Monthly Archives: June 2015
Saturday June 27, 2015 A MOUNTAIN TOP EXPERIENCE
Saturday June 27, 2018 DAY 115 A MOUNTAIN TOP EXPERIENCE!
NOTE TO ANY WHO READ YESTERDAY’S BLOG. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE GO BACK AND REREAD IT! I just proofread it and it was atrocious. I was literally sleep walking in my brain last night. Hope tonight is better. At least it is only 12:22 a.m. I must hurry so I can get more sleep tonight.
Tonight I am again in a different bed, different room and about 10 hours in driving time from where I spent last night. I am in Cheyenne Wyoming. After driving in both Montana and Wyoming I think it is almost a draw as to which one I am most in love with. The thing I find so interesting about these states is that each state individually is so diverse in landscapes. Since they are bordering states you would think they might be quite similar, but after leaving Montana and arriving in Wyoming it’s as if the landscapes changes purposely to accommodate a separate identity for each state. It also seemed that way when I crossed the border from Canada into Idaho.
I loved Montana in its stark beauty of open spaces and subtle colors and the curves that fashioned the ground. So, so beautiful. And then I crossed over the “port of entrance” in Frannie Wyoming and It’s as if I drove into another country again. Very different. Wyoming has a cragginess about it. So many shapes and forms rising up from the earth. Sharp points of mountains, large and small, irregular peaks in the distance and bluffs that seem to arise out of nowhere. Crumbling rock tumbling on the roads from above. And I wondered what “The Port of Entrance” meant until I saw the highway sign that said all commercial vehicles had to stop at the port of entrance for inspection. Then I realized I had crossed over the border from one state to the next and everything in commercial vehicles had to be checked. I assumed it mostly had to do with transporting live fruits and vegetables and anything else that could bring petulance or disease into the state of Wyoming. The same tactic is used when crossing the border into California.
Blake told me about a mountain range that I might want to see since I enjoythe winding scenic route much better that Interstates. So I decided to take his advice and go the scenic route. I will forever be grateful to Blake for telling me about this DIAMOND. Oh my, what an experience today was as I drove into a mountain of delight. After leaving the mountain I summed it up in my mind as being Yosemite and Glacier National Park all rolled into one. And I loved both Yosemite and Glacier but I think I love this one more or at least as equal. I approached the mountain range from a long distance away and was quite impressed with what I saw. I didn’t realize these were the mountains I would be journeying into. The closer I got the more curious I was about them. They are like none other I have ever seen. Take a look at the pictures I included today. Enlarge the picture by clicking on it and study the intricate lines of the mountain’s surface. So very beautiful. As I got closer and closer to the mountain I could see that one of them had, what looked like to me, to be a road on it. I felt a little tingle, and a lot of excitement as I speculated that that might actually be the mountain I would climb to get over to the other side. Well, it was true. That was the mountain I would climb in my little grey fox. And it was a steep climb and descent. And it took a long time to get over the mountains. Once I climbed to the top in my car the lookout points were amazing. It was like sitting on the edge of an airplane wing and looking at the earth below.
I finally arrived at the other side of the mountain range and was quite a bit behind in my timeline for traveling to my next destination before dark. But it was worth it. So worth it. When I arrived at the tops of the mountain, to my surprise there were beautiful little green valleys with gorgeous trees growing up the sides of the mountains. From a distance I could see no depth, no other mountains behind the row of mountains I viewed from afar I was so pleasantly surprised to find all the different landscapes even in the ecosystem of the mountains. It was about 20 degrees cooler up than down on the dessert floor. 74 degrees vs. 94 degrees. Take your pick. When I am in the internal part of a mountain range like the one today I feel apart and personal and intimate with the mountain. It seems such a mystery how man can engineer and design a system to traverse from one mountain to the next mountain to get over and through and up and down in the mountain range and make you come out where you need to go. I love the feeling of being within the range.
