Saturday, June 30, 2007
Day 2: Ann Arbor, MI
We're safely tucked into our Comfort Inn for the evening in Ann Arbor. Got my hot tea and Blogger, John's got the remote and baseball galore: the world is as it should be. John slept like a log last night, I didn't sleep very well last night, but was refreshed enough to enjoy a nice continental break-trist with Schmoopie and open my CUTE birthday card and present -- an iPod Shuffle!! My big honkin' iPod is starting to do funny things, so he got me the teeny one that will fit perfectly into a small pocket or even just my hand when I have no pockets, and it's PINK!! YAY! My card was super-cute, I'll have to post a picture of it :)
Our day was filled with driving, driving and more driving. We spent a good portion of the day stuck in the hoards of Chicago traffic and the construction nightmare that is their tollway. I took lots of video clips of trees whizzing past and the traffic jams to show why we don't mind Minneapolis after all. John did all the driving today, which was a relief not only because I was tired, but he handles city driving much better than I do.
We saw a flock of sheep running around, a couple of wild turkeys, lots more birds of prey, horses and little baby calves :) All happy and alive!
Roadkill Report: one deer, one muskrat, one stiffy raccoon and lots of bits. Poo :(
Tolls: $3.90
Today's Mileage/Gas: 293.4, and 35.1 miles to the gallon (not as good as yesterday because of all that idling on I94). Gas set us back $26.03.
Our day was filled with driving, driving and more driving. We spent a good portion of the day stuck in the hoards of Chicago traffic and the construction nightmare that is their tollway. I took lots of video clips of trees whizzing past and the traffic jams to show why we don't mind Minneapolis after all. John did all the driving today, which was a relief not only because I was tired, but he handles city driving much better than I do.
We saw a flock of sheep running around, a couple of wild turkeys, lots more birds of prey, horses and little baby calves :) All happy and alive!
Roadkill Report: one deer, one muskrat, one stiffy raccoon and lots of bits. Poo :(
Tolls: $3.90
Today's Mileage/Gas: 293.4, and 35.1 miles to the gallon (not as good as yesterday because of all that idling on I94). Gas set us back $26.03.
Friday, June 29, 2007
Beloit Snappers WIN 3-0!
We made it to our first destination, Beloit, Wisconsin. I (rachel) drove the entire way today and it felt good to be on the scenic highway again, I feel like I could drive to Red Wing with my eyes closed now that we've driven down this way so much lately. It's beautiful as ever, the hawks, eagles and black vultures were out in full force, as was the stinkiest road kill I've ever smelt!
The drive was pleasant, the weather was absolutely perfect and we had fun singing to our silly songs together :) Once we hit Madison, Wisconsin the drivers became noticeably more rude, but I didn't use many expletives, so I must've been more relaxed than I thought. We made a stop for lunch about 11:30 to share homemade sammies, fresh berries and some Quaker snack mix and then again right before we came into Beloit, about 4:30 for more sammies, bananas and snacks at the most pristine rest area. My driving knee was really bothersome which I've never experienced before so it was nice to walk a bit.
Once in Beloit, we snatched up a hotel room at the Holiday Inn Express, another gem among roadside rooms, it's clean, uniquely designed and they even have a pool! If I would've remembered my suit, I could've gotten up early and done laps thus keeping up with my workout!! Then off to the Snappers game for a fan-TAB-ulous time!! It was the coolest game ever! We got scalped tickets for $4, and I met the mascot, Snappy the Turtle, right away and got pictures with him!! YAY! The game was great, very cool to watch these minor leaguers, they're so good but still a little rough. I loved all the errors, so unpredictable!! They won 3-0 and had fireworks after the game and we took some video of those :) There were the CUTEST kids there. One set of siblings had a funny, lighthearted peanut fight, playfully whipping peanuts back and forth; we had fun watching them. There was also the most adorable little girl who shyly came over to get Snappy's autograph on a novelty pink bat, she waited silently and patiently for him to finish with other kids. As he signed her bat, she sat down next to him, watching him intently with her hands crossed, then she politely said, "Thank you, Snappy". He patted her on the shoulder (you know that mascots never speak) and she bounced away to show off her treasured item to her parents. Later, she found him again and led him over to get her mom to take pictures with him. As John put it, "Now THAT is precious."Today was such a relaxing and romantic day! We needed it, John is SO relaxed. He's never more at home than when he's traveling AND watching baseball. I think maybe we should become mascots for a living so we can do both all the time ;)~
A change in trip plans; we decided tonight that since The Taste of Chicago is going on all weekend, and Chicago isn't really known for its pleasant traffic, and there are no tickets available to the Detroit Tigers/Twins game, we're just going to head off to Canada. Hell with it, I've never been there and I'd love to spend my birthday in a foreign country! So we'll be off for Windsor and Toronto tomorrow! Lots more driving, lots more memories ;)
Love to all!
R&J
Roadkill Report: Many deer out there today, stinky beyond stink and probably their spirits hovering over their carcases rolling their eyes at all the SUV's, then gallivanting away into astral fields a-plenty. A kitty bit the dust, as well as a fox and I think there might've been a skunk out there, too. A silent lament to all the poor animals today :(
Gas Tally: $26.55, and check this: 37.3 miles to the gallon!!!!!
Today's Mileage: 334
The drive was pleasant, the weather was absolutely perfect and we had fun singing to our silly songs together :) Once we hit Madison, Wisconsin the drivers became noticeably more rude, but I didn't use many expletives, so I must've been more relaxed than I thought. We made a stop for lunch about 11:30 to share homemade sammies, fresh berries and some Quaker snack mix and then again right before we came into Beloit, about 4:30 for more sammies, bananas and snacks at the most pristine rest area. My driving knee was really bothersome which I've never experienced before so it was nice to walk a bit.
