I O Way... to Minnesota..... 071910

(Just pretend like you know what I was saying in my title for this one. Whenever I hear -or see- the word "Iowa," I can't help but think of a song I learned in grade school. The one about the 50 states. "I O way, Kansas, KentuckyLouisiannaMaine, Maryland... well, you get the idea.)

And it looks like I remembered the motel incorrectly. It was a year ago... and I'm working off of memory here. But perhaps you will notice the teeny little sign I was talking about in my previous post. I enlarged it, in case you can't find it either. Now imagine what that might have looked like at about 11 -11:30 at night. (No, it wasn't lit.)

Oh.. look, they have a lone lightpost in their parking lot. Wow.

Also notice how wet everything looks this morning? It was completely pouring when I went to check out. I was fortunate to have about 5 minutes when the rain let up to quickly load my car before the downpour started again. (The above pictures were all taken leaning out my car window... Since it was raining again, I didn't exactly want to take the chance of my camera getting wet. If you look really close, you can see it in this shot.)

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I seem to have this new habit of taking pictures while driving. No, I wouldn't recommend it. These are some favorite scenes along the way.

Actually, these were the most interesting views. Most of Iowa was quite boring (apologies to anyone from Iowa... not that there's anyone reading this but me... ;))

Personally, I really like the semi. I was fortunate to capture it... considering how fast we both were probably going.

There's a farm off in the distance. It took several tries to actually capture one.

And the clouds. Wow. Indescribable.

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Cue the "Hallelujah Chorus!" I've finally reached a cool destination again. It was my aim to visit Minnesota... Land O' My Birth. Plus, I've got really cool relatives who live there.

So glad to be welcomed by you again! I think this might be the first time I've actually seen the state sign. Usually we flew into this fantastic state. I'm just sayin'.

What Happens in Iowa.... Yeah, Right! 071810

As I was driving around in Missouri, after the sun had gone down, I hit a wall. No, not literally. Granted, I've really only been on the road for two days at this point. But they were very long days. A lot has already happened.

I'm also a little paranoid about missing the crossing into Iowa... I had almost missed the change into Missouri, and now it's dark. So, I had to stop.

I wasn't seeing anything on my GPS to indicate which state I was even in. I'm not sure how a person can get so disoriented in so short a time, but that's where I was. Huh... maybe those fumes had a little more effect on me than I realized...

The first opportunity that I had to get off the road, I took it. I saw a sign for a truck stop. Perfect!

I didn't exactly need to eat again... not after that Taco Bell debacle, so I was happy to see that there was a cute little country store attached. I walked around for a while... okay, cute was a stretch. But that's what I needed to do (stretch) so, for that, it worked. I happened to find some un-needed trinkets to purchase... so as I'm standing at the counter checking out, I happen to ask the clerk; "Where are we?"

"We're in Cameron." She didn't catch the blank look on my face... so I had to ask: "Where's that?"

I was surprised to find myself actually still in Missouri.
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It was very late when I arrived in my destination city for the evening, Des Moines, IA. When I was still in Kansas, putting the destination address into my GPS, I thought it a little bit odd that the location didn't come up so easily. Recognizing that I was running behind schedule, I picked an address that appeared to be in the same area. But how can you really tell, when still two states away? Duh.

Amazingly, when I arrived where I told the GPS to lead me, there was nothing there. Seriously. There was nothing but a pitch black street in a residential area. (Realize, I'm not saying it was dark just because it was late. There were almost no street lights on. The only street light around for quite a ways was at a gas station, but even that looked sketchy. I was NOT getting out in this location.)

You'd think I would learn from my previous getting lost episodes... this time, I can honestly say I tried.

First, I checked my address in the GPS. So far as I can tell, it matches the address on my motel confirmation page. Next, I tried calling the listed phone number. No answer.

Call again? No answer.

Now what?

If the neighborhood wasn't so... so... questionable, I probably would have gotten out and asked.

So, I sat there for a minute. I sat there trying to figure out what to do. A quick search for area motels on the GPS doesn't come up with the one I want. So that's out. Dang. If I hadn't already paid for these reservations (since it was WAY beyond when I could cancel and get my money back) I might have given up and tried to find something where I was. Surely things would make sense in the morning.

I'm beginning to wonder if this motel really exists... when I notice, on the confirmation page... in really, really small print.... The address has the motel in a different city. Interesting. Why does the name of the motel say it's in Des Moines then? Wouldl you be surprised if I told you that trying to put in that address came up immediately?

I was about 15 minutes out of my way. So, wasn't it beyond frustrating when I arrived at the new location... only to NOT find the motel I'm looking for?

Are you kidding me? I see McDonalds, Applebee's, another motel... but not the Motel 6. How is this even possible??

I think I drove around that particular cul-de-sac three times before spotting what I was looking for. Behind the very large Applebee's sign, is this teeny little sign telling me that the Motel 6 is back there. It's not even lit very well. I'm very nearly amazed that I found it at all.

