tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70547080080888555892024-03-05T17:19:17.963-08:0037 States, 39 DaysThe blog of my 39 Day, 10,419 Mile, Solo U.S. Road Trip in August and September 2012 that spanned 37 of the 50 states. I describe it to friends as 98% awesome, and I hope you find the posts to be of similar enjoyment!MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-42740099677122573672016-02-20T14:18:00.001-08:002016-02-20T14:18:32.049-08:00City of CitiesPerfect Start to Brooklyn
I can't tell you how much I've wanted to make City of Cities a post title for New York...
Charlie had a great idea once I was finally ready to go in the late morning of this day, and that was to amble north for just a half block to a bakery to get coffee and a bagel or other breakfast food item, and take it back to the house to eat on the porch.
I ended up MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-72838468186357984032016-01-17T22:39:00.002-08:002016-01-17T22:39:55.280-08:00Escape to New YorkFacing Boston Roads Again
This time I didn't wake up at 6AM, which was a major improvement from the day before. Charlie was about to become the only person to accompany for a stretch of the trip in the car with me. This is a big distinction that I hope he still cherishes to this day ;)
We got on the road mid-morning, with the goal of having brunch in Plymouth with one of Charlie's former bossesMattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-54028792961572465682015-11-21T15:40:00.000-08:002015-11-21T15:40:14.375-08:00Trails of FreedomWaking Up At the Butt Crack of Dawn
Bright light shown in my eyes through the large windows on the east side of the apartment. I grunted and looked at my phone, it was 6 AM! What was I doing awake at that ungodly hour? Well...I actually didn't feel that bad, even though I'd only been sleeping for 4 hours. Might as well hobble up to the roof and snap some pictures of the sunrise over downtown MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-59441067142667744072015-01-03T19:54:00.002-08:002015-10-11T21:33:36.566-07:00New England States: 400 Miles, 5 States Visited
Why don't they call Syracuse the "Orange City"? The old brick buildings downtown tend to have a faded orange hue to them, and the Orange play basketball, study and do other sports at the university in town. Hm....
I woke up and got going in the cool late morning air, and observing more of that slowly regressing economic optimism that describes the mid-sized cities of Upstate. This was the MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-69270726256661807882014-08-05T18:08:00.000-07:002014-08-05T18:08:50.650-07:00Race to the Falls
Update: LeBron James announced his return to Cleveland July 11th, which makes this post from my day in
Cleveland on September 13, 2012 more timely than I originally imagined.
Late to Rise
It was a beautiful, sunny day in Cleveland, birds were
singing, children were laughing, and Rock continued to roll. I slept so poorly,
however, that I took little joy in these circumstances as I rose late,MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-71961420590171714192014-06-12T20:31:00.001-07:002014-07-16T16:58:49.155-07:00So Hard To Say GoodbyeHolding On
I said good morning to Chicago at about 10am that Wednesday,
and Adam was long gone to work. I’d had earplugs in so I hadn’t heard him get
up and get ready for the day thankfully. I think it started about 4 hours
earlier than mine haha.
My roommate, Daniel, had been looking for a third guy to
live with us in Dallas, and had contacted me that Wednesday morning to ask if I
wanted to MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-86904675176354643702014-05-18T18:27:00.000-07:002014-05-18T18:27:36.791-07:00The Other GrandyI woke up at Esther’s on my last full day in Chicago, and on
this Tuesday I had plans to shift locations yet again, to the downtown
apartment of the one and only Adam Grandy, older brother of my former roommate
Ryan Grandy. I didn’t know Adam yet, but Ryan had been kind enough to put me in
touch before I reached Chicago.
