Day Nineteen in Anchorage

This was an interesting but long day. Started with sound of heavy rain hitting the nylon of my tent. It’s a pleasant sound however I knew that it was going to make packing up a real drag. Wet equipment is always a bummer. So I wadded up the tent and tried to sort the things that I would need for the side trip with my family to Kodiak and Denali. Squeezing all the camping gear into the saddlebags felt like some kind of greased pig contest at a state fair. It was only 9:00 am when I got done, so I had to figure out a way to kill several hours until I could check into my hotel and ultimately be reunited with my family. Killing time in Alaska might seem strange - after all, it is so beautiful and scenic there - yeah, and wet. No tent meant no shelter. FYI -Driving a motorcycle in the rain is crap that Billy Joel puts in his songs to sound crazy. Let me tell you, it’s not crazy - it sucks. So having removed driving around from my list, I could only think of one other thing to do. Go to McDonalds. How could 18 million retired old men be wrong? It is clean, warm and... has Internet access. So drove my transient butt back into Palmer and started working on my blog.

The old-timers were there and greeted me with brownies. These guys were smart! They even brought their own food! I asked them about it and one of the guys said he had to watch his weight. Everyone laughed except the manager. She was kind of speechless. So the rain came down, and I blogged away until finally it was 3:00 pm. Time to check into my hotel. Hurry, the sun was out! I buzzed into Anchorage, found the hotel and grabbed a nap. At 930 I headed over to the airport and waited for my family. I parked my bike in long term parking and put the cover on it. Walking away from it, I hoped it would be ok while I was vacationing. I thought about Jeff and Whitehorse and smiled. Just like him, if sometime happens to the bike I guess I’ll go shopping for a new one.

As I sat and waited for my family to appear, I realized how different things were. The routines of family life had been replaced with travel, camping, new friends and solitude of traveling alone. Having overcome the concerns I had about being lonely, safe, and even being bored has been a real milestone in my trip.

My family appeared and the comfortable feeling of their company returned. It was nice to hear everyone talking at once. Susan even started cried a little. The girls had changed. They seem at least a couple of inches taller, and tan. During this trip I have grown a beard. This was funny to see them staring at me. I sensed that they knew I had changed some too. The time away had helped me be a little more at ease. The last few years have been demanding on everyone in our family and my battery had been low for a while. Tonight, I found myself thinking about all the things that I usually think about, but haven’t had to. Things like: mowing the lawn, working on the cars, dishes, fixing the house, laundry and cooking. These things had all just slipped away and were replaced with hiking, exploring, setting up the tent, how to pack all my stuff on a motorcycle and visiting with new people. This summer trip has been pretty selfish. I realized I could be doing other things but I feel like this crazy idea of a trip kind of found me. Wow, now that really does sound like I am having a mid-life crisis. Regardless, what ever it is, I am pleased with the experience of doing this trip. Writing about it has also been rewarding. I know it's probably hard to read some of this stuff but I have enjoyed reflecting on some of the moments of each day and just how brilliant some moments are. I mean we all have cool stuff happen, but we just don’t have the time to see it usually. I overlook the interesting and extraordinary daily, if not hourly. I see now that this trip was just as much about the periods that were void of stimulus as the one that have overwhelmed. I always liked the saying “Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans.” I have missed a lot of my life focused only on the plans.

I am glad to be back with my family. It feels good to be in the moment with them not just near them.