Happy 2009

Have you made resolutions? Set goals? Does it matter? Do you care?
2008 was an amazing year for me! It was so good, I'm sorry to see it end. The swimming pool I manage started renovation in April. A very good thing! I experienced another fantastic Worship Conference at Saddleback Church in June. While there, I got to visit one of my very favorite places... Disneyland! Also went to Knott's Berry Farm, and spent a day at Manhattan Beach (another one of my very favorite places). I got to share this trip with some of my favorite people, which made it that much better.
In July, I was able to travel to Bend Or and meet an amazing little boy named Christian Ruwaldt. He is a miracle baby and a total blessing to everyone who meets him.
Sep. & Oct. brought my trip of a lifetime which was the reason for the creation of this blog.
In November, we celebrated my mom's 80th birthday. What a blessing!
In Nov. & Dec. I found many "old" friends on Facebook, and it has been a lot of fun catching up with them.
In '09, I hope to take another trip (I have the travel bug), and to attend the Saddleback Worship Conference again. I also hope to lose some weight, and focus on my health overall.
We are way beyond the Bahamian Beaches now, but I hope to report on future trips soon.
May you all have a wonderful, blessed new year.

Weekend Update

After looking over my blog, I noticed a few things I forgot to mention that I consider worthy of being included here.
First, I did add a few pics to some of the older posts to give a visual along with what I wrote.
Second, on the "I Don't Like Ike" post, I forgot to talk about the Mexico side of the tracks. The train runs right on the border at this point. I don't know the name of the town I saw, but it was sad to see how those folks have to live. Major poverty. Something very interesting occured while we were stopped in El Paso. I stepped out of my room, and almost ran into a guy walking down the hall carrying a very big gun. He was searching the whole car. Apparently, there were several armed guys on the train. Turns out, they are Border patrol, and they search the train every time it stops in El Paso.
Third, while sitting up on the mountain in Colorado, I visited with a retired couple named Irv & Kay. Irv was a Social Studies teacher in San Mateo for 36 years. Since I was a Social Studies major, we had lots to talk about. Irv taught from 1956 to 1992. He said that during those 5 decades, things didn't really change, kids are kids...always.
The next day, I had lunch with Irv & Kay while we were passing the Great Salt Lake. None of us could figure out what was so great about it. I also had the chance to share my faith with them. They are not Christians, but they were open and respectful, and I really hope I was able to plant some seeds, or maybe water some that were already there.

I think those are the only significant things that I left out. Thanks again for sharing this journey with me. It was nice to have you all along.
God Bless

Home Again, Home Again

Day 33:

I spent a couple of hours visiting with my aunt. That's a picture of her at the top. She shared several stories of my grandparents that I hadn't heard before (they both died when my dad was just a kid). My grandfather was in the Drum & Fife Corp, and he played at President McKinley's inaugaration. Hmmm, that's word I've never written before. I hope I spelled it correctly. I'm sure Travis will let me know, lol. Anyway, lots of stories that were very interesting to me.

I left about 9:30, and decided to have brunch at Granzella's. It's been rebuilt after the fire, and looks exactly the same. I included a picture of it also. The food is still great, so if you've never been to Ganzella's in Williams Ca. give it a try.

I grabbed a pic of Mt. Shasta as I passed. It is still one of the most spectacular views of the whole trip. I stopped in Medford for a couple hours, then began the final leg of my journey. What a journey it's been! I saw incredible sights, met interesting people, saw dear old friends, experienced a myriad of new things, several natural disasters, encountered God in a way I never have before, and had the time of my life! I've never been so blessed by an experience. I haven't been able here to put into words all this trip has been.

I'm back in THE most beautiful place in this country. It's my favorite kind of day, cold & sunny. I've included some pics I took this morning. The majority of the people who live here, take it totally for granted. They don't know how blessed and spoiled they are.

Many thanks to my aunt Ruth and cousins Karen & Jenny, John & Melody Bailey, Mark & Sierra Middlebrooks, and Travis & Eva Lynn Lund for their incredible hospitality. Thanks to my family and friends for the many prayers lifted on my behalf over the past several weeks.

