On our way to the Grand Canyon, should get there before sunrise. The sun just went down in Amarillo, Texas. I'll explain more later. Here are some posts I made when we didn't have wireless connection in Stockton....sorry for lack of organization....
Day 9 - Stockton, KS 11:34 PM
Paul's friends in Kansas actually knew some people that lived around here, so we got ahold of them. They are used to putting up strangers in their home so they were kind enough to drive 45 minutes out of their way, pick up the three of us, and drive us back to their town, asking nothing in return. Finally we don't have to hang out with all of our luggage in hotel lobbies for several hours, hoping to get out of the place we're stranded in.
They drove us 45 minutes north of our hotel to an even smaller town called Stockton. It's got a nice, antique brick-road downtown area. The lanes are very wide with few cars and many independently-owned small businesses.
I don't know everyone's names in this house. I forget these things very quickly. They are all very hospitable and treat us much more as a blessing than a burden. There are about 5 adults currently residing here and two high schoolers who were adopted from Ecuador when they were young. They both wrestle and used to play drums and are quality kids. We talked about sports and stuff.
The family treated us to a home-cooked Kansas meal, much better than any restaurants in Hays could have offered. There was chicken-noodle soup, mashed potatoes, salad (with what I like to call "Kansas dressing"), bread, vegetables, etc. It was all delicious, as I had been snacking on continental breakfast leftovers for the past two days. There are also about a dozen different desserts to choose from, great Christmas leftovers. Apple pie, ice cream, smore cake things, rocky road cookies, etc.
The next thing they treated us to was bowling, the only in-town entertainment besides the once-a-week-volunteer-run movie theater. It was a nice bowling alley and when we walked in, there were some head nods, signifying that the whole town knew each other.
After two games of bowling, we returned home and watched a rented movie. Movies are good because they ask nothing of you other than to be entertained. I think they are essential to the American lifestyle in the way that they inspire and refresh us (though abused by some for laziness).
We were told that we could be driven to Wichita tomorrow to pick up the part we need (yes, they actually offered to drive us three hours out of the way, that's 6 hours round-trip). However, I was not able to get ahold of Mike, the UPS guy in Wichita. The voicemail inbox on his personal cell phone is full.
So if we can't get ahold of Mike, we'll attend North Oak Community Church tomorrow morning (the same church that we walked to for Christmas Eve service). Then, for once, we'll spend a day without thinking about how we can get out of town, and just accept the fact that we have to wait until Monday to leave. I still want to commit to our same route. I think (and hope) Paul is warming up to the idea. I think it'd be an absolute shame and crime to come out here and not see the Grand Canyon and Rocky Mountains. I could sacrifice the Redwoods and Pacific Ocean if I had to, but really, they are right on the way. It is all doable. A lot of driving, yes, but what is a road trip, anyway?
I'm going to stop here because I'm typing on my computer and playing music and Mike is trying to sleep. I also have a light on. Oh! Also wanted to mention that the lady who picked us up also has a Cross-cultural Ministries degree (like me) and actually knows one of the two main characters in the book that I just finished (the one about the two guys who chose to be homeless for awhile).
Goodnight, world.
Day 10 - Stockton/Hays Ks
Got plenty of superb sleep on a nice carpeted floor. Took a 30-second shower. Went to church at the same church that we went to on Christmas Eve. It was everything you might imagine a typical church to be. Nothing more, nothing less, much like the Christmas Eve service.
We then ate pizza for lunch and played pool with Carlos and Diego in the youth room upstairs in the church. After a stop at Wal-Mart we returned home to chill. Today was quite the Sabbath, some might say. Just resting and appreciating what has been given to you. We've been so well-fed. Every meal has been so complete, and dessert of some kind is always offered. I've experienced the meaning of church the past two days, and I love it. My original goal for this trip was to meet people and have good conversation, and that has happened.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Day 9 - Hays KS
Have you ever lived an entire week of waking up in hopefulness and spending the rest of your day in disappointing helplessness?
Today we woke up, expecting our package to arrive at the front desk of the hotel, like the driver of the UPS truck personally told us it would. I was skeptical since I woke up, but at least the UPS guy sounding reassuring the day before. I decided to start blogging in the middle of the day to let out my frustration, hoping that at the end of today, I will have had a positive experience to blog about. I've probably turned so many people off of my blog already due to my transparency of my feelings.
Another day of frantically searching Kansas via telephone and internet for a good samaritan that may be personally willing to deliver our part.
If we can't find someone to personally be willing to drive out of their way for us, we'll be spending another two nights in this town. I need to get out of the hotel, though. The lady at the front desk gave us a local pastor's number. He said he would try to help us with a place to stay. I need to be around people. That's why I wanted to go on this trip in the first place, for the sake of meeting people. If we leave Monday, we'll have to cut Reno out of our schedule, which I'm not to disappointed about because I could always hit the town of Reno during an acoustic tour over the summer or something. We'd also have to cut out a day of being in Oregon, but that should only sentimentally impact the quality of Paul's journey because he's the one that knows these Oregon friends. The rest of our trip would be unaffected, other than the fact that we probably wouldn't be able to stay in places for as long as we'd like to. I'm typing this and trying to convince myself that it's not a big deal. At least if we can't find help today then I will know that we have no hope tomorrow. Therefore, I won't have to be let down tomorrow and I can just spend the time enjoying Hays (I just laughed when I wrote that).
Oh yeah, did I mention that Audi shipped our package via regular ground shipping instead of next-day shipping like we had asked?
If anyone has friends in Wichita with an extra 5 hours to spare tonight, do tell.
