Ready or Not... Here comes Life!

Well, about five days ago, I arrived in San Antonio, Texas.  Four days ago, I applied for a job with Travelocity and got a call back and initial phone interview that evening.  Three days ago, I did an in person interview and that evening got an offer from them to become a sales agent with their company.  Yesterday, I got my confirmation email and took a drug test, that I of course past.  Today, I finished my online paper work and submitted it, printed additional paper work to fill out tonight, saw an apartment with immediate availability that will let me have Bloomers and Chris, it is small but clean.  I sometimes think that life moves really fast for me.  When I talk to people about this move to San Antonio they are a little shocked at how quickly it is happening but I think that I am just making up for all the time I used to find this place.  I wonder if I had spent less time finding this place, if things would be moving slower.  Is God just being really nice to me or am I being set up to fail?  I like to think that this is just a blessing because God knows that I need one.  Maybe it is naive but I still think God cares about me enough so that when I can't figure it out on my own, He sends me a little help.  So I am going with, Thank You God!  As for San Antonio, I don't think it has hit me yet that I will be living here.  Today, I was thinking about this weird woman dancing by the Alamo when I was there and it hit me that I am still in that city!  The city with the weird woman is the city that I am in right now!  This may sound crazy but I had started to think that I was just going to end up back in South Dakota and that I would never get out.  I don't think that there is anything wrong with South Dakota, don't take that wrong, I will always love it but if you spent your whole life saying that you wanted to leave and you had never made it you would understand.  It isn't South Dakota so much as it is wanting the potential of somewhere else.  I wanted to try to live somewhere new and different.  I will hope for the best here.  This city has more people in it than the state of South Dakota so I just hope not to disappear into it.  I really want to meet some nice people and start making friends.  Wish me luck, please everyone.  I just might need some.

Well... This may be it!

I am in San Antonio, Texas and I may just end up living here.  Why you ask am I picking San Antonio?  Mostly because I am just about out of money.  That isn't the only reason though.  This morning it rained.  That may seem like a silly reason but when you are me and it rains in the middle of a draught where you are at, you take that as a sign from God and just hope that He wasn't saying this place is super depressing, move on.  Last reason?  I applied for a job this morning and got a call back this afternoon.  I interview tomorrow and if it works out I start work on Monday.  If that isn't a sign I don't know what one would be.  As for San Antonio, this isn't really where I expected this trip to lead me.  It is hot and dry here and those are not my two favorite things.  Part of what I loved about Oregon was that its cool and wet but here I am in Texas.  I can't complain too much though.  It is November and I'm able to wear shorts, the Alamo was nice, other great parks and if I say I am from San Antonio people know where that is on the map.  The things I like the most about where I am are the hostel that I am staying at and Church's Chicken.  The San Antonio International Hostel is gorgeous.  It is an old mansion that they converted in to a hostel and in the busier season I think it is a bed and breakfast.  For $25, I get to stay in a room with a really nice bed and tonight I will be relaxing in a claw foot bath tub.  That is what I call value.  As to Church's Chicken, I was hungry and I figured that it would be a shame to not eat fried chicken.  I choose Church's because of all the people in the parking lot.  I went in and a nice lady told me that the special was a leg and a thigh for a dollar!  I got it and am now ruined.  It was exquisite!  The best chicken I have ever eaten!  So, if I get a job tomorrow, I will stay and live in San Antonio.  If I don't, I will leave.  At this point, it is up to God!  Do your best for me Big Man!  Please?

