Another Trip Across

Well I'm back from the mission. It was a success, a good and safe journey. I got to spend some time in San Fran, and then I got to help my friend Chris Kobus drive his truck back to Maryland. We got back a few days ago, and now I'm looking through the photos.

Fifth out-and-back cross-country trip: I wanted to get to San Fran quickly, which would give me more time there, so I flew out west. There's some cheap one-way flight tickets floating about on the Internet, and I snatched one up. From BWI to SFO with just a backpack and the clothes on my back. Then a BART ride into the city and then I was on my feet walking--roving those streets and feeling the weight of the pack on my back and the sweet air of California.

I met Jake and Caitlin on Market Street and we started walking, back to the Green Tortoise on Broadway, where I set my pack down for a few minutes and rested and ate some food and drank a little coffee. I was happy to meet Caitlin, after exchanging emails for the past few weeks. And it was great to see Jake again--the last time he and I were in San Fran together was nine and a half years ago.

From the Tortoise, we went over to the magnificent realms of Golden Gate Park and Haight Street. There's always new things to see, and I enjoyed being back in one of my favorite areas of the city. We bought some scones on Haight Street. A guy about my age, who was standing outside Amoeba music, asked me for one. I gave it to him. Then into Golden Gate Park. We kept walking. We climbed to the top of Stow Lake Island, and from there we could look out and see the Golden Gate Bridge and the Pacific and city buildings and homes.

And from the Park, we walked across town to meet Matt and Lauren, which is where I made my base camp (thanks again, friends!). And from that day on, Jake and Caitlin and I had our adventures in the daytime and our parties in the night with Matt, Lauren, Philip, Whitney, Jamie, and Phil Lang.

And then Kyle came to town. He made the journey up from Santa Cruz. Jake and Caitlin and I met him outside the Trader Joes over by Geary and Masonic. We were on our bikes, and Kyle was on his. We got food and went back to Matt and Lauren's for a feast. Matt's Achilles injury was getting better, and he was walking without his crutches. A beautiful thing. And we talked about my crutch days, which Matt knew all about because, like Jake, he was there for them. The wine was cheap and good and I knew I had to bring a few bottles back with me--Cabernet Sauvignon by Charles Shaw, my favorite vintage of the two buck chucks. I talked with Kobus who was making his way down from Alaska. We'd be leaving in a few days. Jake and Caitlin had to head out, and I said goodbye to them after many great days of hiking and biking and city traveling and all the living room parties--so many great times, sitting around talking, listening to music, maybe playing a little music with me on guitar and Philip on violin, maybe a little "Business Plan Breakdown" just for fun. Always for fun.

Then there was a trip up to Tahoe, a wonderful weekend adventure with Matt, Lauren, Kyle, and Kiersten. We hit some cold rain and snow up in the mountains, but the lake was looking great, and I was watching my gimbal as I watched the New Orleans Saints win the big football game on Superbowl Sunday. And I was just thinking about going to New Orleans and what it would be like there.

Back in San Fran, Kobus showed up, his truck packed with things to move back to Maryland, his mind full of Alaska stories and stories from a hectic last couple of days. And then we were off. I was excited at the prospect of going the whole way across, from my dear sweet San Fran back to my old home place in Maryland. And Kobus was excited to get back to Maryland and see his family and friends. And after a winter in Alaska, he was just happy to be somewhere warm.

So we drove, the windows down, the lovely wind whipping its warmth around the car. February in California felt like spring or fall. Kobus loved that warm wind, and although the noise of the wind started to bother me with my sensitive hearing and all, I had a hard time denying him his pleasures. So we compromised, as friends do, and this certainly helped us on our journey across the country.

Across the big steel of the Bay Bridge, then through the green hills, riding the fast interstate highways. And then south on the 5, down through the San Joaquin, with the afternoon sun setting, and my playlists playing. And I was getting ready for a long night of driving. I was driving slow and steady, with rain on the roads and even a little snow at the higher elevations as we went up Tejon Pass. We hit the north part of LA, deep into the night, and kept going. And then, somewhere outside of Joshua Tree National Park, we found a hotel and got a few hours of sleep.

We were up early and on the road, cruising east on 10. 10 would take us all the way to New Orleans, which was our goal because Kobus wanted to see Mardi Gras, as did I, and I wanted to see my friends Brian and Sara. So everything worked out and that's what we did. We said No to the temptations of Las Vegas, and kept driving east: California, into Arizona, then New Mexico, then into Texas, riding right along the Mexican border and when we looked to the right we told ourselves that we were looking into the lights and buildings of Mexico. I drove us through the night, really a wild drive for many reasons, but I felt good and kept going. And then a few hours of rest in the car. It didn't even feel like Texas, but that's where we were. And in the morning I kept driving--first light equals more miles! Another all-day drive which put us into Baton Rouge around ten in the evening, just in time to meet my friends Brian and Sara! Thanks friends! It was so good to get there and rest and be still and let the road vibrations work their way out of the body and the mind.

