ROAD TRIP 1 DAY 1

Hey All,

First of all, thank you for all your good wishes and help on this first leg of our move. And especially to those of you who were at the house yesterday packing, cooking, keeping us focused and fed, and taking care of the dogs & house while we get thing set-up -- Maeve, Martin, Jane, Anthony, Matt, Mandy and Eddie. We'll be back on April 1st and have a whole month before the big, bad Bekins truck rolls out.

Thought we'd give you some updates from the road. We are sure they will improve, better pictures, funnier moments, more interesting musings from America's highways. But today, this first day, was all about actually getting on the road, figuring out the nuances (now that's a joke) of our U-Haul truck, and fighting the urge to turn around and say "Tap Tap Take it Back" and turn around and get back in our jammies. And we always have the drive in May to improve on our travel road show...

So here we are 9 hours later in Flagstaff, AZ at a very nice Radisson (surprisingly affordable with our AAA discount. Plus they have Sleepnumber beds. Cool!). It's cold outside, snow on the ground, our 17' truck (who we've named Squidward, see the photos below) is in a secured parking spot. Back in our jammies, room service ordered, Thursday night mindless TV in the background, and Day 2 travel plans plotted.

So here are some of the highlights from today and a few photos to enhance.

Planned departure 9AM, actual wheels up at 10:30. Route 210, 15, 40. All roads leading east. Our truck has no CD player or i-pod hook-up. While we figured out our i-pod for the trip, we decided to let the AM/FM offerings on the road entertain. NPR, Top 40, Classic Rock, Jesus (preaching & singing), Tejano, and lots of country kept us going. We saw a sign that "Watch for Elk" and we're thinking shouldn't they really be watching for us?

Lots of great truck stops today, as we're truckers now - Paige's CB handle "Bullwinkle" NLM's is "Blue Jean Baby" (long story, actual CB use when Elton John was ruling the airwaves.) While we actually didn't need to use the showers at the Pilot Truck Stop at Lake Havasu, there were plenty of stalls available.

In Victorville, which Matt informed us is the suicide capital of America. Who knew? There we saw a lot selling Used Spas. One word, "Ewwww."


Squidward HO!


Close-up of Squidward (homage to Sponge Bob)





The Miller Brewery an hour out of town. We almost stopped.



Thinking of you - you know who you are.



The first of many snow capped and beautiful mountains.



Pink Kong. There was also a Blue one. They must have gotten a deal. I know that when I see a blow up Kong, I want to buy a new car.



Gas, which is what we had. Thanks, Jane. The pot of beans, great, but seriously, the night before a road trip. Evil. Sorry the picture sucks but Paige was too busy cranking down the window.



Colorado river CA/AZ line. Lots of people pulling boats, jet skis and off road contraptions. Don't these people have jobs. It's Thursday.



AZ official sign. Would have been more excited about Nevada.
Guess why? Penny slots!



Um... Shin your own rump.



SNOW IN MARCH!!



Thawing lake near Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon.



Devil Dog Rd... We miss you, Varuca! You too, Vi. And we're glad you've
stopped chewing on your butt. Poor little nervous girl.



If the altitude wasn't making Paige sick, I'm sure she'd appreciate the view.

That's it for today... more tomorrow. And don't feel like you have to reply or even read these if you don't have time. It's just our way of saying, we're taking you with us WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!

Gotta go check on the truck... and yes, we're packing heat.

Love, Paige and Nancylee xo