EDIT: During J-term break, I will be traveling with my brothers in the band Aneirin to their shows in NC/SC. I'm looking forward to that type of traveling, hanging with kids that are used to loud music and crashing on floors in strangers' homes. It will be a good breather and will remind me of the lifestyle that I am used to loving: always meeting new people, always on the road. (Never discouraged by vehicle problems.)
Today we woke up, expecting our package to arrive at the front desk of the hotel, like the driver of the UPS truck personally told us it would. I was skeptical since I woke up, but at least the UPS guy sounding reassuring the day before. I decided to start blogging in the middle of the day to let out my frustration, hoping that at the end of today, I will have had a positive experience to blog about. I've probably turned so many people off of my blog already due to my transparency of my feelings.
Another day of frantically searching Kansas via telephone and internet for a good samaritan that may be personally willing to deliver our part.
If we can't find someone to personally be willing to drive out of their way for us, we'll be spending another two nights in this town. I need to get out of the hotel, though. The lady at the front desk gave us a local pastor's number. He said he would try to help us with a place to stay. I need to be around people. That's why I wanted to go on this trip in the first place, for the sake of meeting people. If we leave Monday, we'll have to cut Reno out of our schedule, which I'm not to disappointed about because I could always hit the town of Reno during an acoustic tour over the summer or something. We'd also have to cut out a day of being in Oregon, but that should only sentimentally impact the quality of Paul's journey because he's the one that knows these Oregon friends. The rest of our trip would be unaffected, other than the fact that we probably wouldn't be able to stay in places for as long as we'd like to. I'm typing this and trying to convince myself that it's not a big deal. At least if we can't find help today then I will know that we have no hope tomorrow. Therefore, I won't have to be let down tomorrow and I can just spend the time enjoying Hays (I just laughed when I wrote that).
Oh yeah, did I mention that Audi shipped our package via regular ground shipping instead of next-day shipping like we had asked?
If anyone has friends in Wichita with an extra 5 hours to spare tonight, do tell.
EDIT: During J-term break, I will be traveling with my brothers in the band Aneirin to their shows in NC/SC. I'm looking forward to that type of traveling, hanging with kids that are used to loud music and crashing on floors in strangers' homes. It will be a good breather and will remind me of the lifestyle that I am used to loving: always meeting new people, always on the road. (Never discouraged by vehicle problems.)
Friday, December 26, 2008
Day 8 - Hays KS
It's hard to remember what happened today. First thing is first: We determined that continental breakfasts here are a thousand times better than those of the Holiday Inn. They even leave the Oat & Honey bars out all the time, and consequently, I did not have to purchase any food today.
The first thing we found out about the part that was supposed to be shipped to us today was that although the billing information went through, they told us we wouldn't receive it until Monday. Maybe you can imagine how pissed off all of us were, but most likely, you can't. So many things had to go wrong over and over again to keep us in Kansas this whole time, and now this! Paul wasn't going to settle. "I cannot stay here until Monday."
I was so frustrated and just wanted to cuss at someone or break something. Fortunately for Hays, Kansas, I just walked around back and sat down, feeling the beautiful weather, which in turn made me even more mad because it was like God saying, "Oh, look Phil, you're supposed to be enjoying your time here." I hate when God gives me what I want when I don't want it.
Paul, determined to get out of town by tomorrow at the latest, called up the Audi dealer in Topeka (for about the 8932570276th time) and began to try to negotiate. Audi was dismissive, unhelpful, and aggravating. I called UPS, which was actually entirely empathetic, personal, and informative. They helped a lot. Basically, there was a mix up because Audi said they delivered the part to their UPS to get shipped, but UPS said that they never received the package. After dozens of back-and-forth calls, we finally canceled the original order and had them overnight a completely new order (all of these calls being made as we are walking around town). Audi then called and said overnighting it wouldn't work. Then they called back saying it would, but for a larger fee. Then they called back and said it wouldn't. Finally, we called UPS and asked if we could just meet them at an airport to pick up the package. They gave us the number to the UPS employee who would be transporting the package, and as we called him, he told us that he would personally deliver the package to us at our hotel early tomorrow morning! So basically, if you want to run a large company or corporation, have good customer service. Please!
So we found out that we actually had another night at the Fairfield Inn booked. We weren't aware of it until we actually checked out of our room in the afternoon. During this time, the front desk lady was quite helpful. She gave me the number to a local pastor (of the same church that we attended the Christmas Eve service). This pastor was very helpful and said that if we did need a place to stay for free, since we were low on cash, he would make some calls to members of his church. It was refreshing to know that of all the churches that refused to help or blew us off with unhelpful alternatives, there were still churches willing to lovingly take kids in, even considering "what things are like today" (when they say that, I think they are referring to high crime rates and stuff).
So we're all very glad that the package will show up tomorrow morning, instead of Monday. Today for me was a serious time of pondering whether I should spend January hitchhiking. I was about ready to leave by the time that we found out we could get the package tomorrow. I'm still skeptical though. So many things have gone wrong so far, so why shouldn't another? Tell me to have faith or something Christianish like that so I can be optimistic.
Thank you to everyone who has been praying, and a special thanks to Joy who seriously wanted to help fix the problem with her connections in Kansas. Also a special thanks to Mike and Paul for tolerating me being out of character and cranky (even though we all are). My final thanks goes to the town of Hays for not hating people who are bitter and break down in their area. At least you have a Goodwill so we can pass the time laughing at those sweet mom jeans, the ones with no back pockets and elastic hips.
There isn't much to do here. Mike and Paul mentioned that to a car salesman who replied with, "Yeah, you guys aren't old enough to drink, are ya?"
