Driving with Melinda... Saturday October 21

On Saturday October 21st Melinda and I headed for Monterey. We left Rebecca's house early in the morning (around 7:30 or 8:00 am) and with the sun rising behind us we headed west. West across the Bonneville Salt Flats, which I had never seen. They are amazing, all white and shiny. It had rained the day before so they weren't blinding (good). The ground sparkled as the sun reflected off those little cubic salt crystals.

Driving through Nevada and the salt flats we saw many curious things.

• Ravens on fence posts. Lots of Ravens on fence posts.
  
• Curious arrangements of old electrical wire insulators.
  
• One very large sculpture
• Dark rocks in various arrangements, I heart X, words and designs
• An emergency training facility that looked like a prison without a fence
• Fernly (an oasis of trees in the desert)
• Pronghorns
  
• One white couch on the salt flats

Thinking we would be tired, my friends (Annie & Kay) loaded me up with books on tape. We had all kinds of things to listen to, but not just yet. We talked our way out of Utah, and across Nevada. Just before Reno we switched and Melinda drove while I tried to nap. (I've felt really stressed recently, so sleeping has not come easily). An hour or so later we switched and I got to finish the drive up and over Donner Pass. It is so gorgeous up there with the ponderosa pines and the clear air.

And thus commenced the California part of the trip. We decided to try a shortcut to Monterey, instead of driving over through San Jose and the cluster of other cities, we drove down I5. For awhile, ... a long while. I'm not altogether certain it's a shortcut, but you never know. So I5 to 156 and 156 to 1 and Monterey. So we continued to drive and drive and drive...

Melinda is trying new things. :) At the quick stop where we gassed the car at the junction of I5 and 156 (it's dark now, approx 7 pm California time) she decided to try these spiced lima bean snacks. :) Sounded good to me too. After all, I love lima beans and spicy ones could be fabulous. The gagging and spitting next to me changed my mind. Apparently they're the worst things imaginable. So Min decided to toss them out the window for the birds. So we're driving down the dark freeway with all this California traffic and she's tossing lima beans out the window, and the wind is whipping them around her and back into the car and smacking me. :) :) TOO Funny. (2 weeks later and I'm still getting lima beans out of the car. *grin*)

We arrived at the Motel 6 in Monterey around 9:00 pm their time. I had to wait a long while to get our room cause everyone was looking for a hotel that night and everything was full. Thank heavens for reservations. Hooray, we made it!

I didn't sleep well that night, a holdover from the stress of the previous week I guess.

Bird list:

1. Black-billed Magpies
2. Mallards
3. Western Grebes
4. at least a Hundred of Common Ravens across Nevada
5. Red-tailed Hawk
6. House Sparrows
7. Starlings

And there I leave you, for now...

Jenny