Roswell and Carlsbad Caverns

Roswell was fun.  The International UFO Museum and Research Center is strange to say the least.  There are tons of displays of "evidence" supporting that a alien craft crashed in a field nearby and a large collection of art and such of what the aliens would have looked like and what they look like in the popular imagination.  Along with the evidence of the Roswell crash there is support of alien life forms interacting this us in other forms.  IE abductions, ancient civilizations, crop circles and flying saucers.  All you would expect from the place.  Only cost $5 to got in and had free WiFi so it was all was good.  Overall, the town of Roswell, New Mexico is cute and dry.  Pretty much what you would expect from a desert city.  The village, what the signs say instead of city in New Mexico, is larger than expected and the people in this state have been some of the friendlyest I have met so far.  Today, after buying a fanny pack at Walmart, I headed to Carlsbad Caverns.  This place would have been worth the money but since it was covered by my federal parks pass it was free to get in for myself and the two random strangers that I met in line and haven't seen since.  My pass cover three people so I shared.  It is beautiful down in that cave.  The big room is a little over a mile of walking but not really strenuous and has tons of great formations.  I didn't do any of the ranger led tours.  The big room and the original entrance are self guided and were enough for me.  I went down the elevator, walked very slowly around the big room loop, went up the elevator, then walked down the original entrance that smells rather strongly of what I'm sure is bat poop, around the big room loop very quickly then up the elevator.  I thought about trying to walk up the original entrance but two things prevented me from doing it.  One, it was too late when I got back to the main room and two, it was over a mile walk going up a 20% grade 750 feet.  Down was good enough.  I highly recommend coming to the caverns though because as cool as the caves in the hills are this one is a totally different experience.  I'm told that the ranger led bat show is awesome but it is only from May to October when the Mexican flat tail bats are migrating to this area but the bats are mostly in Mexico now.  They still let you sit and watch the bats come out, I saw at least five, but there is no range there to answer questions.  They told me that the colony of bats that live there in the summer is from 250,000 to 500,000 bats strong, which is why the entrance is covered in poop and smells funky. Anyway, this place was splendid and it was an experience that I loved.  Oh, and I almost forgot to say, Carlsbad Caverns has flush toilets in the cave.  Yes folks, flush toilets 750 feet below the surface.  How could I not love them?  Off to Texas tomorrow.  Lone star state, prepare yourself.

Taos and Santa Fe

Well, I did pass briefly through Colorado but since the only thing I did there was buy gas I'm not counting it.  On my arrival in Taos, New Mexico I found that it is an easy place to be homeless.  Yeah.  I slept at the Walmart and then showered at the Youth and Family Center.  Total expense.$2.  Yep. Cheap persons dream and of it hadn't gotten down to 20 degrees that night it would have been perfect.  While in Taos I visited the Pueblo village and took a tour from I nice young man.  You do have to pay to go into the village and there is an additional fee to take pictures but the tour was free.  I learned a lot including the fact that I am way too fair skinned to wander around with out sun screen on in New Mexico.  Yep, I was nice and rosie by the time I left.  I went downtown in Taos as well.  I will just say that there are a lot of art galleries and leave it at that.  That afternoon I drove to Santa Fe where I stayed at a nice little hostel and made my decision to go to Roswell.  Nice staff lady and hot shower make for a happy Emily.  I walked around a really cute little neighborhood and talked to a nice man who made Santa Fe sound like a great place to live.  This morning I woke up to a white world.  I think it is a bit funny that the only places it has snowed on me are both in deserts.  Anyway, I got to Roswell today and to town is really quite cute and the UFO Museum, there is only one, is cheap and a strange mix the serious on the crazy.  Having fun.  How you are as well.  Until next time...

Home.

For the first time, when I woke up today all I wanted was to be home with my family or settled down.  I thought of just stopping and staying where I was and the thought didnt sound half bad.  It may sound odd but even when I was in Oregon and thinking of settling there I kept going because I wanted to know what would come next.  Today, I woke up and just didn't care anymore.  All I wanted this morning was to sleep in a bed that was all mine, to go to a job and not need to think about finding one and to not get on my car again for a very long time.  Thank God I'm super stubborn!  Not even I am allowed to stand in my way.  So I got up and toured around Taos, New Mexico and moved on to Santa Fe.  I will love my new home and I will know it.  I will not give up...

Utah gave me PMS!

Okay, that isn't true but I didn't really like just about everything about Utah.  My friends that where sure that I would get stuck in Utah where wrong about that.  My Utah visit can be broken in to two parts: Salt Lake City and Arches National Park.

