Pearl Family Odyssey

Photos As Promised

2009-11-18T20:00:00.000-08:00

The last day of our nine week journey, in front of Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca, New York.

The Finger Lakes region of upstate New York.
This is sunset on Seneca Lake in Geneva, New York.

Our campsite area in Moab, Utah, right on the bank of the Colorado River.

The view all around in Moab, Utah.

In our amazing cabin in paradise in Mountain Home, Idaho, in the middle of nowhere.

Eli's sculpture made at our campsite near Bend, Oregon.

Feeling happy and at home in big, dramatic nature.

Volcanoes, mountains and trees in central Oregon.

In a giant volcanic crater in the center of Oregon. There was black volcanic rock for miles around. When one bit of rock hit another, it made a beautiful metallic clinking sound.

In the Japanese Garden in Portland, Oregon.

Quintessential Eli move.

Joshua and Eli frolicking on the Oregon coast.

After California

2009-11-08T20:38:00.000-08:00

What happened, you may wonder, to the Pearl Family Odyssey? After California the writing dropped off. Where did the Pearl family disappear to?

As the weeks went on, the journey became less an experience of travel and exploration and more about a search for our next home town. Never having done such a thing before, and having few references for how such an endeavor is carried out, the journey became very personal. As much as I wanted to keep up with the blogging, my attention naturally pointed inward and toward taking care of my family. Life is still tender and many enormous changes are underway, but I feel like writing again, so we'll see how I do with that as we get ready to head west very soon. Ah, but I am getting ahead of myself....let me do my best to fill you in on our time between California in August and what is now November in Massachusetts before I say more about what's next.

Let's see:

Here is where we went after California: up the coast of Oregon, back to Portland, back up to Seattle, back down to Portland, down to Eugene, across the middle of Oregon from Eugene all the way to Idaho, across Idaho, down from the middle of the northern part of Utah, passing through Salt Lake City, to Moab, Utah. Then we stayed in Boulder, Colorado for a few days. Then we drove from Boulder to Omaha, Nebraska. Then from Omaha through Iowa to just outside of Chicago. Then from the Chicago area back to Oberlin, Ohio. Then from Oberlin to Geneva, New York. Then a brief stop in Ithaca, New York and back to the home of our dear friends in western Massachusetts. All of that happened in about three weeks.

Here are some of the highlights from the journey above:

Florence, Oregon: We met some truly inspiring relatives we hadn't known existed before our trip. Bernie is a first cousin of Joshua's mother. He and his wife, Lucille, have been married almost 60 years and are still clearly in love. He spends most of his time painting lovely watercolor paintings. Lucille, who couldn't be more than 4 feet 8 inches tall, is full of energy and takes spin classes at the gym three times a week. They drive a Prius and wear Keen sandals and have an RV. They have traveled all over the US in their RV over decades, starting in the sixties! These two people, at 83 and 80 years old have more spunk, energy and life force than many people I know who are much younger than they are. Spending time with them helped us feel like we were on the right track, and that we are not the only artistic travelers in the family at large.

From Eugene to Bend, Oregon: The drive across Oregon was stunningly beautiful. We drove through a gorgeous forested area called Makenzie Pass. The van was sequestered by endless groves of pointy trees as we drove along a winding road that suprisingly took us to a gigantic black volanic crater in what felt like the middle of nowhere. When we stopped the van to take a look around, there was metallic black rock as far as we could see. The rock clinked when pieces of it rubbed against itself. The rocks must have been millions of years old. We had no idea it was there. What an amazing treat that was!

Paradise in Mountain Home, Idaho: After a particularly rough day emotionally, and a bit of fighting between Joshua and me, we ended up in the Idaho version of the middle of nowhere at a campground overlooking giant sand dunes. Tumbleweeds rolled by our feet (I had never seen a real tumbleweed before) and led us to the cabin in paradise. Our lovely little 8 by 10 foot cabin had five spots to sleep, a table and chairs, a porch with a swinging bench, electricity, air conditioning, and wifi! All of this fabulous luxury all to ourselves as well. All other campers were at another campground two minutes away. We had a space of 30 or more campsites all to ourselves, as well as the huge shower house and bathrooms with nice flushing toilets. Never ever would I have expected to find such a perfect place given where we were and how we felt. Our family has Joshua's persistence to thank for that wonderful surprise. I would have not had the fortitude to continue on to the second campground.

