~Tuesday, June 14, 2022~
Day 730 (Travel Day)
Woke up to hearing about the calamities in our country’s beloved Yellowstone National Park. Evidently, a torrent of rain combined with a rapidly melting snowpack caused widespread flooding of the Yellowstone River (we had just driven by the park and this river about a week ago while on our way to Goose Bay Campground). Jeff and I are immensely saddened to see the horrible devastation and the forced evacuation of thousands of people. It couldn’t have come at a worse time with summer being peak season (over 15 to 20 thousand people descend on the park daily). Thankfully, the wildlife has not been affected other than the fact they are enjoying more open land now that the roads are void of tourists. We hope everyone made it out safely. Praying for the people in Yellowstone!
Saddened by the news, at least I could count on my bestie Michele to put me in a better mood. With too much time since our last phone call, this was at least an hour and a half talk. As of recent, she has decided to embark on a more vagabondish lifestyle, which seems to suit her. Since she has the freedom to work from the road and create her own schedule, it’s great she has the ability to do it. So it will be great to see what unfolds for her in the coming months. I look forward to our meeting on Sunday before heading back to MY nomadic lifestyle.
Jeff heads out from Bozeman, MT to a campground in Whitefish, MT called Tally Lake Campground I’m hoping things go smoothly for him as he is breaking down and setting up by himself….a task way easier with 2 people. not to mention he had a long-mileage day ahead of him (245 miles-about a 6 hour drive when towing). Jeff is thrilled that he gets to spend time with Shane and his friend Trevor, especially on Father’s Day. Get those fishing poles ready!
Knowing that Jeff and I won’t be able to rely on many services as we head north, I’m trying to be ahead of the game, trying to get as organized as possible……phone calls, sorting through 2-½ months of mail, printing out some stuff, ‘ya know……the usual things you would do before leaving on vacation. Thank you mom for the office services!
And believe it or not, I’m considering a shorter doo as we have a lot of boondocking coming up and concerns about water usage. I swear, my hair washing is quite an event…..a “mane” event (ha, ha!), so if sacrificing a few inches off my hair is what it takes to mitigate a situation, I’ll do it. It will grow back. I had tried to get an appointment with my sister’s former salon in Folsom, but never heard back. I would use my mom’s hair stylist, where even though I liked the color work, I wasn’t all too thrilled with the last cut. Per a recommendation by our dear family friend, Brenda, I phoned her salon and was able to get in on Thursday. And with those natural highlights of my own, I don’t need to spend another $150 on the fake ones. I have Mother-Nature or my kids to thank for that!
At least I was able to fit in a little bit of yard work before meeting up with the girls at Wally’s Pizza Bar for a night of Fast Track.
My mom had coordinated this delightful evening a few months ago with Brenda, Arlene and Sandy. Arlene, however, wasn’t able to join us this time. These are very special women whom we all came to know through Brenda, so I guess we could call her our ring leader, and the one with the Fast Track board! My mom originally met Brenda when she was in the hunt for a new home (Brenda’s specialty is 55+ communities) and hit it off immediately. She is the salt of the earth, do anything for you kind of woman! And has helped all of us in one way or another with our real estate needs. In fact, she helped Jeff and I in the sale of Jeff’s parent’s home when they passed. With the help of our overly attentive waitress, the drinks and food just kept on coming as we had a wonderful time catching up, which was a complete gabfest, as you can imagine. I don’t think we even looked at a food menu until an hour after we got there, nor did we get a photo (so mad about that). Ultimately, the game was never played, but more importantly, we shared stories, solved the world’s problems and just enjoyed each other's company.
On the way home, mom and I couldn’t help but fix our eyes in the distance on the brightest full-moon we think we’d ever seen. Remembering one of Jeff’s and my favorite spots at the end of Blackstone Pkwy, mom and I took a slight detour to see if the view would be even more amazing. And it was. With the moon low on the horizon,
lighting up the small, light free valley below, it was an amazing vantage point. They call this the “Strawberry Moon”-the final full moon of Spring and also the year’s biggest and brightest. Of course my photos don’t quite do it justice, but won’t forget just how cool it was to witness that moment with my mom!