Salt Lake City:

I would be lying if I said the people here aren't friendly but that is also part of this places problem for me.  EVERYONE was super friendly to me.  It kind of freaked me out!  The people here where a little on the pushy side and that is okay but it seemed like everyone that I met in Salt Lake wanted to be my best friend and I am just not comfortable with that.  I am a friendly person but this was overdone even for me.  Example?  At the hostel I stayed at, clean but kind of creepy because people live here instead of just staying as they pass through, some guy sat down and started chatting with me.  This I am okay with chatting, chatting is normal.  The part where it gets weird is where after about 5 minutes of acquaintance he asks where I'm from and if he can come visit me there.  He never asked my name!  I pointed this out and he said he was getting to that, so I politely excused myself and spent to rest of the night hiding in my room, that was really my roommates room since she had her dresser, mini fridge and her stuff was everywhere.

Arches National Park:

This place might have been able to redeem Utah if the campground had had showers.  I think that if I am going to have to pay $25 to get in the park and another $20 to camp that you should provide showers.  Everywhere else I stayed that I paid more than $15 to sleep at I got I nice hot shower for my money.  Sure I don't expect Walmart to provide me with a shower but I don't have to pay to sleep there.

The good stuff:

Now that I have complained extensively about the things I didn't like, which is why I say it gave me PMS (I feel super bitchy), I will say that Utah was Beautiful.  It took all that stark vastness that is Nevada and made it wonderful by allowing me to get closer than I would have thought possible.  In Arches National Park you are able to hike right up to these wonderful natural monuments and see how large and wonderful they really are, making you feel small and insignificant.  In Salt Lake City you can take a tour of the Conference Center and if the weather is nice go up and the roof and see this great garden that is planted there.  I highly recommend it.  You can also go up in the Business Building and have great views of the city.  Wandering Temple Square is fun but fair warning to all my non LDS friends, there are a lot of missionaries there.  All the LDS tours are free and the guides didn't try to push and agenda that I could see but answers are given from the Churches perspective, so you might just want to let them have there way, these are the churches buildings and I would advice at least respecting that no matter your views on the church.

This is what I'm talking about

These pics are from Utah but looks pretty much the same.

Nevada

The state of Nevada is sadly what I expected.  After going to Las Vegas a couple of times I had hoped that the rest of the state would be cleaner.  I'm not talking smut, I'm talking dirt.  Everywhere I look is the same thing: dirty, desolate and dry.  The only thing that is growing here is scrub bushes and trees around places that have water.  I learned an important lesson though: When looking for a rest area make sure that there are trees there.  No trees means no running water and no flush toilets.  I almost barfed.  It was bad.  Thought of taking a picture but couldn't bring myself to stand that close for that long.  Anyway,  Slept last night in the Winnemucca Walmart parking lot and had my first truck stop shower.  I have made it three weeks from home before resorting to this and not because there is anything wrong with truck stops, they just weird me out for some reason.  The Flying J in Winnemucca was very clean though and the water was nice and hot and no time limit that I could find.  Cost about half of what I would have paid to stay in a campground with no shower and that is counting the money that I spent at Walmart.  I know all the reasons not to like Walmart but am super super grateful that they let me sleep there.  The dry heat out here kind of sucks though.  Even after putting lotion on my face it feels dry and I got a nose bleed.  Pretty gross.  So, what do I like about Nevada?  I haven't spent as much money and the dry heat makes my hair look awesome.  Having a very good hair day!  That added to the very nice clean public library in Elko is making this state okay.  Last note on Nevada, if you like stark, expanses of rugged mountains with no trees, it is beautiful.  I can see why people like it, it just isn't my style.  Oh well, off the Salt Lake City.