We played Phase 10 for awhile and almost ordered a pizza but didn't. I'm laying on the bed we all shared last night (I'm man enough to admit that) and Paul and Mike are down on the main floor in the hot tub. I went in earlier which was a nice breather from today's insanity.
When you sleep between people, you always win. Whenever Mike wanted sheets, he would pull, and whenever Paul wanted sheets, he would pull. Since I was in the middle I was asleep basically all night, fully covered the whole time. I've been in my pajama pants since this morning.
Tomorrow we hope to be on the road to the Grand Canyon and get there around 4 AM. Then off to Cali. But of course, everything always changes.
Before I stop rambling about nothing I'd like to mention that I finished a book today. It was about two dudes who choose to live the urban homeless lifestyle and learn a lot about life, the church, relationships, the street, etc. I won't bore you with the contents of the book (even though it might be extremely interesting to most of you), but I would like to quote part of the book's summary that we all can benefit from, and I'll end this post on that note:
"What if following Him is hard? What if along the way He asks you to accomplish difficult tasks or to overcome intimidating obstacles? What if it requires more of you than you have to give?
Listen, that's the way it's supposed to be. Those places of need are where you and I discover ourselves, our faith, and-best of all-our God. It's there, in our weakness, that He shows Himself true, faithful, powerful, gracious, and loving....Your journey will lead you toward utter dependence on the King of kings and a resolution to follow Him wherever He may ask you to go....Still not sure what your risk might be? Then I dare you to ask yourself a reality-rattling question: What would I do during my day or in my life for God if I wasn't concerned with what I wear, what I eat, where I sleep, what I own, what people think of me, or what discomforts I face? Think about your answer. You're probably at least in the neighborhood of where your personal journey starts."
....Hello, America!
Take up your cross.
(I'm just glad we're not at the "Comfort" Inn)
The first thing we found out about the part that was supposed to be shipped to us today was that although the billing information went through, they told us we wouldn't receive it until Monday. Maybe you can imagine how pissed off all of us were, but most likely, you can't. So many things had to go wrong over and over again to keep us in Kansas this whole time, and now this! Paul wasn't going to settle. "I cannot stay here until Monday."
I was so frustrated and just wanted to cuss at someone or break something. Fortunately for Hays, Kansas, I just walked around back and sat down, feeling the beautiful weather, which in turn made me even more mad because it was like God saying, "Oh, look Phil, you're supposed to be enjoying your time here." I hate when God gives me what I want when I don't want it.
Paul, determined to get out of town by tomorrow at the latest, called up the Audi dealer in Topeka (for about the 8932570276th time) and began to try to negotiate. Audi was dismissive, unhelpful, and aggravating. I called UPS, which was actually entirely empathetic, personal, and informative. They helped a lot. Basically, there was a mix up because Audi said they delivered the part to their UPS to get shipped, but UPS said that they never received the package. After dozens of back-and-forth calls, we finally canceled the original order and had them overnight a completely new order (all of these calls being made as we are walking around town). Audi then called and said overnighting it wouldn't work. Then they called back saying it would, but for a larger fee. Then they called back and said it wouldn't. Finally, we called UPS and asked if we could just meet them at an airport to pick up the package. They gave us the number to the UPS employee who would be transporting the package, and as we called him, he told us that he would personally deliver the package to us at our hotel early tomorrow morning! So basically, if you want to run a large company or corporation, have good customer service. Please!
So we found out that we actually had another night at the Fairfield Inn booked. We weren't aware of it until we actually checked out of our room in the afternoon. During this time, the front desk lady was quite helpful. She gave me the number to a local pastor (of the same church that we attended the Christmas Eve service). This pastor was very helpful and said that if we did need a place to stay for free, since we were low on cash, he would make some calls to members of his church. It was refreshing to know that of all the churches that refused to help or blew us off with unhelpful alternatives, there were still churches willing to lovingly take kids in, even considering "what things are like today" (when they say that, I think they are referring to high crime rates and stuff).
So we're all very glad that the package will show up tomorrow morning, instead of Monday. Today for me was a serious time of pondering whether I should spend January hitchhiking. I was about ready to leave by the time that we found out we could get the package tomorrow. I'm still skeptical though. So many things have gone wrong so far, so why shouldn't another? Tell me to have faith or something Christianish like that so I can be optimistic.
Thank you to everyone who has been praying, and a special thanks to Joy who seriously wanted to help fix the problem with her connections in Kansas. Also a special thanks to Mike and Paul for tolerating me being out of character and cranky (even though we all are). My final thanks goes to the town of Hays for not hating people who are bitter and break down in their area. At least you have a Goodwill so we can pass the time laughing at those sweet mom jeans, the ones with no back pockets and elastic hips.
There isn't much to do here. Mike and Paul mentioned that to a car salesman who replied with, "Yeah, you guys aren't old enough to drink, are ya?"
We played Phase 10 for awhile and almost ordered a pizza but didn't. I'm laying on the bed we all shared last night (I'm man enough to admit that) and Paul and Mike are down on the main floor in the hot tub. I went in earlier which was a nice breather from today's insanity.
When you sleep between people, you always win. Whenever Mike wanted sheets, he would pull, and whenever Paul wanted sheets, he would pull. Since I was in the middle I was asleep basically all night, fully covered the whole time. I've been in my pajama pants since this morning.
Tomorrow we hope to be on the road to the Grand Canyon and get there around 4 AM. Then off to Cali. But of course, everything always changes.
Before I stop rambling about nothing I'd like to mention that I finished a book today. It was about two dudes who choose to live the urban homeless lifestyle and learn a lot about life, the church, relationships, the street, etc. I won't bore you with the contents of the book (even though it might be extremely interesting to most of you), but I would like to quote part of the book's summary that we all can benefit from, and I'll end this post on that note:
"What if following Him is hard? What if along the way He asks you to accomplish difficult tasks or to overcome intimidating obstacles? What if it requires more of you than you have to give?
