting a picture, but the bear loped up and over the hill.  It stood up a few times to get a peek at us, and we decided we'd best get driving before it decided to come down and check out our car!

Pt 3 coming soon. . . with more bears!

Road Trip!

I never in a million years thought I'd ever have the desire to road trip from Michigan to Alaska in 7 days.  I mean, why in the world would I ever do that?  It's a long dang way.  Over 3800 miles by the quickest route.

Until DD2 got the job offer of her dreams.  And suddenly, I was going on a road trip from Michigan to Alaska.  In a short period of time, as DH really could barely take a day off in the last several months he's been so busy at work.  But, neither one of us wanted DD2 to drive that far alone.  And apparently DH didn't want me and DD2 to drive that far without him.  So, our journey to Alaska began, purpose of which was to safely move DD2 and her most needed possessions to her new job and life, but also was a little bit of a family vacation to see some things we'd always wanted to see.  Which meant we weren't going the shortest route.  I think our final mileage total came in close to 4200 miles.

Now, if you ever have the desire to do such a crazy thing, my best advice is DON'T, unless you have a ton of patience, a good dose of humor, and great relationship skills. And good health, because man, was this a killer.  We won't even get into the expense, although we tried to use hotel points as much as possible.

Other than trying to stuff as much of DD2's belongings as possible into her vehicle, which took a few hours, many tears, freaking out on both the part of DD2 and DH, and me playing the mediator role, the first day was no big deal.  Instead of heading down and around Lake Michigan via the Chicago route, we were going through the U.P. with a side trip up to the Keweenaw so that DD2 could say goodbye to a few friends that were still there, and also go to church on Sunday at the church she had attended (and pastor & congregation she'd grown to love) up there.

Packing the car was an ordeal. We had to leave behind about 1/3 of the things she'd wanted to bring. Even so, that car was crammed full, and there were two doors we were mindful to not open under any circumstance until we reached Alaska.  Because if we did, surely things would fly out like when you open that gag can of nuts that really has snakes made of compressed springs in it.  The driver had the normal sized space for a driver, but the two passengers had things around them and on the floor at their feet.  The person in the back seat was in charge of accessing both the cooler and the bag of food (our meals and snacks for the trip, with the exception of dinners) that was perched on top of stuff taking up 2/3 of the back seat.

A few hours later than planned, but still before noon, we were off! The first leg of the trip, to the U.P. was easy.  We'd driven that way a million times (well, not really a million, but so many we could do it in our sleep).  The next morning, we went to breakfast at our favorite cafe there, attended church, and hit the road for our second day of driving.

Day 2 destination: Calgary, Alberta, via Duluth MN (because DD2 was meeting a good friend there to give her some stuff, plus it was a good place to stop for dinner) and a non-stop driving marathon.  DH's plan had us swapping drivers in order to drive straight through the night and have approximately half the mileage of our journey out of the way by the end of Day 3.  After that, we could drive about 8 hours a day and be more leisurely.

Well, we got to Duluth fine.  Met DD2's friend, had a really good dinner (if you're in Duluth, try Fitger's Brewhouse, the food was awesome!). But a few hours down the road, things got tough.  I was tired, but find it impossible to sleep upright.  My body just won't do it.  Even though DD2 had napped after dinner in preparation for driving for a few hours so DH could rest, it didn't work.  DH realized that if he got out of the driver's seat, he'd have to move into either my seat (with several bags of stuff at my feet) or DD2's very cramped seat (stuff crammed next to her, stuff crammed behind her head rest, and a box of plants at her feet).  There just was nowhere to put that stuff so he could have as spacious accommodations as he did behind the steering wheel.  Rather than being cramped, he kept his seat and tried to tough it out.  However, driving through the night was a bigger task than he could accomplish, and we ended up stopping in Minot, North Dakota after midnight for a hotel room and some beds to sleep in.

We had a long way to go (over 11 hours of driving yet) to reach Calgary, so an alarm was set to get us up at 6:00 a.m.  Did we want to get up after less than six hours of sleep?  NO!!  Did we need to get up and complete this crucial leg of the journey?  Yes.  Most definitely yes.  Little did I know then that the entire trip the alarm clock would go off no later than 6:30 each and every morning. :0(

Day 3, however, turned out to be an uptick.  It was an interesting drive. We crossed into Canada at Portal, ND around mid-morning.  I have to say, it was fast and easy, compared to going in via the Ambassador Bridge (near Detroit), which is the way I'd been to Canada before. No lines, friendly border staff, a few questions, a review of our passports and suddenly we were in Canada!  We would stay in Canada for five days. It's a big, big place. Our drive would take us across four provinces, the first of which was Saskatchewan.