To nobody’s surprise by now, I got up bright and late, and
packed up the MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-39518323714096725422014-03-11T18:26:00.000-07:002014-07-17T16:00:47.574-07:00My Kind of TownI woke up on Esther’s living room couch the next day, enjoying
the smell of cleanliness around me. I’d set up the Duckies on top of the
cushions next to me, and Esther had seriously thought about taking a picture of
me sleeping with them watching over me, but somehow had resisted that urge. This
was a Monday, mid-morning. The first thing we ended up doing was jumping on a
Red Line train back to MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-83651312770382710022014-02-09T15:59:00.001-08:002014-02-09T15:59:22.292-08:00The Second CityI slowly peeled my eyes open in the dimly lit upper room of
Duncan’s house in Chicago as a couple of the guys went back and forth getting
ready for church. I was feeling, uh, sluggish, so I declined to go. Probably
should have, but oh well. I got showered, dressed, and got the car out of its
spot to go find a Starbucks nearby and have a Venti Iced Latte to clear my
head. It was just a few blocks MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-61670697753819608902014-01-12T19:05:00.001-08:002014-07-21T20:17:22.508-07:00The Day I Learned Who Johnny Football IsI woke up on the 20th day of the road trip on the
McClenagans’ very comfortable couch a little before 9, after staying up very
late to sink my teeth (so to speak) into the Planet of Slums book that had
caught my attention the previous evening. I don’t remember eating any breakfast
there, but I do recall Emily hopping on RD’s bike to ride the trails to the
State Capitol area to meet a friend thereMattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-86938596526348895262013-12-08T21:26:00.003-08:002013-12-08T21:26:28.583-08:00Hello, Wisconsin!It had been a long Wednesday and Thursday of hurriedly
crossing the northern US, and at some point around the Minnesota border sign I
believe I took an Instagram picture with a caption of “NOW BACK TO THE GOOD
PART!”, showing my excitement to be getting back to more civilization in
Minnesota and Wisconsin and Illinois by that weekend.
I slept well that Friday morning till 9 or so, and the
MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-28141684214587871502013-11-24T21:08:00.000-08:002013-11-24T21:08:53.020-08:00The Road Goes Ever On and On...Okay folks, fasten your seatbelts, for this Thursday was the
day that I finally had to set foot and tire in…North Dakota! I’ve made so many
derogatory references to it in the past, most of them involving selling the
state to Canada or merging it with South Dakota to make one state with a
combined population still less than Dallas city proper called Dakota. My
favorite comedian’s joke about North MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-83788974740955168122013-10-27T19:41:00.000-07:002013-11-16T10:20:46.224-08:00And I Would Walk 500 Miles, And I Would Walk 200 more...Okay, I didn’t walk 500 miles and then some like The
Proclaimers, but that Wednesday I did easily eclipse 500 miles of driving.
I woke up nice and late that Wednesday at the Tuppers’
house, well rested for one of the longest driving days of the trip so far. I
would need every minute of that rest as the day wore on. Debi had something
ready for me for breakfast, Rob had already gone to work. MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-9311452650356032822013-10-24T17:33:00.000-07:002014-08-09T10:37:41.680-07:00Espresso Hat Trick and Crossing the Scablands
I slowly opened my eyes to the morning sunlight at 8:30 in
the front room of that big D-house in Seattle. A lot of the guys had already
headed off for work that Tuesday, so I had plenty of peace and quiet to work
with as I slowly got ready to start driving again. I remember there was a
window in the bathroom that couldn’t be blocked, which made me very
conservative in my towel placement…
I MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-77517814137389865402013-10-03T19:25:00.001-07:002013-10-03T19:25:30.446-07:00Portlandia to the Emerald CityWelcome to my experience on Labor Day 2012. On this Monday I
had to get up around 8 and leave early, because Christian and Diane were
heading off on a trip, though I can’t remember where to. I had Christian help
me load up all my stuff into the car, and said goodbye to them both before
setting out back on I-84 west toward downtown again. It was a cool morning with
a refreshing breeze, so I took aMattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-83291373041366596582013-09-22T19:57:00.004-07:002014-07-19T22:16:38.592-07:00Portlandia - Dream of the 90's
Ok, here’s the brilliance of earplugs. We had agreed the
night before that the Madrids would go to church that Sunday morning, and I was
tired from traveling so I decided to sleep in. The couch I was on was right by
the kitchen area, and apparently they came out there, made breakfast, talked,
etc. and with earplugs in, I didn’t hear any of it! And I’m a light sleeper. So