Listen, that's the way it's supposed to be. Those places of need are where you and I discover ourselves, our faith, and-best of all-our God. It's there, in our weakness, that He shows Himself true, faithful, powerful, gracious, and loving....Your journey will lead you toward utter dependence on the King of kings and a resolution to follow Him wherever He may ask you to go....Still not sure what your risk might be? Then I dare you to ask yourself a reality-rattling question: What would I do during my day or in my life for God if I wasn't concerned with what I wear, what I eat, where I sleep, what I own, what people think of me, or what discomforts I face? Think about your answer. You're probably at least in the neighborhood of where your personal journey starts."
....Hello, America!
Take up your cross.
(I'm just glad we're not at the "Comfort" Inn)
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Day 7 - Northern Hays KS
I decided to say that we are now in "northern" Hays because today we switched hotels and had to cross under the overpass of I-70 to the northern side. Thought it might give our situation a little color....
Today we woke up to my computer alarm with a relatively new Sigur Ros song. Speaking of Sigur Ros, everyone should know that a movie is coming out on Earth Day entitled, "Earth." It's all about life. Not human life, but nature and all that (animals, plants, geography, rocks, etc). The camera work looks amazing, like the quality of National Geographic photography in video form. The Sigur Ros song "Hoppipolla" will be featured in the movie, so you know that the producers knew what they were doing.
Back to the story of our day. We grabbed yet another continental breakfast on our last free day at the Holiday Inn. Paul's brother gets a family discount at Marriot Hotels so we decided to grab a $100+ room at $35 at the Fairfield Inn which was maybe a half a mile away. Another reason that we chose this hotel chain is because they have very popular breakfast buffets. Apparently the sandwiches in the morning are fantastic. We carried about a thousand bags each (Paul's ten-pound weights in one of my bags) under the overpass and finally claimed our new room. Our first operation, like excited children, was to explore the swimming area. The hot tub was so hot that we could only stand it for a few seconds at most, so I eventually just took a seat and did some reading. Then Paul and I worked out in the adjacent room for awhile, not too long.
There's a silly and ironic thing about hotels. I don't know if I mentioned this yet, but if I did, it's worth noting again....There is so much potential for community in hotels. I mean, after all, they are giant buildings created to house people living close together and running into each other. However, the big wigs in the business capitalize on the western concept of "personal space." Rooms are really created to have all that you need: beds, desks, lights, bathroom facilities, etc. The televisions magnetically keep you in your own area, as to not be bothered by others. We like personal space. We like privacy. We like self-sufficiency. Moving images of people on screens give us easy relationships. We can watch the person and evaluate everything that they do inside of the television at their expense, but they will never ask anything of us. These concepts kind of hurt the community aspect of life at hotels, but they certainly please the managers making some green.
I didn't really connect with many people at the Holiday Inn, no one but staff for sure. Here at the Fairfield Inn, however, I already talked to some other guests staying. We talked on multiple occasions and it's nice to know that there aren't just human machines going through the routines of hotel life, ignorant and self-absorbed. Then again, maybe I'm the arrogant one.
I haven't spent enough time explaining Hays, Kansas. It's economy is largely based off of the interstate. On the north side of town, you have a Wal-Mart, a few gas stations, a truck stop, bus stop, some restaurants, and about 12 hotels for kids like us who break down and like their options for shelter. In the middle of town, there is the aforementioned shopping center and movie theatre. The residential area containing a handful of churches is located on the south side of town, which we have not explored, due largely to laziness and lack of motivation. Like I said, we westerners like our space and comfort and privacy. I'll admit it. I do also, sometimes.
If you know me well, you know that I am cheap, but for dinner I created a few excuses in my head to support Paul and Mike's decision to order pizza (only Domino's and a Chinese Buffet two miles away were open today). I told myself that since we aren't driving to Denver now, we might as well spend that money that we would on gas on pizza. I mean, hey, it's Christmas anyway. I don't know. When I eat food or pay for things I just feel really convicted, especially if I am cared for regardless of my purchase. We still have a full box of Raison Bran, a cup of Ramen, some Doritos, etc. Paul says like $15 can feed 30 people in Zambia for a year. Or maybe it was $30 can feed 15 people. Either way, why shouldn't I sacrifice a meal for that? Our meal was over $15 after paying the tip. I have seen desperate poverty first-hand. It's comfortable for me to put that behind me and pretend that it's all fairy tale. That's why I need to live with the oppressed. I need to push myself (and it's not like I wouldn't enjoy it). For the sake of empathy, to keep Christ's words out of meaningless sermons and to put them into action. Real love and real living.
For Christmas, our day was relatively uneventful. We did take it upon ourselves to go out and do something, so we saw yet another movie in Hays. I think the whole town was there, about 50 vehicles in the parking lot. The movie we saw was Valkyrie, the one about an attempted assassination of Hitler. I enjoy the movies and sometimes after seeing good (or bad) movies, I consider becoming a producer some day. Maybe in my next life....
We rerouted our trip, and honestly, I'm more excited about our new plan. Instead of hitting Seattle after the new year, we're going to Salt Lake City and then coming back through Iowa. It sounds strange, but for some reason I've always wanted to experience Iowa. I mean, what a cool name for a state. Seriously. It's not like I haven't seen cornfields....but still....
I've worn the same two pairs of underwear and the same two T-shirts and the same pair of pants since we've arrived here. I know we weren't planning to stay this long, but I'm just hoping that I don't start to chafe and that I can get to a place where I can do some laundry without paying.
