Drive 2009

SF to MN  |  St. Paul  |  MN to TX  |  Houston  |  TX to SF            |  MAP  |

Ft.WorthTX  |  IndependendenceMO  |  San AntonioTX  |  Santa BarbaraCA  |  Sulphur SpringsTX

On Monday, June 8, we began Part 1 of Drive 2009, heading from San Francico CA to St. Paul MN.

• Day One (99 photos) was from San Francisco to Salt Lake City. At 6:18 am we left SF, heading for Winnemucca NV on the first leg of our driving trip through Kansas to Minnesota, with plans of returning via Texas. About noon, Martha's brother Gordon called to say their mother Marian had experienced a "cardiac event" in the early morning. Within an hour, Dianne and I decided to re-route our trip to head straight for Minnesota. We divided the mileage to St. Paul by 3, and selected Salt Lake City UT and North Platte NE as new stop-overs. We called friend Tom in Cedaredge CO, cousin Tom and Carol in Timken KS, and cousin Steve in Tonganoxie KS to say that we would not be able to visit them at this time. In Winnemucca we stopped at the scheduled hotel (slide 52), cancelled our reservation, and made two new reservations. SO - a 7-day drive became a 3-day, 12-hour/day drive. Later in the day Gordon called again to say that their Mom had stabilized (or perhaps it was Martha who called him, from the Bonneville Salt Flats rest stop). In any case, we arrived in SLC tired, but hopeful.

7:13 am in SF	6:12 pm - NV	8:04 pm - UT	Bonneville Salt Flats	10:08pm Salt Lake City

• Day Two (86 photos), Tuesday June 9, we drove from Salt Lake City UT to North Flat, NE. In Green River CO we stopped at the Sweetwater County Historical Museum (website), where we found material on the Pony Express, and Martha met the maillady as she delivered to the museum shop. At the gas station, Martha lost her NWA credit card, which we didn't discover until we got to Rawlings WY. A call to US Bank VISA soon remedied the situation, and with a new card issued, we were again on our way. Shortly after 6pm (7pm St. Paul time), family friend Lynette called to say that Marian was in critical condition. She connected Marian and Martha via cell-phone, and Martha was able to tell her mother how much she loved her, and to say good-bye. Gordon's wife Sandi and Marian's husband Phil were with Marian, as well as Sunrise care-giver Mee and friend Lynette, during those final hours. Marian was at peace, and ready to let go. We honor her courage and grace, in death as in life...

8:14am leaving SLC	8:56am WY	10:34am	10:48am WY	8:30pm N Platte NE

• Day Three (47 photos) we drove from North Platte NE to St. Paul MN. In the morning, we stopped in Gothenburg NE at the Pony Express station (website) in Ehmen Park. During the day Martha called and talked with her Dad, and Dan (the Sunrise Care Manager Coordinator), and Gordon and Martha made frequent phone contact to plan funeral arrangements. The process had begun during Martha's visit in May (36 photos), when the family selected the Roseville Memorial Chapel, the St. Anthony United Church of Christ, and Lakewood Cemetery for Marian and Phil's memorial services. Gordon and Sandi had gone to Lakewood and taken pictures of possible plots, which they shared online with Martha and brother Philip Jr.. A tentative plot was picked, and preparations were sufficiently in place such that Gordon was able to handle the details, with input from and inclusion of Martha. The process felt right, and indeed went smoothly.

7:48am Gothenburg NE	9:14am NE	11:27am NE	4:42pm IA	7:31pm MN

On Tuesday, July 14, we headed south, for the Part 2 of our Drive 2009.

• On Tuesday July 14 we drove (86) to Tonganoxie KS to visit Martha's cousin Steve (36).
• Wednesday, July 15, the three of us went to Independence MO to see the Truman Library, Museum, and home (photos soon).
• Thursday July 16 we drove (80) to Sulphur Springs TX to visit Martha's cousin Carolyn (36) and her husband Tom. In the evening we went downtown to see Carolyn's son Scott and his daughter Kelly working on Scott's new sports bar, Muddy Jakes (36). Friday morning Carolyn and Tom took us to the Hopkins County Museum (40) and Heritage Park (145). In the afternoon, we went to the Southwest Dairy Musem (40). In the evening (15), we treated them to dinner at LouViney, and they treated us to a community version of "Annie, Jr."!
• Saturday July 18 we drove to Iola TX to visit Dianne's cousin Kathy and her husband Larry. Kathy's daughter Kelly drove up from Missouri City, so we had an evening of sharing old memories, and making new ones (photos soon).
• On Saturday we drove (26) to San Antonio TX, where we met Dianne's brother David, who had a 3-day seminar. He invited us to stay with him at the Double Tree Hotel (30). The first night we went to La Fogata Restaurant (6). On Monday we went for a walk in the King William District, where we saw the Steves Homestead (16), the Guenther House (30), and the San Antonio river (24). In the afternoon we went to El Mercado (24), the Spanish farmer's market. The next day we went to the Institue of Texan cultures, and marveled at the flags (16) outside, the entry (8) exhibits and store, the post office (10), the Back Forty (28), and exhibits on Texas immigrants (88) and natives (12). A bonus discovery was the fine displays on Lebanese immigrants, including the Josephs.
• Finally, on Wednesday, July 22 we drove to Houston, where we spent 7 days visiting with Dianne's family (photos soon).

