The California Dopers live mainly in the SF/San Jose area.
Maybe we can tempt them to come up here, if you’re here.
(Me and the Maytag Repair Man get SOOO lonely.)
Tris - On your way home when you pass through NC, please be sure to let Libertarian and me know. Our home would be honored to welcome you, so send us an email if you think we might be able to get together.
My good friend has offered to loan me her laptop for the trip! Is that outrageous or what? I would go on and on about how utterly cool she is, but I doubt that anyone on line fails to see that already just from lending me her nearly new laptop, just because I am going on a road trip.
So, by dusting off my AOL membership, (Which I have to maintain in order to provide my clients with Internet access.) I will have dial up from just about everywhere in the US. My Mavica and I can upload digital photos as I go. I think I might even invest in a budget web server, although I am not particularly adept at that sort of stuff.
Edlyn,
As noted previously, NC is a near sure thing, what with various dopers, and sisters and such in the state. Probably in the later part of May, I think on the return trip. What little planning I have done seems to favor out to California (probable stop at the Grand Canyon, and the Patriarch grove in AZ) At least a look at southern California, beaches, blondes in bikinis, and such. Visit Sons, and Granddaughter in San Francisco. Brief pilgrimage to Haight Ashbury. Then wander up the coast toward bigger and bigger trees. Idaho and the deep woods country is possible, but there is a whole lot of it, and this is only half the trip. (Old high school buddy in Idaho, too, who was actually happy to hear from me!) (OK, so his wife was a tad bit shy of enthusiastic. She never did like me all that much.)
By mid March I should have some idea about rough dates entering California, and arriving in San Francisco. (ballpark estimate makes that somewhere in the April 16 - 30 block so far.) I am examining the possibility of doing it the other way around, though, north to south, which leaves me coming across the south part of the country on the way back, what with family in NC, and FL, and warm weather and all. But the whole point of the trip is to escape to adventure, so nothing is entirely firm. Hey, I might meet an aging hippie chick, who wants to re-live the various revolutions.
Hey, It could happen!
Worth checking out in Ohio:
The May Fourth Festival at Kent State University, held yearly on May fourth. Festivities usually begin the night before, ie, candlelight service, I think, concert, sometimes. They always have good speakers and musical guests (Crosby Stills Nash and Young played a couple years ago, Country Joe McDonald played last year.) Good day to sit in the grass and listen and watch people, as long as the weather is nice.
[hijack]
Sally,
Hey, I used to have your username! Not here (although I did consider it when I registered), but it was long a favorite of mine on message boards and in chat rooms.
[/hijack]
That really was mundane and pointless, but I had to share. 
Tris, while in Southern California do not miss:
[li]Death Valley[/li]
While in Los Angeles:
[li]The Huntington Rare Books Library[/li]
[li]The La Brea Tar Pits[/li]
[li]The New Getty Museum[/li]
[li]The Pantry restaurant (10[sup]th[/sup] & Figueroa)[/li]
Then up the coast to:
[li]Solvang (Danish capital of the U.S.)[/li]
[li]Big Sur[/li]
[li]The Bixby Creek bridge (important photo stop)[/li]
[li]Jade Beach[/li]
[li]The Monterey Bay Aquarium[/li]
By then you will be in the SF Bay Area and us dopers will take the helm.
Tris - how much web space do you think you’ll need? I maintain a site to play around with and currently I’ve got about 20MB of unused space. Since I didn’t offer you a place to stay, the least I can do is host a few pages - and this way, I don’t have to dust!
Not really sure. I tend to take lots of pictures, but then again, I don’t use most of them at all. Current format is 1024 x 768 and the files are 60 to 200 kilobytes in JPG format, depending on subject matter. I suppose a page or so of prose per three or four pictures would be nice, as well. Throw in a bit of overhead for code, and I could conceivably fill up twenty megabytes in a short time. But then again, I doubt I will spend much time web mastering, while I am out wandering around the country.
I have a web page, although I lost the link to the “make your web page for morons” access site. I will have to have a look around for that link.
We are go for lift off! I will be leaving the Washington Union Station on the eleventh of April. I will be going first to San Francisco, California, to see my Sons, and my Grandaughter.
I should be there by the weekend of April the 14th, and would love to get together with as many San Franciscan Dopers, or near equivalents, that weekend. Post here, if you think it is a good idea for a SFSD official fest, or start a thread, I guess. Or, just let me know at Triskadecamus@hotmail.com if you want to get together more informally.
The web page is up! It doesn’t show much, but the format is in place, and my Webmistress is ready to start posting my pictures as I email them to her. I am:
For the next few months the site will be dedicated as the “Where the hell is Triskadecamus?” page. I will try to get a couple of good shots of whatever I happen to see, and upload the stuff pretty regularly. (Keep in mind, this is my vacation, though.)
After San Francisco, I head north until I have seen enough really big trees to make me happy. I am told all the Hippies are in Eureka now, so I might go there too. Anyone along the way should let me know, if they want me to drop by. After the tree thing, I plan to head south until I have seen enough California Girls in Bikinis to make me happy. (The ladies I work with assure me that these girls will be happy to have their pictures taken with me. I am not so sure myself, but we will see.)
So, that’s the plan, so far. After California, I will probably be heading back in a generally eastern direction, what with the Pacific Ocean, and all. My friends all tell me that early May in AZ is certainly worth a stop, just for desert flowers and sunrises. I could be headed that way. (No offense to the Texans, but I have been there, and done that.)
wow, yeah I’m jealous too. I feel like playing “Running on Empty” or maybe that Tom Petty one “Running on a Dream” or maybe “Against the Wind”
As for what I’d do I like oddities. Both Washington and Minnesota have little bits of that that you can only reach by going through Canada, unless you take a ferry but I don’t think ferries are very ‘hippish’ Point Roberts, WA and Angle Inlet, MN. The second is on an Indian reservation. I know you’re staying contiguous but I’ve always wanted to go eat at this Mexican place in Barrows, AK. Hmm my AAA says Barrow?? Too bad the Dead aren’t around anymore… If you do go to Idaho they got the highest sand dunes in the world and you can jump off of the top of the, it’s a thrill
sigh
Renewing my offer!
