Travels, Day 18, On The Way To Guatemala

Mom's travelogue continues:

Date: July 6, 1972

Place: Plaza Motel

"Today we drove out to Bob M. farm. He was there alone. Betty was in the city. He drove us to a farm on shore of Pacific Ocean that is reported to be for sale. No house. Only a sand dune between ocean and headquarters.

We ate lunch with Bob - pork, cucumbers, mashed potatoes, black beans + lettuce w/hot dressing - lots of lemonade. He has a man cook - very good. Hot on farm - so dusty. They need rain. Cotton is about up 3 inches."

When I started this series, I was asked why we went to Guatemala. This entry deals with the reason. My dad was the only one of three brothers who did not farm. Before the move my parents ran a resort on the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri. At my Uncles' suggestion, my parents decided to go to Guatemala to farm. Bob M. was a friend of the family and I believe he was instrumental in convincing my Uncles and my dad about the opportunities that existed back then in Guatemala.

While most of my family - Grandparents, Uncles - were farmers, I never was interested in that stuff. I think it was a little too physically demanding for me. Farming takes a very special type of person. I think my lack of interest in the family farm contributed to the gulf that opened between me and my dad.

What Makes A Great Weekend? Saturated Fat!

This weekend was really delightful. It was highlighted with the visit of the Matron of Honor (MoH) and Best Man (BM). They drove down on Friday to get away from stuff at home - notably all the construction noise at their condo. It's nice to be the pressure release valve every once and a while.

The highlight of their visit was a trip back to Brownville, NE to attend the biannual "World's Almost Largest Flea Market" and "Animal Swap." We were accompanied by my Mom, garage sale and flea market enthusiast. The flea market was pretty impressive. Several blocks of vendors selling old stuff, rusty stuff, junky stuff, and all manners of cool stuff. We really didn't see any of the animal swap - disappointing. Maybe next time.

The day was a little drizzly at the start which kept the crowds down a bit but most of the vendors, probably over 200, were open for business. Since we wanted to look at it all we started with an early lunch at the Lyceum Bookstore and Cafe. I had a BBQ beef sandwich with chips. This is where it started. 49% of my daily allowance of saturated fat. It was yummy.

With our bodies refueled, we walked through the vendors and ended up buying some cool stuff for the house including an old ring of barn keys, an old rusty egg basket, a deep red mum to set in the rusty egg basket, and a framed set of old yard sticks. This last item is the neatest. It sounds, and is, a little odd. 10 Yardsticks stacked and framed like a picture. It will probably get hung up in our mildly eclectic living room.

After we got all shopped out, we headed over to the Dredge Meriweather Lewis just to find it closed. That's too bad since I think the BM would have liked the tour.

We headed out of town ... slowly. The bridge over the Missouri is being restored and it was down to one lane. As we crawled over the high bridge we didn't see any cars on the road ahead but we still moved forward. It was like some space-time anomaly. We couldn't figure out how we were moving ahead when there were no cars moving on the road ahead of us. We finally decided that a truck going into town must have jumped the light and had started up the bridge, stopped, then backed back down. Of course for the truck to back up the cars behind it had to back up as well so it took us a while to squeeze by the truck. I was a little disappointed that there wasn't some wormhole or time vortex involved.

We stopped at a truck stop for some snacks. Jumbo Milky Way bar. 61% of my daily allowance of saturated fat.

The evening was reserved for Notre Dame football. Dinner was steaks on the grill, mashed potatoes, and peas. 59% of my daily allowance of saturated fat.

The last straw for my diet was a trip to Dairy Queen. I had a medium Chocolate Extreme Blizzard. 130% of my daily allowance of saturated fat.

So for Saturday, I ended up with these numbers (percentages of my daily allowances):

Saturated Fat: 316%

Cholesterol: 168%

Calories: 146%

I'm surprised I survived. Was I more careful on Sunday you ask? Burger Lust with the brother in law, T_E, and family. 110% daily allowance of saturated fat. 129% for the entire day. I did stay away from chocolate and ice cream so I consider it a success.

The weekend was just right. It was one of those weekends where you smile contentedly when you reflect back upon it. The BM and MoH can visit any time. They're a great excuse to eat crap, talk politics, and to have a great time with great company. They just can't come right before my next blood test.

Travels, Day 17, On The Way To Guatemala

Mom's log continues:

Date:  July 5, 1972

Place:  Plaza Motel

"[Dad + Brother] took Bike to Kawasaki place.  $5.00 for complete service check.  We went to Grocery store + market.  Got fruit + potatoes.  After dinner Linda + Sharon took us around the city to look at houses.  We saw one that was terribly dirty.  Another nice one but sort of crampy feeling.  We saw the one yesterday again.  Looked the nicest.  Also saw a 2 bedroom apartment - Nice but small.