So, believe me, I had something to say when I walked into that building. I wasn't mean, just frustrated. Which is exactly what I told the gal at the desk. She told me I should write a note to the manager, because that's exactly what she's been saying for months.

So I did. I was beyond caring that it was so late at night, that I had been driving all day and was exhausted before I got there. Dangit, I was going to be heard!

Imagine my surprise when I got a response back! The manager was very apologetic about my experience. On top of that, he told me that he took my comments to the city hall meeting that night. (Yes, that would be the night after the one I arrived on.)

Maybe that experience was a little more divine than I realized!

Atchison 071810

Oh Atchison, even to this day I can't say I'm pleased to think upon you. (And literally, we have a client who lives there. Hearing where he was from did not leave me with pleasant thoughts.)

Anyway... Story time, since I took no pictures at this particular stop.

I arrived in Atchison with a need to refuel, both my car and myself (it was dinner time). I picked one of the few gas stations in town, thinking them all about the same. While the gas hose was filling my tank, I decided it was also a good time to clean the bug guts from my windsheild. I was about halfway through cleaning the glass, standing on the driver side of the car, when I heard this loud WHOOSH! I ran to the passenger side of the car, where the pump was attached and saw a flood of gas flowing from the car. I panicked but somehow managed to turn off the pump.

I just stood there for a minute. No way that just happened. Now what do I do?

Finally, I went inside and asked for help. Surely the attendant would know what to do. (Me, I got no clue as this has never happened to me before.)

The gal tried to be helpful, but ended up deferring to a man who was sitting at some tables in the store. I assume he was the owner, because he clearly knew his way around. He also clearly wrote me off as a clueless female, making a comment about the signs they have on the pumps. (I looked later, there were no signs on the pumps. At least not the one I was using.)

He assured me that the gas smell would dissipate by tomorrow. This of course didn't help me, since I had many more hours of driving tonight. I'm also freaking out in the back of my mind when I start to consider all the things that could happen, since the back side of my car is now coated in gas.

The attendant was at least a little more sympathetic to my plight. She brought me a cup with some water and a rag so I could try to wipe down the side of my car. Thankfully before I drive off into parts unknown with my ticking time bomb of a car. I'm also glad to report that I suffered no adverse effects from the gas smell... You never know what could happen. Especially considering my luck!

After the gas incident, I was excited to find a Taco Bell. I mean, I hadn't seen one for a very, very long time. It just sounded so good. However... Instead of making up for the bad experience, it just compounded it.

Oddly, they had some different things on their menu. And then they ended up over cooking the spanish rice, which just made the burrito crunchy. Gross. I only ate it because I didn't have anything else... I wasn't going to stop again (to make a PB&J out of my trunk) and I was out of town with it getting dark.

I crossed into Missouri in the middle of a narrow bridge in unexpectedly heavy traffic. I didn't realize I was that close to the line... or I might have tried slowing down a lot more to get my line sign picture. I didn't want to completely miss taking pictures of the state, so got some right as the sun was going down.

A Topeka We Go... 071810

And yet another blast from the past...

Way back when... Again when I was still at ASC, chat rooms where the thing. So, I was chatting with this girl, somewhere. For whatever reason, she found out I was a Christian so decided that I had to talk to this one guy, because he was a really strong Christian. It took several attempts before we were both online at the same time, but finally we connected.

Jeremy was (is) a Christian and we hit it off right away. After several conversations (that I don't remember) a couple of ASC friends and I decided that we should take a road trip to Kansas to meet Jeremy. He lived in Topeka at the time, so we found a long weekend ... and we went.

I wish the pictures from that trip were digital, because some of them are (still) very funny. But, suffice to say, since I was passing by anyway, on a lark, I decided to stop back by the capital, since that's one of the places we went.

I don't know why, but I really like capital buildings. I happen to think Topeka's is particularly beautiful. Or maybe it's just a warm and fuzzy memory that makes it so. Anyway.

When I was in Topeka the first time, we (Marcos Trujillo, Sarah Brockman, Jeremy Albert and I) goofed off along the

front steps of the capital. Unfortunately, when I went back, that section was under construction.

I couldn't get to the exact spot where we were, but this is pretty close.

I don't know what else I can say about this stop. Especially without the other pictures here to be laughed at. It is amazing how different the place looks in the daylight too. (Yes, it was late and dark the night we were there. Guess that was obvious.)

Oh... Here's a fun memory: when we were driving around that night, we decided to stop at McDonald's for dinner. Sarah ordered a big mac. We were well away before we realized that they shorted her a patty. Naturally this resulted in new levels of "stupid" comments. Now instead of being a few cards short a deck, we created the big mac short a patty. Good times!

Manhattan Christian College

When I was still at Adams State College (Alamosa, CO), I remember when I made the decision to move to Manhattan. I told a bunch of friends. One gal's response was, "I love New York."

Well, I can finally say that I've been to New York (visited the airport in fact) but not exactly where I was moving to.

For the first 6 months that I lived in Kansas, this was my second home.