From an agricultural standpoint, Saskatchewan was fascinating.  Field after field after field of grain crops that aren't common in Michigan. I was a googling fiend, trying to identify the plants I saw in the fields that we whizzed by hour after hour. By far, the majority that we passed were in canola.  Apparently we were in time for the big canola harvest, because we saw combine convoys both in the fields and on the road heading to the fields.

Grain is a major commodity there. In fact, in Weyburn, they even had huge sculptures of wheat along the highway.  I was fascinated.

We drove and drove and drove, stopping briefly on the outskirts of Moose Jaw to make sandwiches for lunch.

Then it was back on the road again, determined to get to our destination for the night: Calgary, Alberta, in time for dinner.  In addition to the vast grain fields, we also saw many livestock hauling trucks.  Most were empty, but a few had hogs in them; the pink pigs mostly lying down and not looking at all concerned.  We made jokes about Canadian bacon--we'd been many hours on the road by then and were getting punchy, but wouldn't you know, not a single hotel we stayed at in Canada had it!  I was more than a little disappointed, as I'm a fan of Canadian bacon.

Other things of interest along the way were open pit coal mines, salt flats near Chaplin, mule deer, many many (100+) antelope, and even some pelicans!

Finally, we crossed from Saskatchewan into Alberta, and made it to Calgary.

The next leg of the journey is picture heavy, so will get it's own post.  Stay tuned!

A Chapter Next: Oldenburgs?

As my chapter of life with the California Horse came to an end, a new chapter, with new horses, was beginning.  This new chapter overlaps a little, but really, it was in the early, early stages as I prepared for the departure of the California Horse. Interestingly enough, this chapter involves 5 horses, of various ages, all of whom are owned by (get this) a woman who moved to Michigan from California, and bought a horse farm.

What is it with the California theme?  I don't quite know how I fell into that.  I do know, however, that it has brought horses my way that are of a quality (and price tag) I previously did not have access to (and honestly didn't see how I could access).

In mid-July, an interesting and unexpected opportunity came my way via my veterinarian.  Said veterinarian has a client fairly new to horses, and even newer to farm ownership, who really, really needed some experienced guidance in the care and handling of her animals.  Said veterinarian was wondering, would I have the time and would I be brave enough to take on a challenge?

A horse challenge? Oh heck yeah, I love a horse challenge!

And so, a new chapter began.  A chapter with a gelding previously shown to 3rd Level (but out of work for roughly the past year and a half), two broodmares (both of whom who were started under saddle at some point in the past), and two sassy yearling fillies.  All of whom are registered Oldenburgs, a breed I had yet not encountered.

My task: to get the barn under control in terms of feeding, cleaning, and a regular health care schedule, as well as instill some manners into the yearlings and possibly if I have time, get the broodmares and gelding back into a regular work schedule.  All while teaching the owner all things caring for and handling horses safely.

My new crew

We are now about seven weeks in.  Things are shaping up.  The mares and gelding recognize and willingly respect authority. The yearlings are coming around.  One is a very alpha mare personality, so she and I have our trials--all of which I win, quietly and by perseverance as she is also a fighter personality and I don't want to invoke the fight reflex.  The other is more timid, but all ready looks to me for confidence in new situations.  I think both will go quite far as they continue to get consistent handling and little Miss Alpha learns to be second in command rather than a pushy boss.

For now, they have learned to lead in and out of their stalls and the barn rather than just running around like hellions when it's time to go in and out.  They stand for brushing, for fly spray, and allow me to handle all four feet.  They also got their feet trimmed recently, and stood, not quite like angels yet, but good enough that all eight feet got a proper trimming for the first time in a while and the same farrier is willing to come back and trim them again!  (Finding a farrier willing to take these youngsters on was an issue. . .)

These young girls, walking sedately away after being turned out.

It's definitely a challenge, but I'm having fun.  The horses are responding positively, and the owner is so thankful to have help and an experienced guide.  Win-win-win. 

Back To Alaska!

DD2 is going back to Alaska!  She was along with us for the Alaska trip we took in 2017 that was part family reunion (hosted by DH's aunt & uncle who have since moved back to Oregon) and part "we always wanted to go to Alaska" vacation.

