West Virginia, Mountain Mama, Country Roads Take me Home

Well, it seems like deja vu but it isn't.  My car is bulging to the gunwales again but this time it's not snowing.  Last time it was like, "Here I go again on my own, walking down the only road, I walk alone."  However, this time, I'm not alone.  I have an ominous presence following me.  It follows me in a giant red SUV with my parents inside (don't worry, it isn't a Hummer so put your middle finger down and stop hurling those naughty words at my family and me). It has followed me in this same car before on a more different road trip.  That road trip started by almost not beginning but thanks to my father, the trip happened and Liz and I made the epic journey from Tacoma to Colorado with my dad following us.  Luckily, I did not have a car accident today and this new road trip is going to happen!  

So, we are ready...to ROCKSTEADY...all the way to Virginia!  The cars are loaded (mine is sagging in the back because of all the CRAP I'm bringing).  The good ol' road trip mixes (thanks to Lizzie's hard work) are back in their case and ready to be played.  My mom has planned out this epic road trip so it will last 4 days.  She said, "I want to be able to stop whenever I want.  There might be lots of the 'biggest balls of yarn' and I want to be able to name which is truly the biggest."  Cooper has his own pair of goggles and he is PSYCHED to be going.  

It's time for me to leave good ol' Canon City.  Michael Jackson died today and perhaps a little piece of me will die when I hit the city limit (marked by the Super Walmart).  Probably not, but who knows.  On to new things, like Hebrew.  Look up "Hebrew Alphabet Song" on YouTube, and you'll see what I've been practicing before I start class on the 6th of July!  Highly entertaining, I promise.  

I'll keep you posted.  

It doesn't matter if you're black or white...

Secret sentiments secreted...

First of all...

I love alliteration.  If I had all the time in the world I would create a language that only used alliteration.  Oh wait, I have had all the time in the world and I didn't do that.  My other problem is that I can't figure out how to make this font not be underlined.  Boo.

Anyway, last weekend I had a going away party and people were nice and brought me cards.  The notes inside the cards were very similar to this one below.  I guess the pressure is on.  Good thing I'm escaping from this town urging me to be a good wife and settle down.  

Of course, now my secret radar is on for a good husband.  The question is, should I be on the look out for a single guy who might make a good husband or should I be on the alert for someone who is already a good husband?  I'll look for both since it seems silly that I should clarify.

Mesa Verde

Iron Horse Inn

My parents and I stayed in the high class motel called the Iron Horse Inn in Durango.  It sounds about as good as it was.  After my folks and I went and grabbed dinner at the downtown Mexican joint we headed back to the Inn to find that Cooper had been stranded in the hotel during a thunder storm and had destroyed some of the carpet.  Awesome.

After trying to clean it and an hour worth of pin-ball (my parents LOVE pinball.  We have our own machine in the garage called the "Incredible Hulk") we tried to sleep.  However, there were many brawls during the night and none of us slept.  We were all pretty cranky when we headed to Mesa Verde.  It was the day of my parent's 34th wedding anniversary and they decided to dress like tourists for Mesa Verde...for fun

Moo

From Heaven to Hell...the cows should have been a sign.

After a glorious night of sleep and the best Lox and Cheese I've ever encountered, we took Cooper up to the top of some big mountains in a gondola and then headed out of town.  We drove right into a cow-drive or whatever you call those things when cowboys heard cows to somewhere else.  We had to pull over while 100 cows took over the town.  A true stampeed.  Cooper posed on the plush couch in our hotel and then we made our way to Durango.  BAD IDEA.

My parents would KILL ME!

So, after the disappointment of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison we drove and drove to Telluride.  Now, if you know country music-- you can sing that one song, that one guy sings about Telluride.  I'm posting some photos of our dinner which was OUT OF CONTROL!  

However, first things first.  We got to our hotel, which was AWESOME.  It was nestled right in front of the mountains and right next to the Gondola to get to the top.  The room was plush and fabulous and they give you your very own tube of VANILLA LIP BALM.  Boo yah.  The small thing really excite me these days.  Like I couldn't go to the store and grab a tube of Lip Smackers, right?

Anyway, the night we arrived was the final game the Nuggets and the Lakers played.  So we scouted out a Mexican food restaurant with the game on.  My mom and I decided that a pitcher of Margaritas was in order and that started it all.  After that...more Margaritas, then a tour of tequilas, more margarita and then my mom sitting outside on a bench talking to Cooper smoking a cigar.  The Nuggs lost, so I guess we felt the need to wallow in booze.

Family Vacation

So, for my parent's 34th wedding anniversary we decided to go on a road trip as a family.  We decided traveling to the Western Slope of CO would make for a grand adventure-- well my mom and I decided and my dad agreed on the terms of Mexican food and beer at every stop.  You may be asking yourselves (all 6 of you who follow my blog) why would anyone want beer and Mexican food all the time.  If drawing a food pyramid of my father's daily food intake were an option on this blogerona, I would draw cheese enchiladas, beans and bowls of green chili.  There would also be Diet Pepsi and Rolling Rock Beer (better that than Michelob Ultra) as a portion as well.  When the people at the local Mexican food restaurant can identify you at hello, you know someone has an addiction.  Why?  Maybe it keeps him regular, I don't know.  Anyway, as long as my mom and I could keep my father in enchiladas and queso, he would oblige us and take this vacation (even Cooper could come but that's more of a function of his inability to be away from me than anything else).

So, we loaded into the car for a four-day expedition full of fun...

Right.

Things started well.  We stopped at the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. It is supposed to be EXACTLY like the Grand Canyon except black.  

Wrong.  Not as cool but still cool.

Photos...