The Craphole Campground: Okay, that wasn't the offical title of the place, but it should have been. This campground in northern Utah was advertised as having special medicinal hot springs. The hot springs were there, but they were yucky. We didn't even consider paying the extra fee to immerse oursevles in the brown smelly pools. Instead we spent our time coping with the smell of goose poop everywhere and braving the "bathrooms" which were actually port-o-pottys. Eli had a stuffy nose that night too, which kept him (and us) awake much of the night, and if it wasn't that making sleep difficult, it was the very loud trains passing by all night, or the gunshots we heard nearby.

Moab, Utah (Arches National Park): Moab is like being on another planet. Huge red rock mountains are everywhere in sight and everything is beautiful. It was Labor Day weekend when we were there, foolishly hoping to stay inside Arches National Park. Apparently in order to do that you had to wait in line starting at 7am. By 6pm when we arrived, every space was full. That led to a mad rush to one of the several campsites just outside the park right along the bank of the Colorado River. We got the last available space to be found anywhere around! We set up the tent in a frenzy, in a bit of rain, before the sun went down, with several Pearls starting to get sick. It was the one place we stayed without running water so we had to bring it in from town. Our stay there was two days long. We were exhausted from moving around so much and from so much emotional stretching for the six or seven weeks leading up to that point. I will post some pictures from this truly jaw dropping place. It really must be seen to be believed.

Boulder, Colorado: The drive from Moab to Boulder was GORGEOUS. In Boulder we had several visits with more lovely lovely friends. I got sick for just a day. We checked out Boulder as one of the last possible places we were thinking of living. After Boulder we planned to make our final decision of where to live. Visiting with our friends nourished us deeply. We caught up after many years absence and we were introduced to pita pizzas, a very easy and handy meal to make for a hungry crowd.

Boulder to Omaha, Nebraska: This was one of the longest drives we did. It took about seven hours. We landed in a strange hotel. Nebraska was a long stretch of flat land that stayed the same throughout the entire drive. In a rest stop somewhere in the middle a large man wearing a cowboy hat and cowboy boots saw our Massachusetts license plate. He said, "Looks like you folks are a long way from home." I told him yes, we were. So then he said, "Welcome to America!"

Iowa: We passed through Iowa on our way to the Chicago area. I love Iowa. I remembered loving it on our trip 20 years ago. The green rolling hills have a lovely and friendly energy to them. Some day I would like to see Iowa beyond the highway.

Oberlin, Ohio and Geneva, New York: More visits with excellent friends. Geneva is right on the Finger Lakes in upstate New York. Joshua spent an entire day right on the lake. All these years of living in New York and we never explored the northern and western part of this large state. We enjoyed getting a broader view of New York as the last part of our journey back east.

Ithaca, New York: I had always heard very nice things about Ithaca and had a long standing interest in visiting. We went to the famous Moosewood Restaurant for our closing ritual and a very nice meal. We took some time with the kids as we ate delicious soups and salads and a very tasty chocolate cake, and talked about what the trip meant to us all, and what we learned and what was hard and what was fun. It was a lovely ending to that part of our travels, even though Eli didn't like the food and got his own pizza afterward and promptly threw up soon after eating it.

So there you have the Cliff notes version of the last three weeks of our odyssey. I will try to dig up some key pictures for you for my next entry.

It's nice to be back blogging again!
Wishing you well........Cora

The Laughing Heart

2009-11-05T06:11:00.000-08:00

The Laughing Heart

your life is your life
don't let it be clubbed into dank submission.
be on the watch.
there are ways out.
there is a light somewhere.
it may not be much light but
it beats the darkness.
be on the watch.
the gods will offer you chances.
know them.
take them.
you can't beat death but
you can beat death in life, sometimes.
and the more often you learn to do it,
the more light there will be.
your life is your life.
know it while you have it.
you are marvelous
the gods wait to delight
in you.

--Charles Bukowski

California

2009-09-01T23:15:00.001-07:00

Eli tired and overwhelmed during a long and intense day in San Francisco. Never too tired for a costume though.

A street in San Francisco.

A wonderful reunion with a very special friend from Japan.

