Experiencing technical difficulties, please stand by

Unfortunetaly technology is conspiring against us. I type this on a hotel computer in a WordPress box that isn’t displaying the type, so I’m flying blind as it were- pardon any typos. Mrs. Damn’s laptop died, and we’re still without phones that will do anythingother than text-only email. Add to that a check engine light in the new Mazda and I’m feeling a bit let down by our devices, but such is life. Twitpics will continue in the sidebar, as we’re able.

We’ve had various changes of plans… I flew out of Denver to visit my grandmother in Penswood Villlage, where she’s planning as graceful an exit as possible despite increasing discomfort. Had a couple days there with my father as well, then flew back to Denver, and drove with the family back through Kansas, Missouri, Indiana (with a stop at our alma matter, Earlham College), Ohio, W. VA, Western PA, and today’s drive through PA with diversions through MD when I forgot we’d levft on a feature in the GPS to avoid toll roads.  It’s been a pretty hellish week, overall, and everyone’s been at the end of their ropes.  Did make it in time to have dinner in Pennswood though, and for my grandmother to finally meet the twins.

From here, we’ll have tomorrow morning again with my grandmother and the Uncle who’s been with her for the last couple weeks, then head to Richmond VA to tackle some initial logisttics (school registration for Moon, parekingpoermit for the moving pod and the cars, check on the laptop and car problems, etcf.then back up here to PA then on to Montaulk NY, then back.

At any rate, wish us luck, and I hope we’re able to be more connected in the near future… ideally without having to spend too many more hundreds of dollars this trip…

Things Left Un-Blogged

• The Flat Tire.  On a related note, Tomichi Tires in Gunnison, CO is awesome.
• The Tornado.  Spotted out the window while driving to Denver, CO.
• Being on my own with the kids for a day and a half in Denver, CO.  Funny how there is no time for blogging when that happens.
• The change in route that has us going through:
• Kansas.  Flat.  108 degrees.  Evil.  Enough said.
• No functional internet in Kansas hotel.  Enough said.

Enough for now, hope to see you next in Indiana!

Where We’ve Been: Kansas

Kansas is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe’s name (natively kką:ze) is often said to mean “people of the wind” or “people of the south wind,” although this was probably not the term’s original meaning. Residents of Kansas are called “Kansans.”
Historically, the area was home to large numbers of nomadic Native Americans who hunted bison. It was first settled by European Americans in the 1830s, but the pace of settlement accelerated in the 1850s, in the midst of political wars over the slavery issue. When officially opened to settlement by the U.S. government in 1854, abolitionist Free-Staters from New England and pro-slavery settlers from neighboring Missouri rushed to the territory to determine if Kansas would become a free state or a slave state. Thus, the area was a hotbed of violence and chaos in its early days as these forces collided, and was known as Bleeding Kansas. The abolitionists eventually prevailed and on January 29, 1861, Kansas entered the Union as a free state. After the Civil War, the population of Kansas grew exponentially, when waves of immigrants turned the prairie into productive farmland. Today, Kansas is one of the most productive agricultural states, producing many crops, and leading the nation in wheat, sorghum and sunflower production most years. — wikipedia

Kansas is also home to the cries of “Are we there yet?”,  “My bottom hurts!”,  “How much longer?”.  Good riddance, Kansas.  Dorothy can keep you.