Again, I am at a loss for words and clarity because of the late time. I arrived at my destination after 9:00 p.m. tonight and once I got unpacked and had dinner it was another late night. I am staying an Airbnb tonight in Cheyenne. I hope to go to the capitol building if it are open on a Sunday and then head to Denver Colorado to see my cherished friends Cynthia and Chris and their two boys. David believes I am his grandma and he is excited to see me. The 4 month old could probably care less but I can hardly wait to see how much he has grown since I was there earlier in my trip. He was just a couple of weeks old when I last saw him. I have adopted her boys in my heart as my grandchildren. I think I am the only grandma they really know. I will be in Denver for two nights.
Before I left Blake and Carrie’s home I asked Blake if he had some wisdom for me. He was quick to respond and I want to point out that I absolutely love his wisdom. He said quite a bit on my voice box on the Iphone so I will condense it here
Blake’s wisdom: “Try to learn something from everyone you meet in life because everyone you meet will have something interesting that you don’t know about. If you take time to visit with them you will learn something new.”
Blake told me about a story I found very interesting. Last year his wife Carrie became involved with flying with World War II vets for the HONOR FLIGHT to Washington DC and back because she is a respiratory therapist that flies on the medical rescue flights taking people to hospitals. Medical personnel were needed to help care for the elderly veterans while traveling. She came back from the first flight and was so emotionally exploding that Blake decided to volunteer his time as well. Blake went on all the rest of the flights. They worked with over 500 veterans on these trips. Carrie could not come on the last trip but Blake went. These men were in their 90’s and one was 103. Blake found out new things from each one he talked with. There was one man who wanted to go on the honor flight so desperately but his family did not want him to go because he was frail. He wanted to go so badly that they consented. He did it. He had a marvelous time and loved every moment of it. Carrie did not get to go on that last flight with him so she stopped over at his house the night he got home just to talk to him. He was thrilled to have had the experience. Carrie went home and the man died later that night. This man was quite an artisan and after his death his family gifted Carrie and Blake with a beautiful art creation he did. I regret that I did not take a photo of it because it was truly one of the most beautiful intricate pieces of wood art I have ever seen. It was a three dimensional piece of wood with beautiful curves that if held in one direction made a perfect double “S”. The sides were curved with a wide flat surface. the wood was all done with intricate small pieces of wood overly. It was truly a beautiful work of art. In a nutshell Blake’s wisdom “Try to learn something from everyone you meet.”
Blake, thank you for your beautiful and touching story. And oh by the way, if you read this would you please take a picture of a couple of different angles of the artwork I spoke about and send it to my text number. I would really appreciate it and would love to post it here. Thank you for a wonderful experience at your home. I enjoyed meeting both you and Carrie. If Carrie would like to send me her wisdom I’d love to share it.
Okay friends out there in never never land. My days on the road are numbered. It is count down time. This is my last Sunday to be traveling. I have a lot of thinking to do. A lot of contemplation. I am so looking forward to seeing my grandsons in Wisconsin, my husband, my son and daughter in law and eventually Rebecca and Neil and Jackson and Coal (my granddogs) down in West Palm Beach. Life will never be the same for me again. I will never be the same. Thanks to all of you who have read my blog and made comments along the way. I appreciate your input. I don’t even know if a lot of it made sense because I wrote so late at night and that is not my normal wake time. I think I am in for some adjustment when I get home. I hope to continue blogging and actually put topics where they should be so it will be easier to find things. I’d like to have more of my poetry available also.
I will close but before I do I’ll search my brain and see if there is any power left in there to come up with a poem without falling asleep.
Montana Inspiration
By Kathleen Martens
June 27, 2015
Seas of color dance in the wind,
Flowers and grass best of friends.
Colors of gold flecked by the sun
As beige and lavender blur into one.
Pink and orange and hints of green
And maroon oft is seen.
An ocean floor gentle and curved
This same beauty to the earth served.
And I thank God that I can see
All that He created just for me.
And that I can hear His beautiful song
The sound of birds as I travel along.
And I can inhale the fragrance of life
In a simple flower that carries no strife.