Sharon is very nice - from Des Moines, Iowa.  She + [Aunt] write to each other."

House hunting is a difficult job.  There are so many things to consider when searching for the perfect house.  Now, imagine looking for a house in a foreign country and not knowing the language.  I have renewed respect for my parents.

Book: Davis Haward Bain's "The Old Iron Road"

David Haward Bain's "The Old Iron Road: An Epic of Rails, Roads, and the Urge to Go West" was recommended to me by my blog-friend GeekHiker. The book follows the author's family vacation tracing several trails (Mormon, California, Oregon, Pony Express, Stagecoach), the Lincoln Highway, and the first intercontinental railroad. The story begins near Kansas City before going through Omaha-Council Bluffs and towards the west ending in San Francisco.

In the beginning the book piqued my interest mainly because of the my familiarity with the Omaha-Council Bluffs area. It's always fun to read about places you've been, especially if they are offbeat and not well known. In Council Bluffs they eat at Duncan's Cafe, the same place we had lunch with the "J" a few months ago. When they drive through Grand Island they eat at the Coney Island Cafe, a place we tried to eat at and failed when we found it closed.

As they drive west they pass places we have visited in the last few months with the "J" and on Vacation: Red Cloud, Chimney Rock, Scott's Bluff. Nice to be able to see what he was writing about in my mind's eye.

As I dug deeper into the book I started to see his style. Early in the book he mentions other travelogue writers including Colin Thubron whom I've read. Thubron's book was a travelogue punctuated with history. Bain's style is the opposite really: A book of history punctuated with travel narratives. Not a history book mind you but a book of histories, a book of historical stories and anecdotes mixed together in a history geek's stew.

Bain is a history geek through and through. You can tell in his writing. History excites and thrills him. He is not only a History Geek but he is a member of that sub-genre: the Railroad Geek. I like history to a certain extent, I even like railroads on occasion, but I am not a history or railroad geek. I was very interested in the history of Thubron's book but Bain's book was history overload. I know some of you may think that you can never have enough history. I once thought that but this book changed my mind.

Maybe it's not the history overload. There is another possibility. I may be biased against United States history. Thubron's book was the history of China, South Asia, and the Middle East. I find this more exotic than the Cowboys, Indians, Pioneers, and Railroads history that is the meat of this book. When it comes to history, I seem to have a more exotic taste.

Despite it not being exactly to my liking, I did have moments of pleasure reading this book and I don't regret reading it. The GodSon bought this book while in Wall, SD. He's a history teacher and I believe he will appreciate the book more than I did.

Recommended ... if you are a U.S. history Geek.

Travels, Day 16, On The Way To Guatemala

Mom continues:

Date: July 4, 1972

Place: Guatemala City, Guat.

"Moved trailer to Plaza Motel in city. [Dad + Brother] went to see Francisco I. - man who works for bank of America.

We went to look at a house and some used furniture. Was a pretty house: big 4 bedrooms 2 baths, big yard.

[Dad + Brother] rode motorcycle around block. Isn't running right.

We stopped to see Linda I."

This was the first day we actually were in Guatemala City. The trailer was parked in the hotel parking lot not far from the swimming pool. This was probably more important for me than the fact we were in a foreign country. I grew up swimming and, back then, swimming was very important to me.

Riding motorcycles was important for my brother. That was never as important for me but I do remember enjoying a ride or two when I was a teenager. As an adult, I have no interest in them. If he were alive today, I'm sure my brother would still have a motorcycle or two in his garage.

I was pretty oblivious of the whole house hunting thing. That's understandable as I was so young.

Don't Graffiti My Trail, Bro

I don't care if you love or hate President Obama. It's a free country. What I do care about is all the political graffiti splattered along the public bike trails in Omaha. I ride my bike in part for exercise and in part to get away from the world for a couple hours. That's hard to do when the benches, signs, and the trail itself proclaim that "Obama is a nut (acorn)" and "Obama is a joker" not to mention the ones that can't be repeated in a family blog.

Do us all a favor. If you hate him or love him, it really doesn't matter, paint your slogans and propaganda on your front door. Paint them on your house walls. Hell, paint them in big, florescent letters on your roof. Just keep them off our public bike trails.

Travels, Day 15, On The Way To Guatemala

Mom's travelogue continues:

Date: July 3, 1972

Place: Guatemala City, Guat.

