Today was the last day of anything really interesting at all sadly. The first interesting note of our day was some wildlife in an odd place. As we were packing the car my mom noticed a coyote walking on a running path right towards us. The coyote just strolled through the parking lot right by us, took a quick glance and nonchalantly moved onward. We proceeded to start our day out in Colorado Springs and visited the Garden of the Gods. ...

Today was an amazing day because we spent almost the entire day checking out the different Cliff Dwellings in Mesa Verde. I have always wanted to see these ruins and finally I did, and let me tell you, it didn’t disappoint. The first ruins we visited was the Cliff Palace ruins. This dwelling is the biggest in North America and is approximately 700 to 900 years old. After the Cliff Palace we went to the Balcony House. This was an extremely intimidating hike for me. To get to the cliff dwellings you have to go down a huge amount of stairs and from there it gets really tricky. You have to climb up a 32 foot ladder. I am not particularly afraid of heights but I got pretty freaked out by this. It was a huge ladder over an even bigger cliff. It also didn’t help that the ladder got super heated so it burned to hold onto the rungs. By the end I was ready to freak out. Can you tell by my face that I was slightly concerned? ...

Yesterday was our biggest day yet. We woke up really early to watch the sunrise on the Grand Canyon. We got the best spot, a small upraised platform of a rock that we sat on over looking Bright Angel’s Point. It was a nice sunrise but very cold out, I spotted Waldo from up there ;). After sunrise we said goodbye to our beautiful cabin and started our long trek across Arizona to get to Mesa Verde National Park. We made a lot of little stops along our way. The first of which was the Vermillion Cliffs. They were these magnificent red rock cliffs that were gigantic. ...

I didn’t get to post last night due to the lack of internet connection in our wonderful, western facing room in the Grand Canyon National Park. We left the hustle and bustle of Las Vegas for the peace and tranquility of Arizona’s Grand Canyon. Don’t ask me how but my mother is a miracle worker. Some how she managed to get one of the best rooms in the entire lodge which are always book a year in advance. We had a balcony that looked right over the edge of the Grand Canyon. It was beyond gorgeous. ...

We are staying another night in Vegas but during the daytime my mom and I took a day trip up to Zion National Park in Utah. The park was really beautiful, it reminded us a lot about Yosemite in California except it was in the desert and with red rocks. We went on two hikes today, up to the lower, then upper Emerald pools and after that we headed up to the top of the park to go hike in Zion’s Narrows. It was really hot out and slightly hard to hike in but we had a lot of fun and had some great views of the park. ...

Day one of my journey to Michigan by car began today at 4:30. I miss the rest of my family already and my dog. The first day of our trip ended in Las Vegas Nevada. First thing I am going to say is this: IT WAS 111 DEGREES OUT WHEN WE ENTERED NEVADA!! I thought it being sunny was brutal but this heat was unbearable. I kept seeing cars on the side of the road overheated and I felt so horrible for those people and grateful at the same time because if we hadn’t gotten the new car that would probably be us on the side of the road. Our trip out was relatively uneventful but fun. I watched the Hangover in the car to prepare myself for staying in Caesar’s Palace. ...

Tomorrow morning at 4 o’clock my mom and I will be beginning again our yearly road trip to Michigan. This time around we are swinging low down to the blistering southern states of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and so on. Everyday I will be updating my blog with details about our trip like Las Vegas, Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, Monument Valley and more. So stay tuned to see if I survive another road trip up to Michigan. This one is going to be long and hot but hopefully all worth it!

Today I went to the Woodies on the Wharf for the first time. Sad I know, I have lived in Santa Cruz almost all of my life and I have never actually been to the Woodies on the Wharf. Let me tell you, it was mobbed. There were so many cars there. I know it is all about cars but it there were rows after rows of these awesome oldie cars, ranging from the shiniest things you will ever see to cars made out of wood and cars of every color. ...

You were an interesting person and made me a little sad. You felt out-of-place, almost like you were heading upstream. You were headed somewhere but I do not know where. Maybe it was the fact that you wouldn’t look anyone in the eye that caught my attention. You just kept moving with your head held down and tried to ignore the rest of the world around you. I wonder what you were trying to hide from, who you were trying to block out. I wonder if it worked.

In a dark forest of old oak trees, where no human would enter there was a desperate fluttering of wings and the movement of tangled branches. A baby bird struggled to free itself from the gnarled grip of the trees limbs. It had fallen in the night from its nest and hung in the balance of life and death. Caught by the hands of an old oak tree. It hadn’t yet learned to fly so it was doomed to fall or be set free. Learn to fly fast or die trying. ...