Seaweed prize on the beach in Santa Cruz. This thing was very heavy!

Waves went crashing through this small space. The kids saw an octopus floating in it.

An incredible rock formation. I think it looks like a brain.

That little person in white is Joshua, walking through the luscious green plants growing on the cliff by the magical secret cove.

Paradise by the side of the road on Route 1.

We spent about a week and a half traveling in California. We went to Berkeley, San Francisco, and Santa Cruz and stopped along the way on the coast, resting at several beaches. Our family unit was so nourished by being at the beach. The crashing of the waves and the texture of the sand reliably absorbed the buzzy traveling energy of riding in the van for hours at a stretch. The promise of a beach visit immediately shifted Eli's mood every time. We eventually learned that no matter how short the visit, putting on a bathing suit was essential for Eli, since he immersed himself in the water, no matter how high his pants were rolled up.

Berkeley, California

2009-08-27T10:20:00.001-07:00

The fabulous Pacific Ocean on our way from the Avenue of the Giants to the Bay Area.

Eating at Crepevine in Berkeley. Everyone got too hungry. We made eggs at midnight the night before due to poor planning of food that day.

A fun building near our friend's house.

Colorful Telegraph Avenue.

A bunch of street vendors on Telegraph Avenue.

We had a great time visiting the Bay Area. A good friend of mine who we would have normally stayed with, had family visiting her and some other things going on that made it complicated for us to stay with her. Thanks to her amazing resourcefulness, and the incredible kindness of her neighbor, we had a whole house to ourselves, right next door to her! These amazing friends of hers, whom we had never even met, let us stay in their home. It was a real treat to spread out like that, after such continuous close quarters in a car and tent. Not only did we all have more space, there was a piano, two cats for Eli to play with and a huge trampoline as well. We have been the recipients of such beautiful generosity on this journey. I look forward to meeting these lovely people, who we have already gotten to know on some level, through living in their house.

Our friend next door is a gourmet chef, and while we were in Berkeley, she treated us to two nights of her fabulous cooking. After all the road food we had been eating (pizza, pasta, sandwiches, pancakes) having home cooked meals of professional quality gave us lots of pleasure and energy. At the dinner table Eli said, "I feel like it is Thanksgiving!" I know what he means.

Know Who You Are

2009-08-25T09:42:00.001-07:00

Redwoods in California

2009-08-24T22:55:00.000-07:00

This photo was taken at out campsite in the Del Norte campgrounds in northern California. Our tent was surrounded by these magical trees.

This photo gives new meaning to the concept of hugging a tree.

Man in bliss.

Woodland fairy.

Family in a tree.

Close up version.

Love among the trees. We felt small, but the love felt big.

See how big they are?

Being among the redwoods feels like being a hobbit in Lord of the Rings.

When I am among the redwoods, I feel like everything is okay.

One of the things I was most excited about sharing with our children on this trip was these magnificent trees. Pictures hardly do them justice.

The indoor cat has made a discovery on this journey: I like my nature BIG. Big mountains, big oceans, big sky, big prairies, big trees!

A Rough Night

2009-08-24T22:25:00.000-07:00

Being eaten by a sculpture in Portland in front of the sports arena.

A rose petal creation by Eli made from rose petals from the Rose Garden in Portland.

My feet on the beach. This was the softest finest sand I have ever felt.

The Oregon coast. It is rougher than the California coast, but just as beautiful.

August 24th, 2009

I am in a hotel right now, and very happy about that. Last night was really really hard! I did some kind of funny body twist as I was getting into the tent last night and my lower back became the locale for a pain festival. I also ate some tomato meat sauce pasta in a swarm of bees and the food was yummy but kept me awake. On top of that I was over the top hormonal (still am) and had to pee horribly badly. It was so dark and I was afraid of bears and so it took hours before I finally hobbled out of the tent and did my business. Back in the tent I kept trying to do deep breathing and stay calm and not trust my destructive thought cycles, but the sleeping bag was so narrow and my hip was starting to hurt too, and finally, I just started sobbing. I did it quietly, however, so as not to wake up the rest of the sleepers. I used great restraint in not waking up Joshua through all of this, thinking it was better that at least one of the adults got some sleep. I kept thinking that I would just get up with the sun and maybe take a walk or something, but the sun was not there! I think I was squirming around for a good three or four hours. I finally fell asleep just as the sun was coming up.

