7/1
We left Phoenix at 8:00 am and it was already stifling hot. The drive west to San Diego on I-8 was long, windy, boring, and yes... you guessed it... HOT! We stopped briefly at a Wendy's for Frosty's (our usual moral booster) and I was rewarded with a receipt that allowed me to take a short phone survey for a free quarter pounder. Yipee! Alex and I considered digging through the trash bins to see if there were any disregarded survey receipts, but we held our composure and retained our dignity.
We passed through several Border Patrol checkpoints and miles and miles of hot desert sand before finally crossing into some small mountains where the increased elevation brought a break in the heat. Soon we were in San Diego, the land of mysteriously perfect, temperate weather. As we pulled up to the house, the trip odometer rolled over to 7464 miles, and we were met by my good friend (and former roommate), Jay, and his girlfriend, Chelsea.
As I tell many people who ask how this whole trip got started, Jay was the dreamer who got this ball rolling in the first place. Jay was my roommate my sophomore year at TU. We used to lay in bed thinking up crazy trips we wanted to take if we ever had the chance... kayak the Mekong, hitchhike Europe, etc. One of his dreams was to ride a motorcycle from Alaska to the southern tip of South America. He did some research as to what it would take, and we placed it on the back burner.
Through a series of events last summer, the dream was resurrected, and I asked Jay if he still wanted to take the motorcycle trip. Now in graduate school at San Diego State, a summer away wasn't a possibility, and I called Alex who is now riding by my side. (We changed the route to a domestic trip for cost reasons... but maybe someday, who knows?)
Like I mentioned in the last post, music is a void that Alex and I are constantly trying to fill. A stay with Jay was just what the doctor ordered. Not only does he have an excellent iTunes collection, but Jay is very talented on the strings and played us some of his original work. Jay is constantly adjusting and fine-tuning his top 100 playlist and that night he took us through the top 25 and explained his criteria for selection. We disputed some of the picks, but overall it was a great list that satisfied our thirst for music.
In the morning, we woke up, grabbed some breakfast, and headed out in Chelsea's VW Cabrio convertible for a tour of the city and a trip up the coast. Three dudes in a little, cute convertible with the top down, cruising the strip must have been quite the sight, but we didn't care. We we
re in California!
We landed at Chelsea's house, picked up some surfboards and wetsuits, and walked down to the beach to try out the waves. There were many surfers floating out in the water when we arrived and the waves seemed to be big. We had fun stuffing Alex into the girl's wetsuit :) and then started our paddle out to the break.
Surfing was a blast, but as inexperienced riders we were mostly dominated by the crashing waves. After a few hours and some new bumps and bruises, we headed in to dry off and eat some snacks.
That night we were able to attend a growth group that Jay leads. I'm not talking physical growth; Jay is tall enough already. The group of five guys of different ages and backgrounds meets once a week for a meal, to talk about life, and study the Bible together. The time was great and we left encouraged and strengthened by the Gospel.
We left Phoenix at 8:00 am and it was already stifling hot. The drive west to San Diego on I-8 was long, windy, boring, and yes... you guessed it... HOT! We stopped briefly at a Wendy's for Frosty's (our usual moral booster) and I was rewarded with a receipt that allowed me to take a short phone survey for a free quarter pounder. Yipee! Alex and I considered digging through the trash bins to see if there were any disregarded survey receipts, but we held our composure and retained our dignity.
We passed through several Border Patrol checkpoints and miles and miles of hot desert sand before finally crossing into some small mountains where the increased elevation brought a break in the heat. Soon we were in San Diego, the land of mysteriously perfect, temperate weather. As we pulled up to the house, the trip odometer rolled over to 7464 miles, and we were met by my good friend (and former roommate), Jay, and his girlfriend, Chelsea.
As I tell many people who ask how this whole trip got started, Jay was the dreamer who got this ball rolling in the first place. Jay was my roommate my sophomore year at TU. We used to lay in bed thinking up crazy trips we wanted to take if we ever had the chance... kayak the Mekong, hitchhike Europe, etc. One of his dreams was to ride a motorcycle from Alaska to the southern tip of South America. He did some research as to what it would take, and we placed it on the back burner.
Through a series of events last summer, the dream was resurrected, and I asked Jay if he still wanted to take the motorcycle trip. Now in graduate school at San Diego State, a summer away wasn't a possibility, and I called Alex who is now riding by my side. (We changed the route to a domestic trip for cost reasons... but maybe someday, who knows?)
Like I mentioned in the last post, music is a void that Alex and I are constantly trying to fill. A stay with Jay was just what the doctor ordered. Not only does he have an excellent iTunes collection, but Jay is very talented on the strings and played us some of his original work. Jay is constantly adjusting and fine-tuning his top 100 playlist and that night he took us through the top 25 and explained his criteria for selection. We disputed some of the picks, but overall it was a great list that satisfied our thirst for music.
In the morning, we woke up, grabbed some breakfast, and headed out in Chelsea's VW Cabrio convertible for a tour of the city and a trip up the coast. Three dudes in a little, cute convertible with the top down, cruising the strip must have been quite the sight, but we didn't care. We we
re in California!We landed at Chelsea's house, picked up some surfboards and wetsuits, and walked down to the beach to try out the waves. There were many surfers floating out in the water when we arrived and the waves seemed to be big. We had fun stuffing Alex into the girl's wetsuit :) and then started our paddle out to the break.
Surfing was a blast, but as inexperienced riders we were mostly dominated by the crashing waves. After a few hours and some new bumps and bruises, we headed in to dry off and eat some snacks.
That night we were able to attend a growth group that Jay leads. I'm not talking physical growth; Jay is tall enough already. The group of five guys of different ages and backgrounds meets once a week for a meal, to talk about life, and study the Bible together. The time was great and we left encouraged and strengthened by the Gospel.
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