Day 5 & 6: Discovering the Greatest Day of My Life

I grew up in Suburban Chicago which I've always believed to be one of the most aesthetically unpleasing places I've ever seen...much less live. It's not run down, it's not cheap, it's not without great people...but it's uninspired and consists primarily of shopping malls and office "parks" many of which seem deserted.

A cold March storm, 24/7 grey sky and a dumpy hotel certainly did nothing to change the perception. I took advantage of my time here and connected with family and friends that I've neglected for too long. A grand total of about 5 minutes were spent exposed to the elements.

It is hard for me to come back here due to a deeply ingrained repulsion from this place....and it's hard to motivate myself to even photograph it because there is nothing visually stimulating about it.

There was once a bit of inspiring film taken here that I recently discovered. It was a super 8 video my dad took of me on the day I got my driver's license back in 1982. I think that may have been the happiest day of my life. While I suppose I should say it was the day I got married or had my kids...the reality is that there is probably no happier day than the day I gained motorized mobility. Have I mentioned that I love cars? I could have gotten into that car and driven anywhere at any time. Of course I didn't go anywhere (immediately)...but being finally enabled was an indescribable feeling. It was the first step towards escaping Schaumburg, Illinois.

This clip sprang to mind when I arrived at my Dad's home to bid him farewell as I began the next leg of the trip. He's lived here for 30 years now and it looks pretty much the same....

For nothing other than to demonstrate the level of stupidity my father and I are willing to explore I present the great reenactment of the greatest day of my life:

If only I coulda found my Carrera sunglasses to bring it full circle.

Day 3: Wild Life

Today's route:

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The Colorado RTD staff clearly suffers from our substandard education system…but that did not stop me from enjoying the "wild life" evident in and around Ouray.

Similar to the way in which Esalen captures the essential vibe of 60’s hippy California…Ouray embodies the spirit of an old western frontier town albeit with a preponderance of hot springs, great food, a lack of unholy stink and little evidence of rotten teeth in the indigenous population...but i can feel the authenticity deep down.

Don't believe me? I submit Chad....

As I descended into the flats driving north from Ouray I came upon the town of Delta. Delta is transported straight out of the 1940's. I was motoring through when my R8 pulled a "Kit" and doubled back to check out a "classic car" dealer's inventory. Car porn for both of us my friends. Before us was a yard littered with unrestored car hulks some of which were nearly rotting off the frame...but provided some beautiful architectural contrast to my precious.

Some pretty cool vintage signage as well across the way...

Leaving Delta and heading back towards the interstate brought steady elevation and anticipation of the cool drive just ahead as the peaks beckoned on the horizon towards Vail Summit.

The engineering along interstate 70 inspires some serious awe as it cuts through the granite mountains. More porn for an architecture technology fan (dweeb) like me.

After all the awe and appreciation of the great Rocky Mountains it was time to prepare for the most difficult leg of the road trip. Tomorrow I drive east through the rest of Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois. There's over 1000 miles to cover and I have no desire to hang out in Des Moines or Omaha so I gotta gear up and blast on through. The weather is also calling for some freezing rain/snow later in the day tomorrow and i'm not interested in that experience if at all possible. A friend questioned my sanity making this journey in early March as the weather tends to be unpredictable in this part of the country. Since I'm here there's not too much I can do with that thought except to plow through if necessary.

Come what may tomorrow....tonight it's all about a nice dinner at the Palm after checking into the Westin Tabor Center in downtown Denver. I'll be damned if i'm going to "rough it" tonight. I'll be using the last of my Starwood points and those points are going go out in a blaze of glory.