This is Joliffe Hall. Since I went to MCC to study music, this was where I spent a good portion of my time. (The top picture just happens to be the back side of Joliffe. It's also the side that faces K-State.)

The first picture is the main center for academics. I took some of the best classes in that building.. which I strangely don't remember the name of. The second picture is Coffin Memorial Student Center. (Is it only me, or is that a strange name for a student center? Hopefully it's named after someone!) The only reason I remember the name is because of the sign out front. Awesome!

This was one of my favorite places. It was smack dab in the center of all the buildings. I remember it being such a peaceful place.

I'm glad to know that upon going back, it hasn't changed.

Story Time: When I was living in Manhattan, there was a big to-do regarding the 10 commandments. At the time, they were on the lawn in front of city hall. But for whatever reason, it suddenly became "unconstitutional" to have them there. So, after a lengthy debate, MCC took possession of the monument. It now sits prominently in front of the main MCC sign.

The Little Apple 071810

The next planned stop on my trip was to the Little Apple: Manhattan, KS. When I was in college, I spent about a year in Manhattan. Granted, only about 6 months was I in school, the rest of the time was spent trying to make enough money to go back. It's amazing how expensive college is when you have to pay as you go.

This picture is one of the views I saw a lot the last 6 months I lived in Manhattan. As I drove back into town from St. George, KS, I would see the mountain and water tower. (But I'm getting ahead of myself...)

I also went scouting on my trip into Manhattan. I really wanted to see if I could find the places where I used to live and work. Although it's been more than 10 years since I had been back there, I don't think I did too bad. Well, okay, I got lost a couple of times and ended up driving for a while on a wrong road out of town... and another very nearly "off roading" road, I don't think I did too badly.

1021 Vattier: This was.... well, the location of the first place I lived in KS. It looks like it's now owned by K State and is used as off campus apartments for the students. When I was there, it was a big blue house with white trim. There was a cute porch out front (that I don't think I ever used.) The entrance I used was near the back side of the house. It was home to not only myself, but also 4 other co-eds. (What can I say, it wasn't my choice to co-habitate in a house with boys also. But I didn't have much of a choice. The owners would sign leases for the individual rooms. We didn't get to pick.

But, this was the house where we had quite the interesting adventures. If you can call it that. The guys who lived upstairs were slobs (sorry Jeremy). We had to deal with their bathroom over flowing, a termite infested couch, some flooding, and probably various other "disasters." It was a good time though. From there, my roommate Michele and I decided to move into a trailer park.

I think when we signed the lease, we were under the impression that the park was still in Manhattan. Much to our chagrin, the address was actually considered in St. George, KS. St. George is this teeny little town, about 5 more miles up the road from where we lived. Which makes it about 10 miles from Manhattan (if memory serves correctly. Fortunately the park hadn't changed too much, so after a miss-turn getting there, I found the trailer Michele and I lived in... thankfully looking the same as when I left it.

3884 Chestnut: I have never considered myself "trailer trash"... but I think living here made me come pretty close. My favorite memory from this place was when Michele and I realized we had to mow the grass. Naturally, we didn't have a mower, so had to borrow one from the office. The office was clear on the complete other end of the park from where we lived. I would almost say it was too far to walk, except that we could have managed it, if we really wanted to. But we didn't. So, we took Michele's Camero to the office... she drove back while I hung out the back of the car (her trunk was open, while I sat in it) and I dragged the mower behind the car. Picture it: I'm sitting there, with my legs dangling out the back of an old style (kinda junky) Camero, dragging a lawn mower. Awesome!

After I found my places of residence, I was on to trying to find my places of employment. The house and trailer might have been easy to find (had I used my GPS) since I already knew the addresses. I didn't know what the addresses were for the places I worked... So I was really driving blind now.

KHCA Angel 95 was my favorite of the jobs I worked at in Kansas. I got to be an on air DJ as well as the music manager for the station. Which meant I got to pick the music that was played on air.

Not bad for a sort of college student!

This picture (right) is an outside view of the studios. (I happened to be in Manhattan on a Sunday, which is when Angel is basically closed.) The window on the right corner of the building is a studio used for editing and clips that were used for shows later. The other two windows consist of the main, on air studio. This is where I spent most of my time at Angel.

Funny enough, right next door was an answering service. (As in telephone answering service. It's actually down a hall on the opposite side of the building from these windows.) I worked there for a short time while at the radio station. Lets just say the owner and I didn't exactly see eye to eye. I was actually known to run down the hall to help fix problems when I knew another DJ wasn't around... while at work on the phones. I didn't exactly last long there.

When my stint at the answering service came to an end, I still had to find work elsewhere. (I SOOOO love working two consecutive jobs.) I found a job at a Dara's Fast Lane (gas station). At one of the locations I worked at, I remember asking a gentleman to take his cigarette outside. No, there weren't any signs up either way, I just decided that I didn't want to breathe in what he was blowing out. Lucky for me, I found out after the fact that he was the owner's father. Whoops. Not long after that, I was moved to another location... this time a little ways out of town. (Maybe it was one that the father didn't frequent, at all...)