God willing, tomorrow will be our last day in Hays and then we can drive all night until early the next morning to the Grand Canyon. Please, God? Please? Please UPS or Fed Ex or whoever is supposed to deliver these stupid coils? What a pain machines and technology and efficiency and mechanical things can be. Yes, a blessing, if approached correctly. But often, I think that they are equally a curse.
So now I'm sitting in this comfy chair (didn't have a chair in our room at the Holiday Inn) listening to Anathallo. It's a great new album, and you should have a listen. However, I am not wearing my onesy to bed tonight again.
I know there's a lot of pessimism encircling me concerning Hays, KS. This is simply due to the fact that we broke down here and could be somewhere else. It's not that Hays isn't beautiful. I want to make that clear. Apparently Denver is not ready for me to arrive. Maybe the world would implode if I showed up in that town. Maybe it's best that I was here over Christmas. It will be a Christmas that I won't forget, strangely enough. In the future, I will think in retrospect of this place and appreciate it more, being away from it.
Also just wanted to mention that the weather here was fairly nice. About 50 degrees today with a refreshing breeze. I walked outside this morning and felt alive wearing just a T-shirt. Guys with chemical imbalances and more-artistic-than-mathematic minds like me tend to let things like soft winds and fresh outdoor scents bring out very honest emotions. The thing is, I've been off of mood-altering medication for at least a month and a half (besides that one day), so the winds that once promoted free-spirit optimism are now the same winds that present a nostalgic sense of brokenness and loneliness.
Today we woke up to my computer alarm with a relatively new Sigur Ros song. Speaking of Sigur Ros, everyone should know that a movie is coming out on Earth Day entitled, "Earth." It's all about life. Not human life, but nature and all that (animals, plants, geography, rocks, etc). The camera work looks amazing, like the quality of National Geographic photography in video form. The Sigur Ros song "Hoppipolla" will be featured in the movie, so you know that the producers knew what they were doing.
Back to the story of our day. We grabbed yet another continental breakfast on our last free day at the Holiday Inn. Paul's brother gets a family discount at Marriot Hotels so we decided to grab a $100+ room at $35 at the Fairfield Inn which was maybe a half a mile away. Another reason that we chose this hotel chain is because they have very popular breakfast buffets. Apparently the sandwiches in the morning are fantastic. We carried about a thousand bags each (Paul's ten-pound weights in one of my bags) under the overpass and finally claimed our new room. Our first operation, like excited children, was to explore the swimming area. The hot tub was so hot that we could only stand it for a few seconds at most, so I eventually just took a seat and did some reading. Then Paul and I worked out in the adjacent room for awhile, not too long.
There's a silly and ironic thing about hotels. I don't know if I mentioned this yet, but if I did, it's worth noting again....There is so much potential for community in hotels. I mean, after all, they are giant buildings created to house people living close together and running into each other. However, the big wigs in the business capitalize on the western concept of "personal space." Rooms are really created to have all that you need: beds, desks, lights, bathroom facilities, etc. The televisions magnetically keep you in your own area, as to not be bothered by others. We like personal space. We like privacy. We like self-sufficiency. Moving images of people on screens give us easy relationships. We can watch the person and evaluate everything that they do inside of the television at their expense, but they will never ask anything of us. These concepts kind of hurt the community aspect of life at hotels, but they certainly please the managers making some green.
I didn't really connect with many people at the Holiday Inn, no one but staff for sure. Here at the Fairfield Inn, however, I already talked to some other guests staying. We talked on multiple occasions and it's nice to know that there aren't just human machines going through the routines of hotel life, ignorant and self-absorbed. Then again, maybe I'm the arrogant one.
I haven't spent enough time explaining Hays, Kansas. It's economy is largely based off of the interstate. On the north side of town, you have a Wal-Mart, a few gas stations, a truck stop, bus stop, some restaurants, and about 12 hotels for kids like us who break down and like their options for shelter. In the middle of town, there is the aforementioned shopping center and movie theatre. The residential area containing a handful of churches is located on the south side of town, which we have not explored, due largely to laziness and lack of motivation. Like I said, we westerners like our space and comfort and privacy. I'll admit it. I do also, sometimes.
If you know me well, you know that I am cheap, but for dinner I created a few excuses in my head to support Paul and Mike's decision to order pizza (only Domino's and a Chinese Buffet two miles away were open today). I told myself that since we aren't driving to Denver now, we might as well spend that money that we would on gas on pizza. I mean, hey, it's Christmas anyway. I don't know. When I eat food or pay for things I just feel really convicted, especially if I am cared for regardless of my purchase. We still have a full box of Raison Bran, a cup of Ramen, some Doritos, etc. Paul says like $15 can feed 30 people in Zambia for a year. Or maybe it was $30 can feed 15 people. Either way, why shouldn't I sacrifice a meal for that? Our meal was over $15 after paying the tip. I have seen desperate poverty first-hand. It's comfortable for me to put that behind me and pretend that it's all fairy tale. That's why I need to live with the oppressed. I need to push myself (and it's not like I wouldn't enjoy it). For the sake of empathy, to keep Christ's words out of meaningless sermons and to put them into action. Real love and real living.
For Christmas, our day was relatively uneventful. We did take it upon ourselves to go out and do something, so we saw yet another movie in Hays. I think the whole town was there, about 50 vehicles in the parking lot. The movie we saw was Valkyrie, the one about an attempted assassination of Hitler. I enjoy the movies and sometimes after seeing good (or bad) movies, I consider becoming a producer some day. Maybe in my next life....