And I can taste His bounty of love
That He seeded from Heaven above.
And I thank God that I can feel
Love, joy, happiness, and zeal.
The above poem is in tribute of the beautiful plains of Montana, ever changing, ever dancing, ever joyful. My mountain top poem will just have to wait. Good night. Sweet dreams!
Friday June 26 2015 DAY DAY 114 A CAPITOL DAY!
This day will be a short short blog. Already 1:46 a.m. when I am starting. Up and out of my Airbnb by 11:00 a.m. It was such a lovely place to stay and it was great meeting another houseguest staying the same night. The other house guest was Julia who I think I mentioned last night who just graduated from Santa Barbara University. She stayed in an actual screened in porch, open to the elements. It is warm, actually quite HOT in this part of the world so I guess it wasn’t a hardship. The place we stayed was beautiful inits natural setting with nature.
I spent about 2 ½ to 3 hours at the capitol building in Billings. I took a tour and it was wonderful. The capitol has a beautiful interior. I put some photos on the blog. Met two very nice ladies who were the only other two to comprise our entire tour group. It was actually rather nice to be one of three instead of one in thirty or forty. See pictures below.
Today I drove the back roads of Montana. The secenery was so exquisitely beautiful that I could barely concentrate on my driving. A myriad of color sparkled all around me. The ground reminded me of the floor of an ocean, all curves and sways and swirls. So many shapes on the ground and beautiful grasses and flowers and weeds created a tapestry of the softest hues of lavenders, silver, beige, gold, pink and hints of soft fresh spring green.
I have left behind me a trail of uncaptured photos. I now wish I had taken the time to capture all of them. Some were impossible because there were no turnout places to allow for photos. Some I had to forego due to time. Soon they will be lost from my visual memory and I’ll probably have regrets for not taking the time to stop and create a lasting memory for me.
I am so sleepy I am falling asleep right here. I will quickly summarize my day.
After all the beautiful landscapes I have seen these past four months, this one today takes the prize. (I don’t know what the prize is for at the moment),
I won’t go into all who I met today in hopes of actually getting to bed VERY VERY SOON.
Been playing phone tag with Rebecca! Miss you darling daughter, try calling me again real soon on my cell phone.
I arrived in Billings Montana about 5:00 p.m. today. The couple I am staying with were referred to me by my nephew Brian. My hosts are Carrie and Blake who living in Billings, Montana. Billings is a beautiful little city. I had a night tour with all the city lights sparkling after Carrie and Blake treated me to a dinner at “Jake’s. The food was great! I have really enjoyed meeting them. They are a great couple.
I must get up early as possible tomorrow morning (depending on when I get to bed) because I have a 7 hour trip tick drive tomorrow. I always mentally add at least 2 hours because I enjoy traveling the back roads so I can experience more of the small town feel and see the sights. Today was an awesome drive because I went all back roads. The colors of the grasses and wild flowers were like I have never seen before. Pinks and purples and greens and browns were gorgeous. Just think what it would be like to see as far as the eye could behold with no trees or houses to distract or block your vista. In some parts Montana seems to be profoundly quiet and deserted. A place I loved being. I think I could move to Montana, if not for the undulating beauty that surrounded me today, but because whichever direction I looked I could see the mountains. The mountains are drawing me back. Back to a place I didn’t know I would want to be.
I have lots of wisdom from others received yesterday but too tired to share more. I must go before I drop. It is 2:18 a.m. (hey, my birthday numbers)!
Goodnight everyone. Sorry for just a short note. It was truly an awesome and inspiring day for me. I’ll tell you more when I have time.
I HEAR MY NAME
By W. Kathleen Martens
wkmartens
A Land beckons and calls out to me
My heart in rhythm reflects
That which my eyes behold
My soul longs to connect.
Subtle variance of color lost
In a sea of undulating grain
So many shades in graceful hue
Take away all my pain.