Big thanks to Kevin Rider & Jim Goodman for installing my beautiful new flooring while I was gone. It was great to come home to it. I've included pics of that too.

My biggest thanks to my God, and Savior Jesus Christ for delivering me from any fear or anxious thoughts that might have spoiled my trip, and for giving me great peace and joy like I've never experienced before. God is great!

I pray the same peace & joy, comfort, grace and mercy for each of you that God has bestowed upon me.

Be Blessed!

The Adventure's Not Over Just Yet

Day 32:

12:01 am, we are pulling out of the Reno Amtrak Station. The plan is to stop in Truckee and Colfax before reaching Sac. I want to stay awake for this last part of the trip. I'm not sure why.

We stop in Truckee and let 2 people off the bus. It's the middle of the night, the 2 motels we saw are full, and there is no one around, and no one waiting for them. These 2 people did nothing but gripe and complain since we turned back to Denver. They were in the room next to me, and they complained very loudly. At one point, I started singing loudly to drown them out. They are very annoyed by me. I tried very hard to feel bad for them. I finally managed to feel sorry for them.:)

A bunch of people of off the bus in Colfax. Wow, who knew that was such a destination?

Now the real adventure begins. After a few more miles, the driver starts shaking his head back & forth. Then, he starts rubbing the back of his neck, and the top of his head. A while later, he begins slapping himself in the face over and over again.

I'm glad I stayed awake.

I'm in the third row, so I lean up to the folks in the first row, and suggest they start a conversation with the driver. They had seen the same thing as me, so they agreed. They kept him talking, and that helped a lot. We arrived in Sac at 3:20, and I walked the 3 blocks to the hotel. Walking in downtown Sac in the middle of the night with 3 pieces of luggage, is an experience in itself.

When I got to the hotel, they had labeled me a no-show, and charged my card. I had to wait while she reversed the charges, and reinstated my stay. She felt bad for me, so she upgraded my room, and gave me an extended stay (extra 3 hours) which I thought was nice.

I was able to sleep until 10, and then called my cousin to come pick me up. The original plan was that I would arrive at 3:45 the day before, and I'd stay at my aunt's house that night. I'm so glad my family is flexible. I still wanted to stay and visit, and they wanted that too, so I got to spend the whole day with them. We had a great dinner that my cousin Karen prepared, and a great dessert, that my cousin Jenny prepared. Karen has 3 great kids that you see at the top of this post. Karen kept my van for me, and they really enjoyed it. I think I'm lucky they gave it back (joking). They were really thankful to have had it for a few weeks.

The family retires early, and i thought I'd be sitting up alone for several hours, but I was in bed by 9:30. I hadn't realized how exhausted I was.

I can't believe this is my last night away from home. It sure doesn't feel like I've been gone over a month. It's been a great trip.

Praise god!

What Happens in Reno

Day 31:

I last left you in Glenwood Springs after being bussed there. Boy did they try to suck up to us. Our beds were ready with a mint on the pillow. Extra pillow, extra blanket, and extra friendly staff. They knew a lot of people were really upset. Like it was Amtraks fault that a Union Pacific train derailed.

I woke up to sunrise in Utah. The area just East of Provo was really beautiful with lots of Fall colors. I expected more from Salt Lake City. You hear so much about it. The Great Salt Lake... what's the big deal? I'd much rather see Lake Tahoe, now that's an awesome lake.
Anyway, at Salt Lake City, they announced that we would be booted off the train again in Reno, and bussed to our destinations in California. People were furious. Amtrak wanted to get their trains back on schedule, and the easiest way to do that was to boot us and turn the train around.
We arrived in Reno at 11:30, and it was another mad rush to get everyone and their luggage on the busses. The train goes right through downtown Reno, and it was night, so it was really cool looking. If our stop had been a little longer, I would have run into Circus Circus for the buffet.

We are still 12 hours behind schedule, so instead of arriving at 3:45 pm, I'll get to Sac at 3:30 am. I called ahead to reserve a room at the same hotel I started my trip at. This means another early morning walk in downtown Sacramento.

