Keep on Travelin'

I hate packing. I think I spend so much time selecting my outfits before a trip because its easier for me to think, "But what if I step in something wet, and I need an extra pair of dry socks?" than, "But what if the plane goes down and we all die a terrible painful death?"

But my favorite part of getting ready to leave is eating all the food in the house. By the last day we've got nothing but milk, celery, a chunk of cheese, and apple juice. I feel like the Macgyver of dinners, if Macgyver just threw stuff out and bought pizza. We also have very similar hair.

Road Trip: On the Road Day Four

Miles thus far: 2482.0
Last night at the Motel 6 we met some very nice bikers who thought our cat was adorable because every time a new bike arrived, she'd jump up in the window and watch them.

The last day was shorter than the others, we took a nice route through Tahoe, and I almost got sick from all the swerving roads, but it was nice. Nevada, however, was not nice. 400 miles of desert, even driving 85 miles an hour, that's too much desert. Although, I did hit a tumble weed. that was cool.

6:42am 59 degrees: Departed from Motel 6
6:48am: Burger King, coffee: $3.93
6:56am: Departed from Burger King
6:13am (7:13am): Crossed into Pacific Time
6:53am: Entered Deeth Starr Valley
7:18am: Breakfast, McDonalds, $8.83, (PEED)
7:31am: On the road again
7:38am: Gas stop: $38.21
7:52am: Tunnel
10:52am 68 degrees: Stopped at rest area, switched drivers (PEED)
12:17pm: Gas stop, Carson City, NV $40.34
12:24pm: On the road again
12:36pm 68 degrees: 7,146ft Spooner Summit
12:30pm: Picnic Lunch, Shoals Vista Point (PEED)
1:00pm: On the road again
1:02pm: Tunnel
1:40pm 7,382ft Echo Summit
2:35pm: Switched drivers
3:35pm: Enter Davis!
3:48pm: Arrived at Clubside Apartments
Total miles: 3082.8

Even using our food money at the tolls, we made it all the way to Davis with 4 dollars left. It was a very successful, and eventless trip. And we've got photos. Oh boy, do we have photos...

Road Trip: On The Road Day Three

Today was all highway driving. We had planned on making it as far as Salt Lake City (799.14 miles) but Utah turned out being so pleasant (honest-- No snark!) that we drove all the way to Wendover, UT (919.93 miles) and we sit, walking distance from the Nevada boarder, happily held up in another Motel 6.

Now, I'm off to try to convince Mike to take me to a casino. But first, here's what we did today:

Day Three:
6:40am 74 Degrees: Departed from Grand Island, NE Elevation 1,800 ft
7:11am: Passed under the Great Platte River Road Monument
8:29am 73 degrees: Breakfast; Burger King $12.13 (PEED)
8:50am: On the road again
8:13am: (9:13am)L Crossed into mountain time 1,711.9 miles traveled thus far
10:10am: Entered Wyoming; Switched Drivers (PEED)
10:22am 71 degrees: On the road again; Pine Bluffs WY Elevation 5,049 ft
10:40am: Hilldale, WY First spotted the Rocky Mountains
10:58am: Gas Stop; Cheyenne 15.1 gallons (39.70)
1:04pm Crossed continental divide Elevation 7,000 ft
1:55pm: Stopped at a rest area; (PEED)
2:00pm: On the road again
2:40pm: Lunch; Arby's $15.18; switched drivers (PEED)
2:59pm 61 degrees: on the road again
3:11pm 58 degrees: We went through a tunnel-- it was pretty cool.
3:28pm: Passed Little America, WY Advertised for over 200 miles-- not that cool.
3:59pm 53 degrees: Gas Stop $40.99
4:31pm 57 degrees: Welcome to Utah-- Life Elevated
4:54pm: Utah Welcome Center (27 miles into Utah) (PEED)
5:03pm: On the road again 2307.9 miles thus far
7:01pm: Salt Flats, UT
7:20pm 68 degrees: Wendover UT Motel 6
Total driving time thus far: 2,480.9

Road Trip: On the Road Day Two

Today was much longer than yesterday, we went from Toledo Ohio to Grand Island, Nebraska. Interesting side note: Grand Island is neither Grand, nor an Island.