Thursday June 25, 2015 DAY 113 A DAY TO REMEMER
Thursday June 25, 2015 DAY 113 A DAY TO REMEMBER
How do I contain today with mere words? I posted a few photos and they cannot do not do justice to what I saw and experienced. At first my experiences of viewing the park didn’t seem a lot different than what I saw in other wayside stops on my journey. But the more I got into the day, the more spectacular everything seemed to become. I think what I liked the most was being IN SIDE THE MOUNTAINS. So many mountains and so many ways to navigate; sight, sound, by water, by car, by foot, and the experiences were all SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS! No other word to describe it. Being on the floor of the forest and then being on the mountain top and looking down caused everything to seem so surreal. Sometimes the eyes and equilibrium played tricks on me and I couldn’t really decipher what I was looking at. And then I look a photos and they are so lifeless and flat and one dimensional. And what I have left is what I hold in my heart, the remembrance of the awesomeness of God’s mighty creation, the colors, the scope, the magnitude, and how little I really am in the scheme of things. And yet to myself, (just as we all are to ourselves), WE ARE THE SCHEME OF THINGS when it comes to our own life. And yet I am so small and so fragile, and so insignificant when I compare myself to all that was around me on this spectacular day.
Being in a park like the Glacier National Park or Yosemite or Yellowstone creates a different atmosphere between the visitors. People seem to have their guard down and seem friendlier. It’s as if we are all there to give homage to a power bigger than ourselves and we recognize that in each other. I had opportunity to speak to several people and actually had a chance to harvest quite a bit of “wisdom” today. It is always fun to ask that question and watch how people respond, especially the younger people. I think the younger crowd want to be thought of as a responsible adult and feel good to have someone “older” ask them what they think. The young people are usually the ones that answer the quickest and most readily. Some ask me, what is the definition for wisdom. My answer to them is that as we go through life we search and acquire knowledge and then when we take that knowledge and use it to make decisions that will benefit the situation we are in, that is when we use what is called “wisdom”. Using the knowledge and experience we have to make strong sound decisions on how to live our life is practicing “wisdom”. We are to get knowledge through instruction and experience and then seek wisdom on how to use it. And God says if we ask Him for wisdom He will give it to us. I continually ask God to give me wisdom in all that I do.
I don’t know how I get off on side topics when all I wanted to tell you was how utterly awesome my day was. It is very late but I have so much to say. I shall try to wrap it up shortly. We’ll see.
While viewing one of the beautiful sights in Glacier Park I spoke with three young men on their first big trip together as young adults. I could tell they were having a good time, I took their picture with their camera and then got around to the topic of wisdom.
JR’s wisdom: “Never take anything for granted”. I just lost one of my best friends about a month ago and I just learned that you never know when you are going to lose something so you might as well take advantage of it while you have it.”
JD’s wisdom: “Life’s a garden, dig it!”
I do not remember the third man’s name: “Never be too busy to not have some fun.”
Even before talking with these three young man I spoke with a family before I actually entered the gates of the park. The mom offered to take my picture by the sign. I was delighted. That is the only picture of me take today to prove that I was actually here at the sign of the park. This family was a nice family traveling together with two young adult children. They are from my home state of Arkansas! Each one contributed a nugget of wisdom.
Paula: “Save money earlier.”
Scott: “Don’t let life pass you by. Do all as many things as you enjoy and have fun.”
Mattie: “Don’t take things for granted” 16 years old
Bryce: “Live life to the fullest. 19 years old
After I arrived at my Airbnb home this evening I met another guest named Julia. Julia just gradated from Santa Barbara with her Masters in statistics.
Julia wisdom: I see the world in a whole new way now since I have studied statistics. I see ever process as a random variable. Some are very predictable like the sunset but some are less predictable, like when a baby is going to be born or when it will rain and you can apply these ideas to every little thing.