Today when I woke up I could hardly move. Fiona had to help me pack up and put my shoes on and Joshua had to help me lift my legs into the car to get in my seat. I couldn't even walk to the bathroom. He had to drive me there. Once I was still in the car the pain wasn't so bad, so long as I didn't twist or move much. We drove to Talent, Oregon where of all people, we were meeting a friend from Woodstock who is now living there, who is a body worker/healer! He did some EFT on me and some other strange healing thing involving an invisible green dragon and I have been a lot better since. Still in a little pain, but much much better.

So I went from hell and misery and despair into a whole lot better in less than 24 hours. It can happen. I wouldn't have believed it last night though!!

Portland, Oregon

2009-08-20T21:49:00.000-07:00

A giant fly on a roof of a restroom somewhere in Oregon.

In Portland, we ended up staying with some new friends that we met through a connection of Isaac's. I am just so impressed and floored by the amount of generosity that we have received on this trip. So many kind and wonderful people have opened their homes to us on our journey. What a huge contribution to the odyssey. A huge thank you to everyone who has hosted us and shown us around.

We had a great time in Portland. The weather was constantly changing: rain, sun, clouds, warm, cold. The air crackled with crispness and the colors were very pretty. And of course, there was Powell's City of Books, the largest independent booksellers in the country with a gigantic store that occupies a full city block. We were browsing the stacks at Powell's within hours of arriving in the City of Roses.

I wish we had taken more pictures in Portland. I guess we were too busy doing things.

Seattle, Washington

2009-08-16T15:18:00.000-07:00

View of the lake from one of the parks we visited in Seattle. There were so many parks and beautiful views of water all over the city.

Cora playing scientist at the lab in the university.

Bob and Joshua together again.

Bob's gig at Slim's Last Chance. That's Bob on drums. The next night Joshua recorded Bob's playing inside the empty Odyssey for a recording project.

Pearls sitting on the Fremont troll.

Isaac in contemplation by a lake.

Eating ramen in downtown Seattle with the lovely Mariko.

Uwajimaya, the largest Japanese grocery around. What a treat.

After the long stretch of nature and camping, and then the gentle reintegration into culture in Bellingham, the urban environment of Seattle was a shock to the system. It took a few days to get used to so many cars and people and sounds, but after a day or two we found our groove in Seattle. I was surprised that when we were in the downtown tall building area of Seattle, my body suddenly relaxed in a ripple of familiarity. I felt strangely at home among buildings that blocked the sky. Even though I have lived in the rural countryside for over a decade, apparently my New York City roots are still in tact.

We spent the whole time in Seattle visiting with dear old friends and it was such a joy to finally see them in their home town. Although I love being able to see good friends as frequently as possible, I really appreciate the resilience of a true connection with a loved one. Even after years of not seeing these wonderful people, it was so easy to jump right into knowing and loving one another. We have reconnected with so many lovely friends on this journey so far and have plans to visit with many others.

A good friend of mine mentioned to me the other day that all of these posts seem so upbeat and happy. Her comment really got me thinking....why is that so? This trip is not without its challenges, but mostly, it has been a very joyful time. The movement is good for our family. The adventure. The teamwork. I continually have a sense that we are on the right track with our lives. I guess it comes through in the documentation of the trip.

Another friend reflected back that we seemed to have planned this journey out quite well and that we seem to have so much intentionality around it. I would say that her comment is true. An interesting thing I keep noticing is that Joshua and I have a cellular memory of doing the same kind of trip together twenty years ago. On that two and a half month journey back in 1989, we developed cross country traveling chops that are still with us. Yes, it is different and more complex to be doing it with three children in tow, but we also have amazing technology this time, such as computers, an iPhone, a GPS and a comfortable vehicle which make it all so much easier. This type of travel is in the DNA of our marriage. In fact, the intensity of spending so much time in a car and getting to know each other through the built in situation of constant decision making by living on the road, is what made us decide to get engaged. We felt that if our relationship could withstand such continuous close quarters and we could find such cooperation and partnership and still laugh and have fun that it was time to take our relationship to the next level. Our very engagement was born out of life on the road. And here we are again, together with our children, engaged once more.

Next stop, