Journey's End

I have just been on possibly one of the best family vacations ever.  Ever.

We got in a car on Wed, and we started driving.  We went through Wyoming and into South Dakota, where we stayed for two nights.  Then we went into Nebraska and stayed for a night until finally returning home today.

It was amazing.  I saw more antelope than I knew lived in the west.  I fell in love with the sculpted desert of Wyoming, the wind and the dust and the sky reaching endlessly into white blue nothingness.  I saw most of the night constellations in the middle of South Dakota, including the ones that the city block out.  I stared up Devil's Tower, admired the lines from the rocks that fall in sheets down the sides.  I walked and met every president of the U.S. (at least their statue forms), and glanced upon the giant faces of Mount Rushmore.  I walked where pioneers once tread, I saw the wildness of the land, and I fought off mobs of grasshoppers and wasps.  I tried buffalo sausage and huckleberries and fresh made blackberry jam, too.  What's a trip without new food?

And I did it all with my family.  We laughed and joked and wondered together about things.  We slept in, ate meals, and just enjoyed each other's company in a way we haven't been able to do as much now that my sister and I are older.  And not once did we drive each other up a wall.

But all good journeys must come to an end, and this one was no exception.  It's fun to see new things, to try new things, to feel new things.  I am happy to be home, though.  Sleeping in my own bed is going to be wonderful tonight.

Thank you for indulging me, family and readers.  I hope you too one day get to experience the wilderness of the west.

~Meaghan

Here We Are.

Kansas.

The name speaks for itself.

Here's my take on it, with apologies to the folks who live out here, cause the Kansas folks really are nice people. I mean, I've had more people talk to me, be friendly, and just generally seem like decent people out here.

Which I suppose makes up for the state itself.

It starts off beautiful, with fields and trees and the sky that washed out blue that humidity can bring to the midwest. And then, after about two hours of driving, it turns.

It becomes one of those things where you realize that if you see another field again, you are going to scream. Where, if you think too hard about the miles across the state that you have gone compared to the miles you have yet to go, you will feel a pain radiate across your forehead as your brain threatens to blow. Where anything could happen, and no one would care, because it's freaking Kansas.

Kansas.

So now we are camped in a hotel in Topeka, which isn't terrible, except the guy downstairs has already given our room to another person (that was fun), and that we still have over 300 miles of Kansas to drive through as well as the eastern plains of Colorado.

Which looks an awful lot like Kansas for the first two and a half hours or so.

It was totally worth it, though. This trip has been fun, I've gotten to see a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while, and being in a car with my family doesn't totally suck.

I guess I can tolerate Kansas.

~Birdgirl90

When You're Awake...

...and you realize you should be in bed even though you aren't completely sure you're ready to bed, there's a problem.

What's even more of a problem is when you realize you're still up because your body is running of two different time zones. I mean, who's brilliant idea was that, to cut up the country into different time zones? I'm an hour ahead on Denver time, and an hour behind on St. Louis time. Blaaah.

Yes, I did just stick my tongue out at the computer screen as I typed that. Thanks for asking.

Sometimes I wonder if I'm developing some sort of mental thing as I write cause I feel like I talk to myself all the freaking time. Maybe that's normal, actually. Did anyone define normal yet? I highly doubt that. Oh look, I got off topic again...

So here I am in St. Louis, staying with a friend. I decided tonight that I would try to get her hooked on MST3K. Granted, I didn't expect her to become obsessed with it like I am, but I thought she would enjoy it.

I didn't realize she was going to fall asleep through it.

I don't know if it was because of the episode I showed her (it was Rocketship X-M because I felt like it explained the show fairly well - I mean, it is the first episode with TV's Frank...) or if it was because we had a packed day (we went to Fitz's for lunch, went to the zoo, and drove around the Arch - we would've walked, but the roads were closed due to flooding...). All I know is, she laughed some and then passed out.

So while she's sleeping, and I'm trying to decide if I want to sleep, I'm blogging and keeping tabs on my perfered forum.

I'm really a nerd, aren't I. And please don't answer that.

I guess I'm going to try to sleep now. Oh wait, my iPod is still charging - I wore the battery down a ton the past few days. That's one thing I'm really good at: forgetting to charge my electronics until the last minute. Phone and iPod alike get neglected until the battery is nearly dead. I think the only thing I do charge regularly is my computer, and that's just cause I'm on it so much.

Alright, I've rambled enough for the evening. I really do go off topic easily, don't I? I think it must just be my nature. What are you going to do, right?

Have a great night, Cyberland Readers, and I will write again soon.

~Meaghan

(Anyone else notice how I change my signature between my username and my real name? I gotta find some consistancy, lol.)

I'm Alive!

I am mastering the art of procrastination. Hence, why I have not updated here is what feels like an eternity. Ok, that's overstating, but you get the idea. Plus, I'm on the road and not blogging from the safety of my room, instead relying on internet connections from hotel rooms across the Midwest.



Right now, though, I'm staying with a friend of mine in St. Louis. Her internet is decent, I must say, but I can't stay long because I only get these few days with her before I'm gone for a few more years.



Basically, traveling in a car across Kansas and Missouri sucks, seeing family is awesome, staying with friends is a blast, and I will never take White Castles for granted again.



I got to meet my cousin's girlfriend (who is totally and completely awesome, I might add), and so I guess that officially means I'm next in line, which is odd. Considering my dating record, though, and how much I clam up around the male population, I think singality is probably still going to be with me for a while. It was also really nice to catch up with everyone.



We went for BBQ at Gates BBQ in Kansas City today, which was great. The BBQ is terrible for some reason, but the trade off is that the Mexican food is probably some of the best I have ever had. We drove around my mom's old neighborhoods, and then headed to St. Louis, which is where we are now. I'm staying with my friend, and the rest are staying in a hotel.

And now I'm going to bed, as I am exhausted. I realize this is not the best blog update I've done, but I promise you, Cyberland Readers, that I will write a better, in detail blog post once things settle down.

Until the next go,

~Meaghan