Wouldn't you know, that one of the places we visited on that trip, posted a job opening in July.  A job opening that DD2, newly degreed in Wildlife Ecology and Management, and with a summer 2018 internship in animal rehabilitation, decided she would apply for. She hoped to get an interview, but kind of doubted she would, being fairly fresh out of college and all.

Wasn't she surprised, the very next day, to get an email requesting an interview! Since she's in Michigan, and the job is in Alaska, they very much wanted to interview her via Skype.  They were booking interviews for several weeks out, so it was a bit of a wait for interview day.  Her nervousness grew.  She almost convinced herself that she couldn't possibly be who they were looking to hire.

Meanwhile, she researched that part of Alaska.  She'd been there, but that was in the summer.  She wanted to know about winter.  And what she found was that her four years of living in the U.P. during college had been great practice for what it would be like to live in Alaska in the winter.  In fact, the area of the U.P. her college is located is colder and snowier than the part of Alaska where the potential job is located.  The main difference would be the fewer hours of daylight in Alaska in the winter months.  She researched housing. She researched grocery stores. She researched industries for a potential second (part time) job in case she would need it to pad her budget what with student loan payments looming on the horizon by the start of winter and all.

When it was time for the interview, she aced it.  She was relaxed, she communicated well, she exuded confidence.  Less than a week later, they contacted her asking for a second interview. 

That interview also went well.  In fact, they mentioned on-site housing would be a possibility through the winter.  DD2 was both stoked, and worried about what to do if she should be offered the job.  In terms of duties and work environment, it was almost exactly her dream job for a first step in her career.  In terms of location, well, Alaska itself didn't intimidate her.  BUT, all her friends and family would be so far away.  No one to call on in an emergency.  And coming home would be probably just a once a year thing.  

Then the day came that her phone rang, and it was Alaska calling. To offer her the job. She asked for a few days to think about it.  After hanging up the phone, she danced in joy.  Then, later that evening, had a panic attack about leaving everyone she knows. Followed by another panic attack at the thought of passing up this dream opportunity.

Two days later, she called Alaska and accepted the job.  She's going to Alaska.  It's going to take a week of road tripping through Canada to get there, but she's moving to Alaska.  Bears and wolves and moose (all part of her new job), oh my!

Yarn Along: September

It's Yarn Along time again! I'm joining with Ginny to see what everyone has been reading and working on in the past month.

I finished the blue beachcomber shawl, but have to confess that I still haven't blocked it. Or taken a picture of it.  I really need to do both before I forget. September is looking like a busy month, and the shawl is intended for a birthday gift in early October.  Must remember to block and photograph.

I also finished sock #1 of my Christmas Eve socks. I really love how it turned out.  It's so soft and squishy, I can't wait to wear it.

Instead of casting on for sock #2 though, I cast on for the first of three sweaters I want to knit the grandkids for Christmas.  I promise I'm not having Second Sock Syndrome, I'm just exercising a lot of restraint and being a monogamous knitter until this first sweater is done.  It's the largest one I'm making, for K3, in a girls' size 8.  I have one sleeve and the neckband to do on it yet, then I will definitely cast on that second sock.

The pattern is Sunday Sweater, which is Ginny's own. It's really well written and super easy to follow.  I think I'll be finished with this project before the weekend is over.  Then I'll cast on Sock #2 of those Christmas Eve socks, as well as my next sweater project--pattern still TBD, but will be a boy's size 6. 

There is a long road trip coming up, and I think I can get both the second sock and the next sweater completed before returning home. Maybe even the third sweater, which, for Rascal, will be a tiny baby sweater in a size 6 months.  It's a really, really, long road trip.  One that deserves it's own post (teaser: DD2 was offered a cool job far, far away from Michigan).

Reading-wise, I haven't done much reading lately. I did read a couple of mysteries:

• A Batter of Life and Death by Ellie Alexander
• Breaking Silence by Linda Castillo

I enjoyed both; A Batter of Life and Death was a lighter read, and Breaking Silence more of a dark thriller.  Currently I am reading Get Lucky by Katherine Center although I'm not very far into it yet.

An Unexpected Dream Come True

Once upon a time, there was a little girl whose parents held, briefly, season tickets to the local concert venue known as Pine Knob. That summer, those parents went to several concerts at Pine Knob, while the little girl and her younger brother stayed the nights of the concerts with their grandparents.

Actually, this is a true story.  Late summer, 1978.  The little girl was me.  I was six.  Bob Seger was my most favorite musician of all. I loved to listen to my parents' records, especially Bob Seger ones.  If they didn't want to listen to music, I would beg to be allowed to plug the headphones into the turntable and listen all by myself while everyone else watched TV or did other things.

