you know, the cob-bahn. . .

Reason for not writing : a whirwind of life. Saying goodbye to an old adventure and starting a new one. I started this blog last year to record my experience of Americorps. I plan on keeping it through the summer and perhaps beyond. At the beginning of the year I asked questions as to what the experience would be like. As I am writing this I don’t actually have the internet, so that reflection will have to wait. Rest assure, I will have time for reflection.

Leaving Seattle was a quick and fluid event. Of course when I should have been packing I instead had the pleasure of enjoying the company of and adventure with my friends instead, pushing packing into the sleep module at night. It reminded me of the days of old and ones soon to come of staying up so late for a project, only to awake with another full schedule. Life! But after all, excuse me, most, was packed, cookies were made, and friends came to visit for the last time, we had the oh-so-typical experience of our house this year of receiving an unexpected guest for the night. A friend of a friend of a roommate, our new vagabond friend, Trevor, arrived, which plenty of stories of adventure from Minnesota to Washington. Handling our bombardment of questions with ease and finesse, he provided our entertainment for my final night. Cheers to Trevor!

Seattle ended with a trip to Mighty-O’s for the last time. I went with Good Ol’ Glazed and was happy with my choice. A slow clap and cheer later, Chris and I were off down I-5 to experience the northwest coast.

Now, if you haven’t been along the 101 in Oregon or the 1 in California, understand this: you need to do it! There are so many lovely spots to view, explore, camp, jump into freezing cold Pacific waves, and lose your rental car keys (and luckily find them). With three days jam-packed with adventure and driving, I will share a few of the highlights:

Seeing bikers along the road that were part of STP. We had a few friends participating in the Seattle-to-Portland bike ride that started the same day, so spotting a few of the bikers was nice to think of them and be glad we had a motor, four wheels, and comfy seats.

• Astoria. The high tower on the top of the town drew us forth, so we were able to experience a beautiful view. Lesson to learn: how to successfully fly a balsa wood airplane off of a high point. A good first step to take next time is to not aim down. We also enjoyed some sea lions and an historic brewery. Lovely place.
• Sand dunes. These were further down the Oregon coast and a lot of fun. We didn’t get to see a real Plimy Dover bird, but rather an enlarged stuffed replica, complete with a sound box. It was a cute display. Not quite as good as watching Chris roll down the dune, much as I expect he would have 20 years ago as a boy. Good thing I had his keys to hold onto so he wouldn’t lose them in the sand.
• So many things to write about!

• Moving along, somehow we missed the Redwood Forest; we drove through it and thought there’d be a better place to stop, but it ended up that never came. We made up for it by taking a bypass through a beautiful forest and also driving along Highway 20, which was full of beautiful old trees as well. And of course we cannot forget driving through a tree. Hardly a tourist attraction, this is utilized by locals and tourists alike who feel the desire to simply pay $5 to drive through a tree. Yep! And you better believe we did it twice. Well, I didn’t, I took pictures, but it was safer that way.
• Sunsets, sunrises, vistas, valleys, all beautiful!
• I could go into detail about the beautiful vineyard we visited, San Francisco, or fluffer nutters, but I’ll end with a meal we enjoyed in Northern California at a local brewery. Our friendly table-neighbors were an older couple that lived in the area for quite a few years and they were very helpful in sharing good places to visit (“The cows by the water! Cows and water!”). Our waiter was also very friendly, leaving us a “Toodles!” on the bill. Great place.

After meeting up with a college friend in the Bay area it was off to Sonora. That is my current location, as I am learning about natural/earth building for a few weeks before going back to grad school.

There have been few down moments until now, as a documentary film crew has been here since the day I arrived to film about cob construction. I also had the pleasure of enjoying a trip to Yosemite National Park

with them and two wonderful ‘tour guides’ who took us to some not as populous areas of the park. It was a magnificent place with huge sheer rock faces and waterfalls. To round out the trip we stopped by one of our ‘guide’s’ house, where he keeps llamas. He is the Llama Whisperer actually, which who is it better to experience your first interaction with llamas with than such an individual? It was a unique experience as we had to breath out when the llamas got close to our face, to take in our scent, all taking place by the full moonlight.

my humble dwelling for the next month.

Today I found myself at a materials testing center to test some samples of cob. It was informative to see the process itself of the samples being prepped and eventually crushed by compression to failure. It also helped me learn more about the strength, properties, and variables of cob. There is so much to learn in the next five weeks.

Blessings to you as you finish / start / continue summer. May it abound in memories, adventure, and experience, testing your boundaries and stretching your character.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15.13.