Last day in California

Yesterday, I left San Francisco and started moving East.  West was blocked by the Pacific Ocean and my car just isn't made for that kind of terrain.I had a blast in San Francisco.  I went on a pub crawl with the people from the hostel that I was staying at and danced the night away.  Some girl even told me I have excellent stamina!  It wasn't even creepy!    The next morning I woke up and walked to Ferry Square before picking up my car to leave.  Observations on San Francisco:  everywhere you go some one is smoking weed and the city stinks, walk is a GREAT workout for my legs and butt (lots of steep hills), the people are very friendly, and thy city is beautiful.  Last night, I drove back to Midtown, picked up my dog and made my final decision.  What was deciding on?  Which route to take out of California and I picked Lake Tahoe. Not sure if that is spelled currently but I'm gong with it.  Camped last night at a campground with no running water but plenty of drama and I'm proud to say I wasn't involved in any of it because unlike some people I don't let my dog run loose if I can help it.  The neighbors don't have any such rules for there dog and when said dog ran over to some one else's camp site the dude there pulled a gun.  The neighbors tried to involve me but I was on my way to the bathroom, not really what unwashed doing just wanted to find an open bathroom, so I said I needed to pee and walked away.  Arrived at the lake today and the water is crystal clear and beautiful.  Well, I think I will head toward Reno so I better get on the the road.  Have a Happy Halloween, all!

Some pics from San Francisco

I took these while walk tonight

Northern California and Cousins

Well, I can't say that I love California.  I keep trying to tell myself it is because of the cost of living or something but I think it may be the people.  I came down US 101 and went from there over to Middletown where some of my cousins live.  It was really nice to be around family after two weeks on the road.  I was feeling pretty lonely.  It is weird to be lonely when you are still speeching to your family every couple of days but that is how I am I guess.  I started being really forward with strangers.  Maybe it is the tour guide in me but I would talk to strangers like we are the oldest of friends and by the looks on some of their faces that is weird.  Anyway, I reached my cousin's house and stayed there from Sunday to today.  I had only thought to stay a day or two but I stayed a week.  My cousin Marg took me all over the place and even thought of going on my trip with me to see San Francisco and Santa Cruz but she couldn't get away so I am alone again.  While there I saw vineyards and relaxed.  It was great and part of me wanted to stay longer but I decided to head out instead.  I'm in San Francisco now and staying at a cute little hostel.  Not sure what I want to see first but I better get to it.  Sending my love home.

Oregon, the beautiful fair weather state

I will be honest many people have told me the eastern Oregon is a lot like eastern Washington and just not that beautiful but I drove the entire coast of Oregon on US highway 101 and I can say the the coast of this state is spectacular.  I love it.  I am not sure if I can but I would like to live on that wondrous stretch of land.  Amazing beaches spotted with giant rocks that just seem to be randomly scattered about in the sand and water.  Thickly forested mountains that made me feel like I was lost in a fairy tale story.  Quaint little towns with adorable shops that have cute names like Tsunami Coffee.  I really didn't want to even try continuing but I still need to see more and the prevalence of things with the wired tsunami in them makes me a little nervous.  Funny or warning?  Both, I think.  Anything else to recommend this state?  The weather.  The people here don't quite seem to understand that if you are still expecting the first freeze of the year at the end of October, you are very blessed.  The few transplants that I have spoken to understand my feeling and tell me the rain can be a bit depressing but I think they just don't remember how depressing snow can be.  Gwynne has assured me that she is willing to move here if I do but I will wait a little longer to decide and continue enjoying this trip.  Am in California now.  Wine country.  Not likely to drink any but it is still quite pretty.  Am going to see about visiting San Francisco while I'm here.  Wish me luck.

Thoughts on Washington

Yesterday, I left Washington and I would like to share my thoughts on the state.  First, while there I visited Spokane, Yakima, and around the Pacific coast including a town named Kelso, like the kid in That 70's Show.  I didn't really like the cities.  Spokane was nice but seemed a little too image obsessed for me.  Yakima felt dangerous. I don't know why, nothing happened to me there.  It also looked reminded me a little too much of South Dakota.  As for the coast, I loved it but where I would want to live I just couldn't afford.  I did stay at a campground in Cape Disappointment, which was not disappointing.  The site I got was about 30 feet from the beach, just past some trees and 50 feet from the ocean.  I could hear the ocean all night and slept like a baby.  It was awesome!  At least nothing bad happened in Washington.  I woke up to nothing but trouble here in Oregon.  So far, a creepy was standing outside my tent when I woke up and my car wouldn't start.  I'm not sure about you Oregon, it feels like you are trying to force me to stay and as beautiful as it is here, I'm not sure that I mind if I am stuck here.