We rerouted our trip, and honestly, I'm more excited about our new plan. Instead of hitting Seattle after the new year, we're going to Salt Lake City and then coming back through Iowa. It sounds strange, but for some reason I've always wanted to experience Iowa. I mean, what a cool name for a state. Seriously. It's not like I haven't seen cornfields....but still....
I've worn the same two pairs of underwear and the same two T-shirts and the same pair of pants since we've arrived here. I know we weren't planning to stay this long, but I'm just hoping that I don't start to chafe and that I can get to a place where I can do some laundry without paying.
God willing, tomorrow will be our last day in Hays and then we can drive all night until early the next morning to the Grand Canyon. Please, God? Please? Please UPS or Fed Ex or whoever is supposed to deliver these stupid coils? What a pain machines and technology and efficiency and mechanical things can be. Yes, a blessing, if approached correctly. But often, I think that they are equally a curse.
So now I'm sitting in this comfy chair (didn't have a chair in our room at the Holiday Inn) listening to Anathallo. It's a great new album, and you should have a listen. However, I am not wearing my onesy to bed tonight again.
I know there's a lot of pessimism encircling me concerning Hays, KS. This is simply due to the fact that we broke down here and could be somewhere else. It's not that Hays isn't beautiful. I want to make that clear. Apparently Denver is not ready for me to arrive. Maybe the world would implode if I showed up in that town. Maybe it's best that I was here over Christmas. It will be a Christmas that I won't forget, strangely enough. In the future, I will think in retrospect of this place and appreciate it more, being away from it.
Also just wanted to mention that the weather here was fairly nice. About 50 degrees today with a refreshing breeze. I walked outside this morning and felt alive wearing just a T-shirt. Guys with chemical imbalances and more-artistic-than-mathematic minds like me tend to let things like soft winds and fresh outdoor scents bring out very honest emotions. The thing is, I've been off of mood-altering medication for at least a month and a half (besides that one day), so the winds that once promoted free-spirit optimism are now the same winds that present a nostalgic sense of brokenness and loneliness.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Day 6 - Hays KS (I'm going to get sick of writing that)
Today was simple enough. I woke up in time for yet another continental breakfast. Then I waited.
We were supposed to be out of our room by 2 PM (midwest time) and we knew that Paul's car would be done sometime today. We just didn't know when. At about 1:54 Patti called us, saying that the car was done and her daughter was on her way to the hotel to pick us up. I don't think I ever saw Paul as happy as at that moment this entire trip. So inwardly, I'm praising God, and outwardly, I'm gratefully running around the room packing bags and throwing them on the cart. Just as we're walking out the door, we get another phone call, this one saying that although two ignition coils have been fixed, the computer is now showing that the other two coils are bad. Our high hopes came crashing, as we knew we'd have to wait over Christmas for coils to ship again. I'm very frustrated at this point. We are now sitting in the lobby waiting to see if we should get another night at the hotel, but I'm tired of hanging around waiting so I decide to go for an unannounced walk to see if Hays, Kansas really has anything to offer. It doesn't.
I saw a truck for sale and tried to call the owner to see if he'd rent the vehicle to us for the day but he didn't answer. I explored prices for a cell phone charger at different stores, but I didn't have my wallet. So I turn around and walk all the way back to the hotel where Paul and Mike are sitting in the lobby still, talking about how one of us should try to hitchhike to Denver to pick up the part we need for Paul's car so we can get out of this place already. I'm sure my face probably lit up at the thought.
I walked across the road to a truck station, asking truckers if any of them were headed west. The first guy I encountered was really interested in why I wanted to go out there, and I explained to him our situation (a story I would repeat many times): "We're trying to get a part from an Audi dealer and if I can hitch a ride to Denver I can make it before closing with the time zone difference. Then I'll hitchhike back here so we can get the part on the car and hit the road again before Christmas is over." The first prospect was actually staying in Hays (why would anyone do that willingly, unless they had family here of course?).
With no luck at the truck station, I tried the next-door McDonald's. No customers were headed west, but I found a few people who just came from Denver. I tried to go to the truck station again. This time I encountered a lady pumping gas who was headed to Colorado Springs. Her husband considered helping out and even offered a meal and money, but I didn't accept these things as they wouldn't assist our situation. They weren't passing through Denver so they declined on giving me a lift west.
I decided to go under the overpass to the other side of the road, which I thought might be more strategic, as the cars getting off at the side of the interstate are the ones headed west. I walked in a gas station and asked a few customers if they were going to Denver. One didn't speak English and the other was only going 60 miles west.
I figured I'd clear my mind by walking to Wal-Mart again so I could laugh (inwardly) at all the people freaking out about last-minute shopping. I'm sorry if it's unloving or unfriendly and whatnot, but this year I have neglected to buy any gifts. I'm not one of those guys that's like, "December 25th isn't Jesus' real birthday," because quite frankly that's not the point and those type of people don't create an alternative date to celebrate anyway.
So after the second aimless trip to Wal-Mart, I returned to the gas station. I went inside and found no customers. Then I walked outside to speak with those pumping gas. This one cool black dude with shades and deadlocks said he was going to Denver, but they didn't have room in their minivan. I wished them a good trip and started to walk back to the hotel.
"Hey, buddy!"
I turned around to see the cashier from inside glaring at me, clenching the few teeth she had left. "You need to stop hussling my customers and get off of the property. This is a private lot!" (Maybe I should've taken the hint earlier due to the "Paying Customers Only" sign on the bathroom door.)
"Excuse me, ma'am. I'm not trying to haggle your customers, I'm just trying to hitch a ride. I don't mean to bother you."
Not listening: "This is a private lot! You need to leave!" At this she turned around to walk back inside.