Once in Beloit, we snatched up a hotel room at the Holiday Inn Express, another gem among roadside rooms, it's clean, uniquely designed and they even have a pool! If I would've remembered my suit, I could've gotten up early and done laps thus keeping up with my workout!! Then off to the Snappers game for a fan-TAB-ulous time!! It was the coolest game ever! We got scalped tickets for $4, and I met the mascot, Snappy the Turtle, right away and got pictures with him!! YAY! The game was great, very cool to watch these minor leaguers, they're so good but still a little rough. I loved all the errors, so unpredictable!! They won 3-0 and had fireworks after the game and we took some video of those :) There were the CUTEST kids there. One set of siblings had a funny, lighthearted peanut fight, playfully whipping peanuts back and forth; we had fun watching them. There was also the most adorable little girl who shyly came over to get Snappy's autograph on a novelty pink bat, she waited silently and patiently for him to finish with other kids. As he signed her bat, she sat down next to him, watching him intently with her hands crossed, then she politely said, "Thank you, Snappy". He patted her on the shoulder (you know that mascots never speak) and she bounced away to show off her treasured item to her parents. Later, she found him again and led him over to get her mom to take pictures with him. As John put it, "Now THAT is precious."Today was such a relaxing and romantic day! We needed it, John is SO relaxed. He's never more at home than when he's traveling AND watching baseball. I think maybe we should become mascots for a living so we can do both all the time ;)~
A change in trip plans; we decided tonight that since The Taste of Chicago is going on all weekend, and Chicago isn't really known for its pleasant traffic, and there are no tickets available to the Detroit Tigers/Twins game, we're just going to head off to Canada. Hell with it, I've never been there and I'd love to spend my birthday in a foreign country! So we'll be off for Windsor and Toronto tomorrow! Lots more driving, lots more memories ;)
Love to all!
R&J
Roadkill Report: Many deer out there today, stinky beyond stink and probably their spirits hovering over their carcases rolling their eyes at all the SUV's, then gallivanting away into astral fields a-plenty. A kitty bit the dust, as well as a fox and I think there might've been a skunk out there, too. A silent lament to all the poor animals today :(
Gas Tally: $26.55, and check this: 37.3 miles to the gallon!!!!!
Today's Mileage: 334
Groggy Excitement!
Well, I've not slept that hard in many moons! My normal 5 AM internal clock overslept until 7! Since I'm still covered in sleep-fairy-dust, John is fixing egg sammies for us so I can wake up a little over tea. He's bubbling with his usual travel excitement and I imagine he literally leapt out of bed. My throat is pretty tender :( so I tossed all the meds we have into my bag just in case I get ill on the road. There's nothing I loathe more than having to purchase expensive meds that I know I've got sitting at home getting closer to expiring. So far, my hot tea is nice and soothing!
Anyway, now that you've got the blow-by-blow on our morning activities, we should be heading out by 10:00 AM, if not sooner. Dave should be here to pass the condo torch to around 9:00 and by then we should be pretty much ready to hit it!!! Yipppeeeeeee!
Next post: Beloit, WI!
Anyway, now that you've got the blow-by-blow on our morning activities, we should be heading out by 10:00 AM, if not sooner. Dave should be here to pass the condo torch to around 9:00 and by then we should be pretty much ready to hit it!!! Yipppeeeeeee!
Next post: Beloit, WI!
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Road Trip 2007 Starts Tomorrow!
Well, we're officially off on another road tripping adventure tomorrow! We'll be hitting Beloit, WI, Chicago, Detroit, Toronto, Niagara Falls, Cooperstown and New York City. If you haven't guessed, it's a baseball themed tour, and we're hoping to catch some great games along the way. Starting it off with some minor league fun in Beloit, maybe catch a tour of Wrigley Field or scare up some scalped seats to a game in Chicago, see the Tigers in Detroit, hopefully see the Toronto Blue Jays, the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstowns and finally, *drum roll, please* see the TWINS vs. the Stankees (NY Yankees for you non-baseball fans) at Yankee (f-in') Stadium!!!!!! We might also be able to make a Chicago White Sox game on the way home, time permitting. We are SUPER EXCITED!!! WHOOOOO_HOOOOO!
So tonight we're eating up the last of the leftovers (and I feel like I could quite possibly puke up three days and 6 meals worth of Chinese food right now) and charging up all of our battery powered items. We'll be making a late night trip to Cub for some last minute items like cough drops, fruit and snacks. I'm depressed about leaving the kitties, but they will be in the capable company of John's eldest brother. Dave, if you're reading this, take good care of the babies :) Pet them, love them, call them "pretty kitties" and don't kill them when they wake you up at 4 AM begging for food.
Anyway, we'll be posting all week long and probably recording our own goofy and maybe even a little creepy podcast that no one cares about but us, but feel free to tune in. Check back!
Love to all :)
R & J
So tonight we're eating up the last of the leftovers (and I feel like I could quite possibly puke up three days and 6 meals worth of Chinese food right now) and charging up all of our battery powered items. We'll be making a late night trip to Cub for some last minute items like cough drops, fruit and snacks. I'm depressed about leaving the kitties, but they will be in the capable company of John's eldest brother. Dave, if you're reading this, take good care of the babies :) Pet them, love them, call them "pretty kitties" and don't kill them when they wake you up at 4 AM begging for food.
Anyway, we'll be posting all week long and probably recording our own goofy and maybe even a little creepy podcast that no one cares about but us, but feel free to tune in. Check back!
Love to all :)
R & J
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