Road Trip Day 1: San Jose, CA to Winnemucca, NV

I'm in a fancy smancy room at the Holiday Inn Express in Winnemucca, NV. I had planned to get farther today, but I hit stop-and-go traffic in Sacramento. I thought that I never would get out of Sacramento; someone would find my car out of gas and with spider webs over it -;) I was feeling tired later, so I decided to stop in Winnemucca. The Holiday Inn was the first hotel that I came to. I didn't feel like looking for other hotels, so I'm in a room with a refrigerator and a king-size bed. (Added later: that bed was the most comfortable hotel room bed that I've ever slept in.)

The only other bit of excitement was that the shutoff valve at a gas pump that I used didn't shut off. Gas spilled all over my car and the ground. Yuck.

It amused me that in Nevada, every establishment has a casino: a combination Jack-in-the-Box and gas station, my hotel, and so forth. I also liked Winnemucca; it's a cute little town.

I wish that I could have taken pictures en route. There was a hole in some storm clouds, and a shaft of light came through it and lit up a hill. Driving through the lights of Reno was very beautiful. (Though I didn't like the flashing signs at the side of the highway. Too distracting.)

It's cool that I'm following the trail that the pioneers used to get to California. Winnemucca was a major stop for them, and of course, I went through Donner Pass.

For some reason, I can't connect to the Internet from here, so I don't know when I'll be able to post this entry.

Road Trip Day 2: Winnemucca, NV to Tooele, UT

I'm in another Holiday Inn Express in Tooele (hi zhaneel!) It again was the first hotel I saw after getting off the highway. This time, however, I was getting upset because the arrow pointing towards hotels didn't mention that you had to drive a long way to get to them. Something about being lost in a strange town in the dark flips all my switches. I finally decided to stay put because it will be easier to find my way back to the highway during the day. Also, the next big town is probably about two hours away.

I was getting drowsy during the day (I'm one of those weird people who get drowsy during the day and snap awake at night), so I popped a book on CD about meditation into the CD player. I haven't been participating in the exercises, of course, but I've been noticing my reactions to the trip. The first one is impatience. Something inside me keeps saying "Are we there yet?" "Can I take a break yet?" The second one is boredom. I've been driving through the most desolate and boring landscapes. The third one is fear: that I'll get lost or stuck in the middle of nowhere. I also discovered that I lean forward when I drive, so my neck and shoulders hurt. I'd pay a decent sum of money for a backrub, but alas, the hotel doesn't offer that service. I'm sure that there's a way to reframe the trip in my mind so that it's an adventure, but I haven't figured out how yet.