"Well I am very sorry and I hope that you have a wonderful Christmas." I was shocked at my willingness to love this person that hated me, whereas earlier I had cursed on the phone to my dad about the American church not caring about three teenage boys stuck in the middle of nowhere. He said my cursing at them was worse than them not loving me. I understand that I shouldn't cuss, especially since I told myself I'd try not to during this trip (haha), but I think to a certain degree God is glorified in our authenticity, our honesty. Let me explain:
Steve Cort, my summer camp director, said the first time that he really prayed to God was when he slammed a bathroom stall door and used every profane word he knew to express how he felt. If you examine the psalms, ecclesiastes, etc, you will find some angry and vulgar literature directed toward God. Now I'm not trying to justify my tongue. All I am saying is that if in my head I am cursing at God, I might as well be outwardly honest about my feelings. I think it's healthy, you know, not bottling things up. It's a shame people are more concerned about inappropriate language than they are concerned with those living a few streets down in complete poverty.
When I was walking around "town" asking for a ride, something came to mind. Something I continually mention. Dependency. We don't want to have to rely on others for help, because it makes us seem like we've failed in supporting ourselves individually. In reality, however, we are always being dependent on each other. Take the simplest thing, like underwear, for example. We might go to the store and purchase some underwear, thinking, "Wow isn't it great that I was able to buy these all by myself?" If you look more closely, you'll realize that some farmer somewhere had to grow the cotton and then harvest it. Following that, a trucker picked up the cotton and delivered it to a wholesale distributor. This cotton was probably shelved by and employee who then loaded it onto another truck. Then the cotton was combined with other resources by other people, using machines made by other people, to create the underwear. Sometimes a graphic designer is necessary to create interesting-looking underwear, also requiring someone to print that graphic onto the main product. After more shipping is done, the product is shelved by another employee, and before we can take that item out of the store, a cashier has to scan it and take a credit card/give a receipt. We're created as dependent creatures.
Another thing came to mind when I was asking people for a lift. It's called manna. Yes, God provides, but sometimes we have to retrieve what is given. If the Israelites just sat in a circle with their legs crossed, waiting to see if "trusting God" would work, praying really hard as a substitute for acting on their problems, they never would've gotten fed. They had to actually get up and get the manna. How often do we pray about something, hoping for divine intervention, leaving the rest up to God. Now I see the value of trust in the Lord, but it requires more of a physical response than we often think. Maybe He provides lots of opportunities, but not so much physical objects. Today, instead of simply "praying and trusting God" about being stuck and wanting to leave Hays, I had to go out and see if the opportunity to leave was available. Today, it wasn't.
Being here shouldn't set us back as far as our schedule. If worst comes to worst, we will skip Seattle. We could probably still make it if we drove a lot, but I'm totally open to dropping Seattle off of the schedule and taking it easy for the rest of the trip. I am saying all of this believing that the Audi won't crap on us again.
Tonight we went to a local Christmas Eve service at a church. It was everything you'd expect at a Christmas Eve service, nothing more, nothing less. Jeremy sent me a text reminding me that Christ wasn't born in a warm building. That was pretty sweet, on account that for tonight at least, I am in a warm building. I have a feeling it will be a decent Christmas. Although it is our last free night in the Holiday Inn, we can move across the street to another hotel for less than $40 a night. I do hope we leave by Friday! Is that too much to ask? I would say, "God can we please leave soon?" but how often does what we want stand in the way of the simplicity of what He knows will make us happy?
I'd just like to note that this year, I celebrated my birthday by doing homework and now I am celebrating Christmas by being stranded. I hope Christmas is as good as my birthday was (for real, it was good, even without any parties or gifts). If not, okay. Whatever. Christ lives and stuff.
I'm also thinking about taking off J-term and doing some hitchhiking.
Good Christian men, rejoice
We were supposed to be out of our room by 2 PM (midwest time) and we knew that Paul's car would be done sometime today. We just didn't know when. At about 1:54 Patti called us, saying that the car was done and her daughter was on her way to the hotel to pick us up. I don't think I ever saw Paul as happy as at that moment this entire trip. So inwardly, I'm praising God, and outwardly, I'm gratefully running around the room packing bags and throwing them on the cart. Just as we're walking out the door, we get another phone call, this one saying that although two ignition coils have been fixed, the computer is now showing that the other two coils are bad. Our high hopes came crashing, as we knew we'd have to wait over Christmas for coils to ship again. I'm very frustrated at this point. We are now sitting in the lobby waiting to see if we should get another night at the hotel, but I'm tired of hanging around waiting so I decide to go for an unannounced walk to see if Hays, Kansas really has anything to offer. It doesn't.
I saw a truck for sale and tried to call the owner to see if he'd rent the vehicle to us for the day but he didn't answer. I explored prices for a cell phone charger at different stores, but I didn't have my wallet. So I turn around and walk all the way back to the hotel where Paul and Mike are sitting in the lobby still, talking about how one of us should try to hitchhike to Denver to pick up the part we need for Paul's car so we can get out of this place already. I'm sure my face probably lit up at the thought.
I walked across the road to a truck station, asking truckers if any of them were headed west. The first guy I encountered was really interested in why I wanted to go out there, and I explained to him our situation (a story I would repeat many times): "We're trying to get a part from an Audi dealer and if I can hitch a ride to Denver I can make it before closing with the time zone difference. Then I'll hitchhike back here so we can get the part on the car and hit the road again before Christmas is over." The first prospect was actually staying in Hays (why would anyone do that willingly, unless they had family here of course?).