Happy Birthday to me.

For my birthday I decided to rent a room in a hotel, well motel but whatever.  This place most definitely isn't the Ritz but it is okay.  Or is when the power is on.  Friday, I went all over the Grand Teton (French for breast) National Park.  That place is beautiful and the name makes me laugh.  What not to love?  Yesterday, I visited Old Faithful one last time, went to the Artist Paint Pots, stunning, and hiked all over Mammoth Hot Spring, lots of stairs, before leaving Yellowstone.  On the was out I saw a bear, two bison, and a herd of elk.  Pretty good for a last day.  I ended up in Bozeman, MT where I spent the remainder of my birthday.  Bloomers and I had fun sleeping on a bed that had real walls around it and I took two showers and washed my hair three times.  I was very clean.  We also watched lots of television.  It was nice.  This morning, we got up and hit the road and are now almost to the state of Washington.  Now to figure out where to sleep.

Old Faithful and surrounding area

Thermopolis Pros vs Cons

I like Thermopolis.  It is... well... nice.  I stayed there all yesterday and have compiled a list of reasons for and against living there.  Pros: the people are really nice, free hot springs, beautiful landscape and easy access to hiking.  Cons: good place to retire, overly friendly deer (Bloomers and I were chased by a group of them), not a lot of work.  Well, we will see.  I did like that no one disturbed me while I was sleeping in my car in the Hot Springs Park but I don't think that should be a pro for living there.  Got the Yellowstone today and the park ranger had great news for me, one of the camp grounds doesn't have pottable water anymore so it is FREE!  YAY FREE!  I like free especially after spending $80 on a year round, all federal parks admittance pass. I think it will pay off in the end, I hope.  Bye for now.

Wyoming Dinosaur Center

Had to visit without Bloomers but it was awesome anyway.

Bloomers in Thermopolis

Touristing in Thermopolis with Bloomers.

Dang Snow!

I have called Yellowstone Road Conditions THREE times and still getting the same message!  Why are you doing this to me Yellowstone?  All I want is to come visit you and what do you do?  You have a blizzard that shuts down some of your roads and advise snow tires for the majority of the remaining roads!  I guess I shouldn't complain, Bloomers and I have been having a great day.  We started off the day by visiting the White Sulfur Springs.  After that it was off the have a nice soak in the public springs for me.  Next, we both hiked to the top of a hill that looked a lot smaller from the ground at the bottom than it felt going up.  Last, we visited the Big Spring which has the strongest smell.  I felt pretty bad for poor Bloomers because as we were going over the swinging bridge he would randomly see through the wooden slats and get all scared seeing that there wasn't really ground below his feet.  He was my brave dog though and didn't even hesitate before going back on the bridge to cross the river again.  He really seems to like the trip so far.  I think he just likes that I can't seem to get away from him.  My poor baby, he has issues and they are all my fault.  I am at the public library now.  I love libraries because they just can't seen to bring themselves to kick my loser homeless butt out.  They let everyone in.  I will post more pics as soon as I can but now I am off the the Wyoming Dinosaur Museum.  Write again soon!

Good bye South Dakota!

I have left my home behind and am in Thermopolis, WY.  It's a nice town if you can get over the smell. Aww, sulfur!  How you remind me of summer.  So far I have realized two things.  Thing 1: I love mountains.  Driving through the Big Horns, even in the dark made me feel peaceful and at home.  When I spoke to my grandmother a week or so ago she said mountains frighten her because you can't see what is surrounding you like you can on the praire but for me it is opposite.  You can't hide on the plain.  Thing 2: I will always forget something.  What have I realized that I have forgotten this time?  My laptop and my skilled.  I'm sure there is more that I haven't remembered yet but I'm already a little sad about what I know I dont have with me.  Tomorrow, I am planning to go relax in a free hot spring, call the Yellowstone road conditions phone # the nice lady at the information center gave me and hopefully head to Yellowstone National Park!