I had my first negative experience today with my Airbnb home. It was a divorced man who rents the room. He was pleasant, a man of few words, and not overly social. I arrived last night after 9:00. He got me settled and then went to his end of the house and to bed. I stayed up and blogged and then went to my end of the house to ready myself for bed. And the bathroom was a mess. Dirty toilet (very dirty) and a sick with soap scum, toothpaste splatters on the faucets, and lots of grime and shaving hair particles all around. Yuk. Before my host when to bed I realized there were no wash cloths in the bathroom and asked if he had a couple I could use for washing my face and bathing. He brought me three cloths that looked stained and faded and worn as if they were cleaning cloths. Well, that is what they became, my cleaning cloths. I was there, I needed a place to sleep and wash up so I just scrubbed the bathroom. It actually looked pretty good when I finished. Then I took out one of my emergency wash cloth, (because I have found that not all people use a washcloth to wash themselves with) wash my face and brushed my teeth and went to bed. Mr. Quiet Host was already gone to work by the time I came to the kitchen at 7:30 a.m. So I didn’t get to tell him about the dirty bathroom. Maybe it was a good thing he wasn’t there. Other than that one negative experience I have had absolutely wonderful experiences staying at them. Oh, I will say that the only other place where I wasn’t offered wash cloths with my towels was when I stayed in another home hosted by a young single man. If men only knew that they would smell better if they used a wash cloth maybe more of them would use one. (Maybe that should be in red and be my wisdom for this day.) Like my son answered me when I asked him what I should name my blog “THE OPINION YOU DIDN’T ASK FOR”, well that is my opinion nobody asked for but since I’m doing the writing I gave it anyway! And I hope you all take it for what it is—“tongue and cheek”!
Back to Airbnb. Other than that this morning the day was wonderful even with a 45 minutes delay waiting in line to use the road that was shut down due to construction (I had time to eat my lunch in my red insulated bag), and the fact that part of the highway I was traveling on after I left the park was loose gravel and dirt road for miles and miles. Going 35 miles an hour does not make good time when you are trying to arrive someplace before dark. There was one other delay but can’t remember it at this late time. But I did arrive here before dark. “Here” means my next Airbnb in Helena Montana. This place more than makes up for my consternation last night. And besides, it didn’t hurt me to scrub the man’s bathroom. Remind me not to book if I know it is a single man. Sometimes you don’t know because only one name of the host “family” is given.
This place is about 10 miles outside of town in the deep country of Montana. Oh man is it ever beautiful. I arrive just as the sun was going down so didn’t get any photos. I’ll try to get some in the morning. It is at the end of a dead end dirt road. It appears to be an authentic log home. Big logs. Big rooms, real wood everywhere and real space outside. It is awesome. I have my own little suite, one nice size bedroom, a kitchenette, and a nice double sink vanity in the bathroom. Even better is that I am on the ground floor close to the car. I have packed up my car for the final launch. I am homeward bound. I now have it set up so that I only restock a little purse size bag with clean undies, stockings, carry in on a hanger what I will wear the next day, take in my toiletry bag and my computer so I can blog. I also bring in my food bad, refreeze my water bottles for tomorrow and stock the fridge with my meager fare. It is less and less now. Today I actually ate out at a restaurant all by myself.
And eating out reminds me of the third delay. I was so sleepy I was afraid to drive so I stopped at this little town (and when I say little I mean little) because of a sign that said “HAVE YOU HAD LUNCH TODAY” and I thought why not stop and go in there and maybe I would wake up. It was called Buffalo Joe’s. Three nice young ladies worked there and since it was between lunch and dinner they had a bit of time to chat. Garnered some wisdom, shared some ideas with one about senior portrait photography, went over what they had that I might could drink and came up with only water, and finally woke up. By that time I started getting hungry for dinner so I ordered a BUFFALO BURGER and it was delicious. But I did feel bad for the buffalo. I left there quite restored and rested and made it the rest of the way on the gravel roads quite awake. That buffalo burger was absolutely delicious. Two of the girls that worked there gave me their wisdom.
Shayla’s wisdom: “Hard work pays off”. Shayla just graduated from High School.
Jordan “Travel while you are young and live life to the fullest” Jordan is 17
Visions of Poetry 