I’m near Redding CA, which is about 3 driving hours north of Sacramento, right on I-5, and should be on your way to Eureka. An express bus should get you here from SF in about 6 hours, which is enough bus for one day, IMHO.
Shasta Dam, and the Caverns, not quite high enough for the good trees. (We lean toward manzanita and scrub oak)
Have a great trip!!
Thanks, Dragonlady!
I think I will probably be in San Francisco for three or four days, probably starting the weekend of the 14th of April. I have sons there. If there is any interest, I would like to meet the California Dopers, either there, or at a convienient location. The trip north should follow soon after, with particular attentin to the big tree country. I’ll give you an email, or call at the closest approach to your neck of the woods.
Any other Californians out there interested in a good excuse for a get together, let me know.
Trisk,
I’ve gone and nailed my smile to the mainmast so as to poll all of the San Francisco SD Folk about celebrating your arrival. Please, feel free to email me as the time grows near(er).
Wishing you a safe journey,
Chris
PS: Since you’re arriving in San Francisco to visit family, I’m not sure if I may be of avail to you (down south here in San Jose) in any way. Nonetheless, let’s find a way to get together while you’re here. I’ll do my best to brief you in on the Golden State that is California.
Zenster
Thanks for the logistical boost on the San Francisco area get together. I would love to meet all the Calidopers. While I plan to start on the 14th, or as soon after as transportation allows. ( I leave DC on the 11th, and I am told trains are much slower than I imagine.) I pretty much plan on a week or more, in California, and will be heading south from SF, in search of the beaches upon which roam the legendary California Girls. (Strictly an observational foray, I assure you.)
Also really good trees, and rocks.
I will email you when I get there, or shortly after, if you want, and happily attend any gatherings I can get to. Eventually I expect to reach Mexico, which should be an interesting day trip, at least.
I have decided to schedule the other end of the trip a bit more closely, thanks to the kind and generous offer of Libertarian, and his wife Edelyn (sp?) to be my hosts when I arrive back on the east coast. Out of minimal courtesy, it seemed a good idea to firm up the date, so it looks like the weekend of the 19th of May, for the North Carolina visit. (Plus a day or two or three before or after, since I do have relatives who will shoot me if I don’t at least drop by.)
Hint Hint: A Carolina Dopefest during that period would be especially nifty.
A week and three days until I leave. Woo Woo.
Well, I got my train ticket, today.
I will arrive in San Francisco on the evening of the 14th, around 7 PM.
Turns out I have to spend the day in Chicago, along the way. I wonder if Cecil would like to do lunch?
Or Little Ed?
Anyway, so far no word on a SF Dope get together. ( I have been following Zenster’s thread.) Perhaps the teeming . . . few will feel like getting together later.
Hi ho!
Well, I am off!
I have my stuff packed, and I am just answering a few emails before I leave. I decided that I couldn’t take the loaned computer on vacation. It was overwhelming my thoughts about what I could do, and where I could go. My good friend told me not to worry, but I could not stop worrying about loosing or breaking it. So, I am not taking it.
That means that my Internet access will be much reduced, so my updates to the site will be less frequent. I am taking two cameras, though, so eventually I will get stuff up on the site for everyone to have a look at.
No response from Cecil, or Ed, so I guess I will have lunch in Chicago in ignorance.
Hope to post again soon.
[Jerry] “Truckin’, I’m a-goin’ home,
whoa, whoa, baby back where I belong…” [Jerry/]
Well, I have been out to California, by way of Chicago, Denver, and returned by way of Las Vegas, and Chicago again.
I noticed a big difference in things this time around. Everything is very homogenized. The local differences are averaged out, overwhelmed by corporate sameness. Seems to me, we lost more than we gained on that one.
Three out of four people crossing the Chicago River are not able to name it. (By actual test.) Three out of five bus drivers in San Francisco cannot identify the correct bus route to a given address. (A street upon which a regular bus makes hourly runs, by the way.) People in San Francisco are not as friendly as people in New York City. So much for stereotypes. The train is friendly, mostly. I met some real nice people on trains.
I missed my Grandaughter. I am still pissed about that.
I will be making a few short trips still, but the wandering about thing just is not as much fun as it was in 1969. I might be the one who changed, but I think everyone else did too. I realized I wasn’t having fun, so I came home, and am making shorter trips, for the rest of my vacation, mostly to visit specific people.
The Web server I used got scammed by some assho*e who sent out emails claiming they were going broke. Turns out they are not, everything works just fine. I put up the first bunch of pictures. I am off to North Carolina, next, and possibly Florida.
Thanks for the update Trisk. I just finished Steinbeck’s ‘Travels with Charley’ and was wondering what our resident gypsy (is that a contradiction?) was up to.
I’m sorry that you were dissapointed with the outcome of your wanderings. I have always felt the wanderlust too, but I never had the opportunity to just go. Perhaps its better this way, that I do my wandering with Steinbeck and Kerouac. Maybe the world just looks better through their eyes…
Hope your future trips turn out more pleasing than what you’ve made so far.
Errr…what part of NC are you visiting?
Polycarp, myself, [sub](R.T. can you make it down?)[/sub] and many other Raleigh area Dopers are here and wanting to meet with you. 