Arlington Laundry

So here's a story from last summer when I was traveling that I never posted on the blog. It probably belongs just after the Roll With It post, and is the "story for another time" that I mentioned at the bottom.

The day after the earthquake in D.C. was a lazy one for me. I'd stayed up pretty late drinking and smoking the pipe with a friend I hadn't seen in a long time and a few of her friends, so I slept in. I had been planning on traveling to Philadelphia that day, but that got tossed out the window based on what time I woke up. I called my friend there and asked if she'd mind me showing up a day later, and she said that was fine. With a day of no plans ahead of me, I decided to get some things done.

First, I headed over to an REI I'd seen nearby to pick up a few supplies. The main thing I needed was more of the Dr. Bronner's soap I'd been using as bodywash, shampoo (now that I had hair again), dishsoap, and laundry detergent all-in-one. While I was in there, I picked up a few other things as well, and then I went back out to the motorcycle. Without much storage space, pretty much every shopping trip is immediately followed by removing everything from the packaging in the parking lot and a trip to a garbage can.

As I refilled a brand new gotoob with soap (I'd left the old one in someone's shower somewhere in the country), I marveled at the design. With the lid popped shut, it was, as far as I could tell, impossible to pop it back open by squeezing the tube. Though the entire lid did move a bit weird on this particular one, which I hadn't noticed before...

SQUIRT!

Flat (Independence)

I'm currently vehicle-less.  It's somewhat strange.

Yesterday I drove from Rockford back to Peoria and met some friends for lunch at Flat Top Grill - it's like a Mongolian Barbecue place where you put a bunch of uncooked vegetables and meat from a buffet into a bowl and give it to them, and they cook it for you. $10, and I can usually pack my bowl high enough to get three or four meals out of it. It's one of the cheaper ways to eat if you have a place to store leftovers and reheat them, and it's pretty good too.

When I got back out to my bike, I sat down, popped it into neutral, and noticed that even though I was on a bit of a slope, the bike wasn't trying to roll backward at all, which was a little strange. As I pulled away, I noticed it felt very sluggish - the bike didn't want to coast at all.  Before getting out of the parking lot, I did a quick look-over of the bike... and noticed a completely flat back tire.

Stats

Rockford, IL

So the trip is over.  Saturday night I arrived back in Peoria around 9pm, after one hundred days of traveling and 21,198 miles.  (Average distance traveled per day: 212 miles.)

Before Vegas: 48 days, 12,200 miles, 17 states.
After Vegas: 52 days, 9,000 miles, 31 states.

Practice

Belvidere, IL

We were sitting around in Toronto, having slept in after a late (but fun) night. Suddenly, I realized everyone else seemed to have stopped getting ready and was just sitting around. I glanced around, and sure enough they all looked ready to go.

"Give me a second. I'm finishing up a blog post."

"You write a blog?" Alex said. "I thought about doing that, but I'm not any good at writing."

"Then start writing a blog. That's how you get better."

Achievement Unlocked

Park Ridge, IL

I feel like I'm already done. I took a picture in front of the 48th state sign for the trip. I'm back in Chicago - a place that I've possibly spent more weekends than I have in Peoria. The next four days feel almost like a formality - I'm just visiting friends, waiting out the days until I get to 100.

Packing List - Backpack

Green Bay, WI

I have with one backpack, two saddlebags, and a luggage rack with a few things on it. That doesn't leave me much room for packing, but I've made do with what I have.  Now that I'm almost done with the trip, I'm finally getting around to listing what I packed for this trip (I actually started this post in Portland, OR, and I've worked on it multiple times over the trip).  Here's what I put in the backpack - I'll cover the other stuff later.

Roll With It (Again)

Mackinac Island, MI

I feel a little bit guilty sitting in a Starbucks while I'm on Mackinac Island... but the bike rental place was closed, I already got fudge, and this might be the only chance I have to write a blog post for the next few days.  I'm doing it for you guys.

So while I was in Jackson, MI, I had yet another example of how my "go with it" philosophy has worked out pretty darn well.