Day 61: Or At Least That's What I'm Assuming
I wake up early to do some work on the blog. Eat lots of cereal and end up getting on the road around 10:00-ish. The plan for today is to ride 22 miles to Havre, run errands and use today as a semi-break day. I could definitely use the break. The headwinds are supposed to be terrible, so it works out perfectly. Oh... and here are some pictures from the church in Chinook.
This article is PART THREE of a THREE PART STORY about how some woman ended up in Chinook!
Well… the headwinds are terrible. There is lots of traffic, snakes on the road, and it is a generally bad 2 hours of riding before we get to Havre and get set up in a cheap motel. Matt temporarily loses his camera, but is luckily able to find it by retracing his steps a few times. I get my sleeping bag sewn up, and buy some supplies of cold weather gear and another tube for the bike.
I need to learn that I am unable to control myself in Buffets. Today it was a KFC buffet, and I WENT TO TOWN.
Hung out at the motel, watched TV, talked to Allison, and got caught up on the blogging. Tomorrow is supposed to be an INTENSE headwind again, but we’re pretty determined to travel 60 miles to Chester. This means we have to wake up at 6am and hit the road by 7am. If we can go 40 miles by 10:30am, then we should be in good shape. If we can’t, then it might get hairy. I’m soooo sick of all these headwinds, I can’t even begin to tell you. It makes riding not fun, and unfortunately for the past 2 weeks it’s been almost ALL headwinds. It’s really de-motivating to spend all this time, money and effort doing something that is not fun for days at a time. But once I hit the mountains (Monday), it’s a whole new ball game. Or at least that's what I am assuming.
3 comments:
We were getting worried about you. At least now we know you're in Montana, wreaking havoc on buffets. That's our Steven! Mom
Steve, we are still rooting for you here in Fargo. I just read your blog entry about how the headwinds are making this trip not fun. (Caution: pep talk/life insights ahead.) From the few hours that we hung out, I think I know you well enough that I can say this without you taking it the wrong way. Or maybe you'll cross me off your Christmas card list. Either way, I think that you are so close to what you are doing that you are missing the point of a trip like this. So here it is: LIFE IS A HEADWIND!
Again, I totally respect what you are doing and think it is awesome. I am sure it will be an experience where some times things suck really bad and things don't go at all like you planned (getting wasted with two crazy bastards half way through a cross country bike trip?), but if you keep somewhat focused on what you want, you'll get it eventually. Then you will have the luxury of reliving it in your mind over and over. That's when you will REALLY learn about yourself, for better or worse, which is probably the point of subjecting oneself to all that you have. If your goal wasn't to figure out who you are and what you are made of, I would flat out say a trip like this is not worth it.
There you have it, a direct, to the point assessment from one of your many fans in this life. I hope you aren't too pissed off. :-) Matt "how can you be so animated?!" from Fargo
Slo Leak,
Whether or not Matt from Fargo is trying to sell you on Dianetics, I think your headwind troubles speak to a larger problem: You're assuming this world is a kind and warm place. It is not. We must carve out the kind and warm places so that all that remains are the cold, grey places so we never again yearn for warmth and beauty. Only then can we become complete rulers over the lord's dominion. The settlers knew this. The Imperialists knew this. The backpackers and trust-fund babies know this. And yet you keep trying to find the beauty without destroying it...a foolish endeavor. Destroy the beauty as you find it, leave no trace for the next slo-leaker. Only then will it become truly special to you. Scorched Earth!!!! Scorched Earth!!! Destroy!
Love,
Ann
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