God's Sense of Humor @ 10,000 ft

Day 30:

Well, this is it. I now board the train to head home. Yes, Travis (and Eva Lynn) woke up to say goodbye at 6am, and Trav helped me carry my stuff to the car. I punched the address into the GPS and headed for Denver. One little problem, the address I had was for the train station, not for the Hertz place. When I arrived at the station at 7am, I started searching through all my Hertz documentation for an address. There wasn't one. Did I panic? No. I prayed. Then, in the crack between the seats, I saw a map of the Denver area that they gave me. On that map, all the Hertz places in the area were marked. The place I needed was marked with a #2, and on the right hand side, there was an address. I punched that in, and arrived at the correct location a few minutes later...just in time. The shuttle was ready to leave, but they held it for me. Thank you Lord.

I got on the train and watched Denver fade in the distance as we climbed the mountain. Here, I had my first problem with a lack of trust. There were 2 issues before me. First, we were headed for Moffit Tunnel, a 6.3 mile long tunnel through the mountains. I have suffered from claustophobia for most of my life (I got locked in a closet as a kid). As I got a little nervous, I prayed and let it go. I knew everything would be fine, and it was. No problem, it didn't bother me at all. If I had thought about it, I would have realized that I was over it because the "roomette" on all the trains is not very big, and when you close the door and curtains, it's like being in a closet. This hadn't bothered me at all.

The 2nd thing, I didn't let go of. (I know that isn't proper english structure, just so you know). Beyond the tunnel is a town called Winter Park. It is also beautiful like the one in Florida, but in a different way. Winter Park is at an elevation of almost 10,000 ft. Now remember, I got kind of sick at 5,000 ft, so I got nervous. I prayed, but I didn't let it go. Guess what happened? A freight train in front of us derailed and we couldn't get through. They said we had to turn around and head back to Denver. The problem is, there was a problem behind us also, so we had to wait.

I don't believe that God said, ' okay, since you didn't trust me, I'm going to teach you a lesson'. My God doesn't work that way. I do believe he may have said, ' my silly child, you don't know what I'm capable of, or what you are capable of...let me show you'. This is what I consider to be a demonstration of his sense of humor. We had to sit at the top of the mountain for 6 more hours. I was fine. My headache did come back after a while, but it wasn't that bad. God took what was a bad situation for most of the people on the train, and used to my benefit.

By the time we got back to Denver, it was 8pm. That's 12 hours after we first left. There, they put us on busses, and took us to Glenwood Springs to get back on the train. We arrived there at midnight, so that ends day 30.

I added this picture of Kelly from yesterday. The rest of the pics are from the train during our hours on the mountain.

Pink Elephants, Mushrooms, & Castles

Day 29:

I woke up today with no headache. Yea!

The plan was to go to a new church that Mr. & Mrs. Lund have been wanting to try, but they had something come up unexpectedly, so we had to skip that. I did watch Joel Osteen on tv. Some people don't like him, but I think he is great for new Christians, and also for people who need encouragement... always a positive message.

For lunch we went to a Hawaiian Grill place called Rumbi's. It was really good! I had a chicken & shrimp dish that I really enjoyed. Wish we had one of these in CC.

The Lund's had a great idea for something to do with an old man who can't breathe up that high.

Miniature Golf. Eva Lynn had won a free game last time they went, and I thought it would be a fun thing to do. We actually had a really good time, even though we had had to play the first few rounds in the rain. (God still providing mild, cool weather for me). Travis beat us by a couple of points, thanks to an amazing hole in one. He actually came close to doing that several times that day. He was on a roll.

That evening, Kelly came up and we all went to dinner at the Olive Garden. I wanted to celebrate Eva Lynn's birthday which I had just missed a few weeks before.

I 've had a great time with the Lund's, and I'm sorry I have to leave tomorrow. I have to leave by 6:15 in the morning, and Travis says he is going to get up and help me with my bags. Travis and mornings don't usually mix, so we'll see.

By the way, Boulder is great!