that was victory #1 of MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-71022149522265601902013-09-19T19:11:00.002-07:002013-09-19T19:11:28.106-07:00The Day I Almost Forded the RiverAhhh,
what a good rest I had that Saturday morning in Boise! I woke up around 10, and
Grant had sent me the contact info for a potential host couple in Portland,
Christian and Diane Madrid. Turns out the Madrids were a part of Antioch’s
church plant in Portland, and had just moved from Norman, Oklahoma. Antioch was
my first church in Waco when I went to Baylor, and yes they have plants up in
the MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-38945057431567027742013-09-14T22:42:00.001-07:002013-09-14T22:42:35.834-07:00Inferno and PotatoesOn the 12th day of Christmas…oh wait this
was August 31st. I started out late as usual, packing up my mobile
life into my car, firing up the Top Gun Anthem, and driving back into downtown
Salt Lake, to a shopping area called Gateway, seen here:
Yes, my destination of Starbucks can be seen in the
second to last picture. It was a cool, large Starbucks, and I MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-16117458584653246282013-09-08T20:36:00.000-07:002013-09-08T20:36:45.411-07:00It's Not Snow...Welcome to Day 11 readers! Day 11 finds me in Wendover, Utah, which is among the smallest towns I stopped in on this trip. I did manage to wake up in time to catch the tail end of the continental breakfast at the motel, which was a couple of cereal containers and plastic bowls and spoons in the front desk room. As usual, I was in a rush, so I threw my stuff in the car and drove down the road, MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-28165100214133042152013-08-20T20:24:00.002-07:002014-07-21T20:12:04.873-07:00Vanishing PointGood morning from my last hour in California! I had an amazing time there, 5 days of fun, but it was time I crossed Nevada. You're wondering why I didn't take the conventional route going along I-5 through northern California into Oregon? The answer will be fully revealed in the next day's post, but it really only takes one word of explanation: Bonneville.
I'd been to Tahoe before with my MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-35067839544484731392013-08-15T20:06:00.002-07:002016-04-18T18:46:59.870-07:00The Day I Forgot to Drive on Lombard StreetWelcome readers to Day 9, my last day in California :\ Felt sorta like this:
This was a long, somewhat challenging day; not bad overall, just not like the one driving up the coast. If you're keeping count, this is the 5th full day in Cali, and that total would not be surpassed by any other state, even New York, which I visited twice.
This is where my day started, Josh's apartment:
MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-84088860866924328292013-07-27T19:44:00.001-07:002013-07-27T19:44:49.729-07:00Driving on the Edge of HeavenHello and welcome to Day 8! I woke up at 10 and left the hotel at 11 on this very fine day. The first treat of the day was seeing this outside my window:
That is Morro Rock, a 600 foot tall lump of granite sitting at the beach at Morro Bay. I hadn't had a single clue it was there when I arrived late the night before. I read that peregrine falcons, some of the coolest birds ever, make their MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-90716695292602767502013-07-14T13:25:00.001-07:002014-07-21T20:09:15.384-07:00City of AngelsLos Angeles, the city of Angels. A true maze of highways and sprawl, like nothing I've seen even in Dallas and Houston. I was staying in Norwalk, among some of the industrial suburbs that separate LA city proper and the wealthier coastal suburbs of Orange County. It was the economical choice, not really the scenic choice. I had been up late the night before uploading MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-43511059141534866292013-07-07T16:21:00.003-07:002014-07-19T11:28:45.768-07:00Mighty WingsNow we come to Saturday, August 25th, another day that started out somewhat
overcast in San Diego. Nick and Natalie had two of their parents over for lunch
at around 11, which was right after I had had some breakfast. Funny story:
Natalie's dad, when he met me, told me "so sorry for the clouds and cooler
weather yesterday!" And my response, being from Texas, was
"noooooooooooooo need to apologizeMattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7054708008088855589.post-25753724241908026102013-06-23T14:56:00.003-07:002014-07-19T22:27:29.584-07:00Top Gun FridayOh yes, it was very good to sleep in on a bed in my own room for the first time on the trip. Nick and Natalie were very welcoming the night before, and provided breakfast that Friday morning. Unfortunately, they both had to work and write a paper that day, so I'd be doing my exploring of San Diego on my own. Poor Natalie had been up all night working on her paper, and was truly worn out by the MattMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08918183919125050348noreply@blogger.com0