On Tuesday July 28 we began Part 3 of Drive 2009, and began our journey home.

• On Tuesday July 28 we headed towards (12) Decatur TX. Along the way we stopped in Fort Worth TX at the Stockyards Museum (112), and met Martha's childhood friend Ann and her husband Pat at the Blue Mesa restaurant (4). During the afternoon, Dianne, Martha and Ann went to the Cowgirls Hall of Fame Museum (10) before heading for Ann & Pat's home (12) in Newark. A recently-built new garage greeted us, and Pat had cold water to refresh us as we overlooked Eagle Mountain Lake. On our way to Decatur (6), we found two post offices to photograph
• On Wednesday July 29 we drove (100 photos) to Albuquerque NM. Leaving Decatur at 6:25am, we drove diagonally NW up US 287 through the Texas Panhandle (map) to Amarillo, and then west on I-40. The drive itself was unremarkable - but the weather was challenging! Rain threatened several times, and eventually broke through. Along the way we saw cows, trains, signs, and scenery that interested us. Hope you enjoy the view too!

8:39am on US 287	9:41am - progress?	12:22pm - grain storage	12:41pm - New Mexico	2:56pm - yesterday...

• On Thursday July 30 we drove over Hoover Dam, and around the multitude of construction obstructions, to reach the113 degrees heat of Las Vegas. Thank goodness for air-conditioning!! Leaving our Comfort Inn West in Albuquerque at 6:20am, we drove through New Mexico (28 photos) west along I-40, with stops in Grants and Gallup. Arizona (38 photos) greeted us with the nicest welcome sign, as we continued west toward Kingman. Leavning the 108 degree temperature of Kingman, we elected to drive US 93 over the Hoover Dam (24 photos), and marveled once again at the engineering feat emerging with the bypass bridge (see website). The city of Las Vegas (16 photos) greeted us with its mesmerizing jingle and jangle, and and the unexpected delight of an upgraded luxury sutie at the Flamingo Casino Hotel (14 photos) - for free! Martha met her cousin Kathy at Sweet Tomatoes while Dianne kept the casinos happy. All in all, it was a fun evening at the end of an exhausting drive.

10:06am - AZ	4:49pm - Hoover Dam	Hoover Dam bypass	Flamingo Hotel	Cousins!

• On Friday July 31 we drove (42) to Santa Barbara CA to visit friend Donna. Arriving around 4pm at East Beach. (12), we soon savored the serenity of Donna and Ben's (10) home. We shared our condolences for the recent death of Donna's mother, and lamented not having met her. After a brief visit, Donna drove us to the Boathouse on Hendry's Beach (10) for dinner, and to Butterfly Beach (8) to watch the sunset.
• Saturday August 1 we started the day with breakfast at the East Beach Grill (16). Then, we took Donna's advice and rode the shuttle to see Stearn's Wharf (118), and took the Shark Tour (173) of land and sea. In the afternoon Donna drove us to Montecito and up East Mountain Drive (30) where the damage of the 11/13/08 Tea Fire (see online article) is still evident. A beautiful next-stop was the Santa Barbara Mission and rose garden (74). Next, we saw he most-photographed building in America - the Santa Barbara County Courthouse (95). Here are more views from the official website: ceilings, furniture, mural room, paintings, tile work (pdfs). WOW! For dinner, we strolled El Paseo (26), California's first shopping center (see website), and ate at it's remarkable restaurant (see restaurant review). Later, we took a walk downtown (20), and sampled the Irish coffee at Ben's favorite spot: Dargan's (website) . Finally, we drove by Arnoldi's Cafe (website), and Donna and Martha played a quick game of bocce ball. What a delightful day!
• Sunday August 2 we had breakfast once again on the beach (8), and then Donna escorted us to the San Marcos Pass Road (Hwy. 154). We waved her goodbye with grateful hearts, and headed home (60). At 3:45pm we completed our 56-day journey, having driven 7,086.6 miles, and spent $714 on gas. It was a trip full of ups and downs, ins and outs, life and death. Our website has perhaps too many photos, and not enough reflection. Nevertheless, we hope you enjoyed this tale of DJnMarti's Drive 2009.