"We arrived at the border at noon - stopped at Guatemala Consulate for our visas the to border for car permit. We were delayed at the border while they made us unpack everything in the car. They also looked the trailer over thoroughly. Then we had to prove to them we had $200.00 with us. They inspected all baggage & chests. After passing the border we had a flat tire on the trailer which delayed us some more.

It rained a shower on us. We arrived at 'Monkey River Ranch Trailer Park' about 7:30. Everything is so green + flowers are beautiful. Milton S. runs the trailer park - born in U.S. [Dad + Uncle] stayed here a few weeks."

My third country in a week and my second new country. Our crossing into Guatemala was a bumpy one. Again, I have no recollection of any of it except for where we ended up. You would think all the hullabaloo at the border crossing would have left some memory, but alas, no.

What I do remember makes sense since I was a little boy. We ended this day at the "Monkey River Ranch Trailer Park." The owner had a pet spider monkey. It was attached to a long chain and the chain was attached to a tree. I was fascinated by it. I watched it jump around and swing by its tail. I think I even fed it some fruit. It may have been the first monkey I'd ever seen and the memory of it stuck in my mind. I thought we'd stayed here for a few days but actually we were here only for a night. I guess it was a few days in monkey-child time.

Travels, Day 14, On The Way To Guatemala

Mom Continues:

Date: July 2, 1972

Place: Road-side in Mexico

"Not much to tell today - We drove all day till 7:00 we then ate supper and drove more. We parked beside the road and didn't spend a very pleasant night - trucks roared past all night as well as a few mosquitos."

I can't add a map as I don't know exactly where we were. Somewhere in Mexico four or five hours from the Mexico-Guatemala border. We were on the home stretch. A few more days and we would be in Guatemala City.

I find it interesting that we would have no issues with stopping along the road in Mexico. I never realized my parents were that adventuresome. If it were me, would I do what they did? I'm not the boldest person in the world. I often take the safe way. Was Mexico safer in 1972 than it is today? Is it really that risky? All I know is our 21st century world doesn't feel as safe as it was back in 1972.

Bee Is For Bicycle

What are the odds. I was enjoying a great bike ride along the Keystone, West Papio, Halleck Park, and Walnut Creek trails. I was heading back home and *SMACK* something hits me in the forehead. I reach up and brush at the spot and came back with a bee on my hand (I was wearing bike gloves). I waved my hand around and felt around the left side of my forehead. The area stung a bit. I must of looked a little crazy as a lady walking her kids and dogs nearby looked at me a little funny.

When I got home there was a nice red blotch on my forehead. I thought the bee might have stung me but, while the stinging feeling is still there, the red blotch had faded away and there is no swelling. I guess with my speed (10 MPH) combined with the speed of the bee resulted in a hard smack to my head. I doubt now that the bee had enough of its senses to sting me. I was lucky.

Besides the bee incident, I had a pretty good bike ride. My goal was the Walnut Creek area. The creek is dammed up, part of the area flood control system, making a small lake. The Walnut Creek trail is a three mile loop around the lake and through the tall grass meadows in the area. I'm going to have to drive back and walk around this scenic trail. It begged for my camera which was sitting on the kitchen table. There are also six geocaches in the area that need to be discovered.

I did manage to find three geocaches along the 26.55 mile round trip ride. I found "Jupiter's Acorn", a standard ammo can cache; "Pole Vault", a tube shaped container hidden under a pole cap on a bridge; and "Welcome To LaVista", a micro, log only cache. I'm not sure I like to geocache on a bike. I worry about dropping the GPS and, if the cache is off the trail, I worry about someone coming along and swiping my bike.

Wasting Away For Good Numbers

Last May I had a blood test that wasn't so good. High cholesterol, high triglycerides, high blood glucose. After I returned from vacation I put myself on a diet.

I kept track of my food intake using a free program called Cron-O-Meter. I didn't really starve myself. I just watched my fats and carbs. Lots of chicken and pork. Goodbye beef and ice cream. Candy, I hardly knew you. Cakes, cookies, sayonara. This diet has resulted in me losing about ten pounds which is a little disconcerting as I thought I didn't need to lose weight, just change where my calories were coming from. I've had to cinch my belt a little tighter to keep my pants up. Then again, several sites on the intertubes say that my new lower weight is in the 'normal' range.

The diet has payed off. I received my latest test results from the Doctor today and all my numbers, all of them except HDL, are in the normal range. As usual my HDL, good cholesterol, is low. Now the struggle is to maintain my weight and not lose any more.