Solo Adventure to Minnesota

I got home today from a trip to Minnesota to visit Avery.  I got home exactly one week after I left.

I will share about my trip in several day's worth of blogs.  I guess I should have done a little each day, but Oh well, can't change that, I will move on and just do it!!

I left Denver Friday evening, January 18.  Ted and Nicolle and I had an appointment with in the Endocrine department at Kaiser at 4:30 that we had been waiting for for over a month.  So I decided to wait until after that to leave.  However, when we went downtown for the appointment, it was not in their system, so, we have to wait until February now.   arrrggghhhhhh.....

I drove for several hours, and made it to North Platte.  Stayed in a Super 8.  It was super nice, and had a great hot breakfast.  I made a waffle and ate it with raspberry yogurt on top... yummo.  http://www.super8.com/hotels/nebraska/north-platte/super-8-north-platte/hotel-overview

Saturday, January 19 I got up early and started off.  I headed north, through the Sand Hills area of Nebraska, towards I-90.  My thinking was that I wanted to avoid Nebraska and Iowa and go across South Dakota.  I was pretty sure that going through this area of Nebraska wasn't as bad as I had remembered, but it was.  It is pretty barren.  And it isn't interstate, so there is slowing down through all the little towns, which seem for the most part deserted.   I stopped at Cabelas to get a headlamp, since I didn't have any flashlight with me, and I also got some gloves, which I had also forgotten.

Other stops: a couple of rest stops and Culvers for late lunch/dinner.

I listened to quite a few Spanish lessons in the course I am taking via podcast.  I love it because they people teaching are from Scotland, and I just get a kick out of their accents.  It is really starting to stick. Maybe 10 years of sort of dabbling in spanish and it is finally connecting.  It is Coffee Break Spanish:

http://radiolingua.com/shows/spanish/coffee-break-spanish/

I listed to several other podcasts as well.  Stuff You Missed in History Class
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/stuff-you-missed-in-history/id283605519
is one of our favorites.  Ted and I have spent HOURS listening to these.  My favorites are about serial killers (like HH Holmes) and really bizarre people :)  Actually the one about Fritjof Nansen is amazing, and also the Comanche story about Cynthia Parker.  I wish History class had been this interesting.

Another podcast I really enjoyed was NPRs RadioLab

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/wnycs-radiolab/id152249110

If you get a chance to download some of these, make sure to get the episodes entitled,
Numbers
Words
Bliss
What's up Doc
Detective Stories

After all that talking, it was time for some music, and I listed to:
Les Miserables
Phantom of the Opera
Mamma Mia.

I sang at the top of my lungs, and sobbed through Les Mis.  I had to stop at a rest stop and reapply my mascara :)

I finally made it to Roseville at around 9:30 CST, and yes, that means I lost an hour. yuck.  Avery was already asleep, but Eric and Paula and I sat up for awhile and played Timeline.  We played it alot during the week.  It is really, really fun.http://www.amazon.com/Asmodee-TIM01USASM-Timeline-Card-Game/dp/B005N57CNU

Ok, tomorrow:  Church, PotLuck, Talent Show......