Struggle

Help!  I am having some serious doubts!  I am not reconsidering leaving, just which route I will take to start my trip off.  The Bear Tooth pass is closed and I am worried about getting over the Rockies.  I am considering going South into Colorado to get past the Rockies but I want to go to Glacier National Park.  What should I do?  Go with the shortest route or the logical route?  It is me and I am rather reckless at heart so I know what I want to do but I promised that I would use common sense.  We will see.

Not home

Okay. So I am leaving Sioux Falls today and not on Sunday like I had planned.  I wanted to stay until this coming weekend to go to Dakota Days with my sister and friends but the anxiety is getting to me. I am worried that bad weather will force me to stay somewhere that I don't really want to be. I want to be West of the Rockies before November.  I am more excited to start my trip then ever.  I am going to miss having family and friends in easy reach but that is no surprise.  After all, who wouldn't miss all the awesome people that I have in my life?  A special thank you to the people who put up with me and put me up for the night. I do love sleeping on a bed!

Bye, Bye Minnesota.

Well, I am in South Dakota.  I left Minneapolis yesterday after going to a movie with Lindsay.  What movie?  Drive.  I don't know what to say about this movie.  It is boring, confusing and graphically violent.  If you want to be bored and confused then watch people be brutally murdered then this is the movie for you.  Thankfully, I didn't dream about it.  The reason for that may be that I slept in an abandoned campground and had a hard time falling asleep when my phone had no signal.  I kept thinking that this place would feel a lot safer if there was anybody here but it was just out in the middle of the woods.  On the bright side, I woke up with the sun and hit the road without any issues.  I am planning to head back to Spearfish on Sunday and be out of there by the following Wednesday.  I would use dates but I am not positive what dates I am talking about at this moment.  From there, I will be headed West.

Zoo!

Lindsay and I went to the Como Park Zoo and I forced Lindsay to be in a few pictures. I am such a mean friend. Just ask Lindsay.

Valley Fair!

My friends and I at Valley Scare

Portfolio Show

Yay! Lindsay is a college graduate!

Walking in Minneapolis with Lindsay

Minneapolis!

I made it to Minneapolis, MN!  I am neither dead nor badly injured and am proud to say that Google did right by me and I wasn't lost once!  All who know me know that that is a rather significant accomplishment.  I have no idea what I am doing but the ground isn't moving under me so I am okay with it.  The one thing I know for sure at this point is that I am going to Valley Scare on Saturday and will try to take more pictures with my phone to post for all to see.  Hoping for Scary, Good Fun and Rollercoasters!

Pictures!

 Big Bend Dam,  Ft. Thompson, SD  Windy!
 Relaxing at the Cook's in Vermillion, SD

Drama, Drama, Drama

So far, am feeling a little cursed.  Why?  Well, the night before I am going to leave, I tripped over a dog and bruised my leg.  The bruise is almost as big as my hand.  Yesterday, didn't get out until 5:30 so decided to just sleep in my car.  I wanted to stay at a place that was familiar but didn't remember the way so put in to Google Maps to get directions.  Let's just say that Google was confused because there was no lake in that farmer's corn field.  Thank the Lord for that wonderful boy in Lower Brule that gave me directions.  So much better than Google.  In the end, I am thankful.  I can still walk, I didn't hit that skunk, it may have ended up taking me an hour and a half to go twenty miles but I was safe in the end and made it to Sioux Falls where my friend Edie let me borrow her shower.  Life is Good!

Is this thing on?

So all are on the same page of my life... My name is Emily and I am from the Black Hills of South Dakota. I have never lived anywhere outside of South Dakota so have decided to have an adventure. My adventure will be a strange one. I have made the decision to leave home, sell my belonging, and live in my car with my dog for a while so that I can see as much as I can before settling down. I will be looking for a new place to live and I don't care where it is as long as it's new. At least new to me... I will be starting my adventure on Monday, the 19th, by visiting my loved ones before I leave. After that, I will come back to the hills pick up my dog and head west. Where will I end up? We will see...