With no luck at the truck station, I tried the next-door McDonald's. No customers were headed west, but I found a few people who just came from Denver. I tried to go to the truck station again. This time I encountered a lady pumping gas who was headed to Colorado Springs. Her husband considered helping out and even offered a meal and money, but I didn't accept these things as they wouldn't assist our situation. They weren't passing through Denver so they declined on giving me a lift west.
I decided to go under the overpass to the other side of the road, which I thought might be more strategic, as the cars getting off at the side of the interstate are the ones headed west. I walked in a gas station and asked a few customers if they were going to Denver. One didn't speak English and the other was only going 60 miles west.
I figured I'd clear my mind by walking to Wal-Mart again so I could laugh (inwardly) at all the people freaking out about last-minute shopping. I'm sorry if it's unloving or unfriendly and whatnot, but this year I have neglected to buy any gifts. I'm not one of those guys that's like, "December 25th isn't Jesus' real birthday," because quite frankly that's not the point and those type of people don't create an alternative date to celebrate anyway.
So after the second aimless trip to Wal-Mart, I returned to the gas station. I went inside and found no customers. Then I walked outside to speak with those pumping gas. This one cool black dude with shades and deadlocks said he was going to Denver, but they didn't have room in their minivan. I wished them a good trip and started to walk back to the hotel.
"Hey, buddy!"
I turned around to see the cashier from inside glaring at me, clenching the few teeth she had left. "You need to stop hussling my customers and get off of the property. This is a private lot!" (Maybe I should've taken the hint earlier due to the "Paying Customers Only" sign on the bathroom door.)
"Excuse me, ma'am. I'm not trying to haggle your customers, I'm just trying to hitch a ride. I don't mean to bother you."
Not listening: "This is a private lot! You need to leave!" At this she turned around to walk back inside.
"Well I am very sorry and I hope that you have a wonderful Christmas." I was shocked at my willingness to love this person that hated me, whereas earlier I had cursed on the phone to my dad about the American church not caring about three teenage boys stuck in the middle of nowhere. He said my cursing at them was worse than them not loving me. I understand that I shouldn't cuss, especially since I told myself I'd try not to during this trip (haha), but I think to a certain degree God is glorified in our authenticity, our honesty. Let me explain:
Steve Cort, my summer camp director, said the first time that he really prayed to God was when he slammed a bathroom stall door and used every profane word he knew to express how he felt. If you examine the psalms, ecclesiastes, etc, you will find some angry and vulgar literature directed toward God. Now I'm not trying to justify my tongue. All I am saying is that if in my head I am cursing at God, I might as well be outwardly honest about my feelings. I think it's healthy, you know, not bottling things up. It's a shame people are more concerned about inappropriate language than they are concerned with those living a few streets down in complete poverty.
When I was walking around "town" asking for a ride, something came to mind. Something I continually mention. Dependency. We don't want to have to rely on others for help, because it makes us seem like we've failed in supporting ourselves individually. In reality, however, we are always being dependent on each other. Take the simplest thing, like underwear, for example. We might go to the store and purchase some underwear, thinking, "Wow isn't it great that I was able to buy these all by myself?" If you look more closely, you'll realize that some farmer somewhere had to grow the cotton and then harvest it. Following that, a trucker picked up the cotton and delivered it to a wholesale distributor. This cotton was probably shelved by and employee who then loaded it onto another truck. Then the cotton was combined with other resources by other people, using machines made by other people, to create the underwear. Sometimes a graphic designer is necessary to create interesting-looking underwear, also requiring someone to print that graphic onto the main product. After more shipping is done, the product is shelved by another employee, and before we can take that item out of the store, a cashier has to scan it and take a credit card/give a receipt. We're created as dependent creatures.
Another thing came to mind when I was asking people for a lift. It's called manna. Yes, God provides, but sometimes we have to retrieve what is given. If the Israelites just sat in a circle with their legs crossed, waiting to see if "trusting God" would work, praying really hard as a substitute for acting on their problems, they never would've gotten fed. They had to actually get up and get the manna. How often do we pray about something, hoping for divine intervention, leaving the rest up to God. Now I see the value of trust in the Lord, but it requires more of a physical response than we often think. Maybe He provides lots of opportunities, but not so much physical objects. Today, instead of simply "praying and trusting God" about being stuck and wanting to leave Hays, I had to go out and see if the opportunity to leave was available. Today, it wasn't.
Being here shouldn't set us back as far as our schedule. If worst comes to worst, we will skip Seattle. We could probably still make it if we drove a lot, but I'm totally open to dropping Seattle off of the schedule and taking it easy for the rest of the trip. I am saying all of this believing that the Audi won't crap on us again.
Tonight we went to a local Christmas Eve service at a church. It was everything you'd expect at a Christmas Eve service, nothing more, nothing less. Jeremy sent me a text reminding me that Christ wasn't born in a warm building. That was pretty sweet, on account that for tonight at least, I am in a warm building. I have a feeling it will be a decent Christmas. Although it is our last free night in the Holiday Inn, we can move across the street to another hotel for less than $40 a night. I do hope we leave by Friday! Is that too much to ask? I would say, "God can we please leave soon?" but how often does what we want stand in the way of the simplicity of what He knows will make us happy?
I'd just like to note that this year, I celebrated my birthday by doing homework and now I am celebrating Christmas by being stranded. I hope Christmas is as good as my birthday was (for real, it was good, even without any parties or gifts). If not, okay. Whatever. Christ lives and stuff.
I'm also thinking about taking off J-term and doing some hitchhiking.
Good Christian men, rejoice
With heart and soul and voice
Now ye need not fear the grave:
Peace! Peace!
Jesus Christ was born to save
Calls you one and calls you all
To gain His everlasting hall
Christ was born to save
Christ was born to save
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