We took a day in the Baton Rouge area. I was happy to be in Brian and Sara's home, a place I had wanted to visit for a long time. They had a beautiful home with some great old southern trees nearby. But I felt bad because they gave me a key to the place, which I just happened to drop through the wooden planks on the front deck. And so I got down and looked underneath. And Sara came out and said "Jeff, what are you doing? We have a snake down there." And I said I didn't see it, but I believed her all the same, and got the heck out of there. Then I sat in the living room and had a fine visit with Sara, after a really good sandwich, and young Maddy was running around and having fun and smiling like only a three-year-old can. And I was reminded of the philosophy of youth, and how great everything is when you're young, and also when you're old. Those amazing moments are always there, closer than we think. Seeing and seizing is the key.

And then the next day was Mardi Gras time. We headed down to the city, and drove toward the party area, Bourbon Street and the French Quarter. Traffic wasn't too bad. We found parking on the top floor of a garage and looked out upon the early afternoon madness, which wasn't too crazy yet. Brian knew his way around, and we had some maps, and of course it was easy to just follow the flow of people. Some great side streets, hitting each other at right angles. We saw more and more people. I asked "so where is Bourbon Street?" And Brian laughed and told me I was standing right on it. I hadn't seen the sign. I bought a big beer in a little store--a 24 ounce can for only $4. Being able to drink on the street, I was reminded of the Strip in Vegas. Total beverage freedom, just walking around and looking at all the people and partygoers, and taking big sips of cold beer. Parades going by. Beads being worn and sold. I didn't have any beads yet. But I wanted them. And the desire is what counts.

Yes, lots of desires floating through the crowded air on Bourbon Street. We walked the street, evening sun cutting across the faces of buildings and people. I waited with my hand in the air, as the others did, waiting with the people down on the street in hopes that the people up above on the balconies would throw some beads our way. I learned that if I waited long enough, or if I gave the bead-holder a good dose of the holy stare, that they would drop some beads down. And if not, I just moved on. It's a buyers market on Bourbon Street. I was feeling good and so were Brian and Kobus and we were having a great time just walking around with our beers and whiskey drinks and looking at all the people. We saw the Naked Cowboy, the New York City legend. He had his guitar and cowboy hat and boots and some white briefs on. A big crowd around him. Observing the cowboy, I fell behind, so I had to run to catch up with Brian and Kobus. Bourbon St. was full of beautiful people and silly people. I felt silly too. The beads piled up around my neck. The sun set and the air was cooler. We walked all over. Down to the Mississippi River where the great river boats were parked. All around Jackson Square where various palm readers and street performers had lined up. Kobus was on a search for crayfish, but everyone we talked to said we were just a few weeks too early. Then back to the crazy nightlife of Bourbon St. I finished the last of my raw ramen. My money was getting low, but that was okay. I was almost back home.

My beer can had long been empty, but I was still carrying it around. People like to see other people drinking. I had so many beads that girls were asking me for them. I gave one girl some, but the beads I gave her were tangled with the beads around my neck, and for a half a minute or so, the two of us were tied together, which was kind of cute and awkward, and it made me wonder how many times this kind of thing has happened. Surely many times. Those beads could easily tangle. But they were fun to collect. I liked my pink beads the best, the pink and also the blue. Of course I liked collecting them for the sake of collecting, but I also wanted to amass a neckload because I anticipated giving many of them away when I got home. Beads gathered honestly from Bourbon street had value in my mind. And I kept snatching them up every chance I could. We were having fun. The bars were rocking. A young Army kid and his friends got real excited about my beard and wanted to know all about it. He was proud of me. He kept saying that. Another girl walking by just grabbed my beard and gave it a little tug. And then she was gone. The crowded streets made it hard to move. Craziness. Drunken people. People holding big bright religious signs and yelling/arguing through their bullhorns with the drunken masses.

We made one last pass along crazy Bourbon Street, BS, and then it was time to leave. It was coffee time. Time to drive. I grabbed a few more beads. My neck was sore from the weight of the beads I was carrying. I took off my beads and felt ten pounds lighter. Brain left in his car, headed back to Baton Rouge. And Kobus and I headed north, a twenty-hour drive back to Maryland, where the proof of multiple blizzards was all over. So much snow! A new winter record for Maryland. And so much snow that I'm sure it'll be around for a long time to come, melting slowly and reflecting the sunlight like only snow can. I am home now, happy from the travels, thankful for the safety and the journey, and ready as always to do some more writing. Back to the books.