Road Trip Update 1

I've safely made it to Ely, Nevada. For those of you who don't know where that is, it is in a place that by all technical definitions qualifies under "Nowhere". I'm sure all 2 of you who read this will be disappointed to find out that I forgot my camera cable for my computer, and computer doesn't have an XD card reader, so no pictures unless I feel driven to buy a new cable :(

I started the trip yesterday after work, with my destination being Shingle Spring, CA to visit Greg. We went to a Sacramento River Cats game (AAA league baseball) and got some really awesome treatment in some box seats. Free food and free beer. It was a good game! After that, Greg had an indoor soccer game, which was fun to watch as well.

I took off from Shingle Springs on 50 through the Sierra-Nevadas. That was quite possibly the most beautiful drive I've ever been on. I turned on some JJ Heller tunes to compliment my environment and cruised the whole way through, stopping to enjoy the rivers, mountain-style rest stops, and amazing views.

I stopped into Virginia City, a place I remember going to when I was a kid. It's an old silver mining town that kept its old style for the sake of tourism. It's a really fun place to walk around. I think I really enjoy the old Southwestern style of Nevada. Something about it makes me feel like a kid again, playing cowboys and Indians and getting into saloon brawls. I tried to get some Camper's Chili from the Country Cupboard, but the Country Cupboard closed down about a year ago! I was kind of heartbroken, so I went and found some food and left town.

Something I find odd about Nevada is that, although flashing lights are expected and abundant, everyone still seems to notice when an ambulance is nearby. Every car in my lane merged over to the shoulder and I had no clue what was happening because flashing lights in Nevada didn't really stand out to me.

The rest of Nevada was a whole lot of nothing. I definitely felt like I was on one of those "finding myself" road trips, though. When there's literally nothing but shrubberies covering flat or slightly hilly ground, your mind has time to drift to a plethora of subjects. Hopefully all that introspective time, listening to sermons or music - depending on my mood - will lead to some sort of epiphany. One thing that ran through my mind on my drive was "God made this." The beautiful scenery of the Sierra Nevadas and then the striking contrast of the Nevada desert really shows how amazing of an artist God is. I questioned the reason video games see fit to make their own fantasy world when it's entirely sufficient to have fascinating scenery by using the real terrain God saw fit to paint on his globe canvas.

I ran through a grand total of 5-ish towns between Virginia City and Ely, although it was well over 300 miles of driving. The small towns comfortably simple, and although similar in some regards, I could tell that each had a unique personality. For example, Austin, Nevada seems to put on a Serbian Christmas every year. I love seeing little surprises like that from little places you wouldn't expect anything from.

I'm glad I'm safely here in the hotel and rested. Today was probably my longest single day of driving, and I did it! Tomorrow I'll head to Salt Lake City!