One evening,my parents were going to Pine Knob to see Bob Seger.  I didn't know this until they dropped my brother and I off at our grandparents (whom we loved to spend the night with), and Grandma asked who was doing the concert that night.  Bob Seger, they told her. 

Bob Seger!  That changed everything. I did not want to spend the night with Grandma and Grandpa.  I wanted to go see Bob Seger!  Those of you who are parents can imagine the scene that ensued: stubborn 6 year old girl not wanting her parents to go to the Bob Seger concert without her.

In fact, I still remember chasing my parents' car down the (not terribly busy) road beside Grandpa and Grandma's house, crying and yelling for them to come back and take me to the concert, Grandma running behind trying to catch me before another car came along and ran me over!!! You could say it was one of those events that leaves a lasting impression on a child's life.

Fast forward 41 years.  Historically, DH and I have not been concert goers.  Our lifestyle and budget hasn't included many live performances of anything, especially music, unless our children were the ones performing.  I can count on one hand how many 'real' concerts I've been to in my life.

Bob Seger went on tour again this year.  His final one, it seems (or, at least that's how it was billed, and at 74, you wonder how many concerts he has left to sing).  Did I want to go?  Badly.  Extremely badly. Did we have money to go? No.  This summer, this whole year actually, has seemed like one surprise financial challenge after another.  So I resigned myself that I would never see Bob Seger in concert.

But then something happened, that at the time seemed completely unrelated to concert going.  DH had an unusual work assignment that had him out of the country for nearly three weeks.  And there wasn't a whole lot of lead time to prep for it. Saying that I found this sudden (and, at the time, length undefined) departure traumatic would be an understatement. We're not talking a normal work trip that has him 2-3 time zones away for a week or maybe two. We're talking other side of the world, days and nights reversed, not sure when he'll be back or if we'll even be able to talk on the phone daily.

Well, we got through that.  Maybe someday I'll even write a post about the experience.  And once DH came back, and spent about four days recuperating (while maintaining his normal work day) from both the jet lag and the ungodly long work hours put in while in this other country, he found out he'd earned some extra special recognition at work.  Some sort of points redeemable for goods kind of thing.

Here's where these two seemingly unrelated stories blend. 

One of the options for points redemption was tickets to the concert venue DTE Energy Music Theater.  Formerly, in my childhood, known as Pine Knob. Can you guess where this is going?

YES!! DH and I went to the Bob Seger concert on our wedding anniversary in June!  For free!!  (Well, for a lot of those "you done good" points he'd gotten at work.)

We had awesome seats, the below picture was from where I stood, not even zoomed in. We were that close to the stage. 

I had just the most fantastic time. And a long held dream of mine came true. I might not be 6 (I'm 47), but for a while, I was a little girl watching her most favorite musician--he has always remained my #1-- on stage and listening to him sing (and me signing along) the songs of my youth. What an unexpected dream come true, in the strangest of plot twists.

I got to see Bob. At Pine Knob.

A Chapter Ended

The California Horse has returned home.  Well, to his owner's parents, at least.  Not to California, where he originally came to Michigan from in May 2017, but to the farm in Oregon they had purchased since then.

After a little more than two years of leasing him, the time came to say goodbye.  I most definitely miss him.  Not just the daily routine we had, no it's more than that. I think that possibly I have felt a deeper connection with this horse than any of the ones I owned.

In the early morning hours last Wednesday, as the sun was rising, I met the horse shipper at the barn.  The California Horse's owner had made all the travel arrangements with them, I just needed to provide his paperwork for interstate travel, and have him and his gear ready to load onto the big trailer that would carry him away to his retirement out West.

This horse has offered me the chance to take my riding to a whole new level, and even as he was leaving, I again got a new experience: loading a horse onto a big horse van.  I was the one to lead him up that ramp on the side of the trailer, and stand with him while the stall partitions were put into place around him.  Other than snorting a little, and standing at attention with his head up, reminding me just how huge an 18 hand horse is, he was very good.

He waited patiently for everything to be secured, the ramp to be stowed, and the door shut.

Then the chapter where he and I share life together closed, and he left for the new chapter of his.

Goodbye, California Horse.  Thanks for the experiences, the knowledge and the memories I will carry with me forever!

(Post Script: I got a text, about 48 hours later, that he had arrived to Oregon safely and was settling into his new home.)