Day 2:
6:45am: Depart from Toledo
7:35am: Toll $3.75
7:38am: Indiana
803:am 69 degrees: Breakfast, Hardy's $11.18 (PEED)
8:35am: Gas, $42.32
8:57am (central time, actually 9:57am) 80 degrees: Portage IN Toll $7.30
9:18am 82 degrees: Illinois Welcome Center (PEED)
9:26am: On the road again
11:51am: Iowa Welcome Center (PEED)
12:05pm: On the road again
1:35pm 90 degrees: Picnic Lunch of Spam and Pickle, and Egg Salad, Gas, $37.19

1:47pm: On the road again
4:30pm: Entered Nebraska
4:52pm: Rest Stop, Switched drivers (PEED)
5:02pm 91 degrees: On the road again
6:41pm 87 degrees: Motel 6, Grand Island, NE
View from our second story window (thats GreyCat):
Total Miles so far: 1,543.6

Road Trip: On the Road Day One

Here is a ticker of what we did. I'll fill it in with some yummy details when I don't feel like death.

Saturday August 28, 2010
7:27am 52 degrees: Departed Springfield Vermont
Here is a picture of GreyCat, she was VERY excited to get moving:

8:46am: Crossed into New York
9:26am 64 degrees: Breakfast, Dunkin Donuts $10.13 (PEED)
9:45am: I90W
10:02am 69 degrees: Dialed Mommie
10:52am 71 degrees: Service Area, Switched drivers (PEED)
1:58pm: Buffalo toll $12.85
2:28pm 81 degrees: Picnic Lunch, Gas stop $44.81 407.2 miles (PEED)
2:50pm: On the road again
3:27pm: Toll 3.15
3:30pm 81 degrees: Crossed into PA, switched drivers (PEED)
4:23pm: Ohio Welcome Center (PEED)
7:03pm: Motel 6 Toledo OH
Total Miles so far: 696
Heres a picture of the dinner we had at Bob Evans. Mike got the meatloaf, and if you can't tell, I got something called the deep dish chicken noodle, which was noodles and chicken in gravy, over mashed potatoes and biscuits. With a side of buttery dinner rolls. And a heart attack for dessert.

How to Travel Cross Country with a Cat

This post is dedicated to how we plan on traveling cross country with our adorable slightly crazed cat.

First of all, the vet was very clear in saying she does not recommend giving the cat medication to calm her down during the trip. So, no drugs for kitty.

We were given a Guinea Pig cage that fits perfectly in the back of the Camry. The cage is perfect because its much larger than a cat carrier, and its got enough space so she can move around, without the unnecessary height of a large dog crate. What it does not have room for, however, is a litter box. Now, seeing as she sleeps in one spot for eight hours at a time without needing to get up to pee, I'm pretty confident she'll be okay without the litter box until we can get to the hotel room at night, but just in case, I've lined the cage using an old felt table cloth, cut into strips. I lined it twice, and then covered the slippery cloth with an old sheet.
Here is the table cloth all cut up, before being put into the cage.
And here is the cage, all set up without it's lid:


We set the cage up a few days ago so she'd get use to it in the house, and she loves it, she eats all the food in the cage before going to eat her other food, she sleeps in it. Even goes in the little Hidie Hole.
Unfortunately, this is just what the cage looks like without it's cover. With the cover on, she wont go near the thing. Its like the difference between a nice home made just for her, and Soviet Russia.


Cat Prison.

Moving: Day One

So, we're not actually leaving Vermont until August 28th, but I think our move started today. As promised, the moving truck showed up, between the hours of ten and five. All of our worldly belongings fit into a 4 foot, by 8 foot, by ten foot space, with room to spare. With the help of some super strong friends, it only took 40 minutes. We'll see how well Mike and I do on our own once we get out there.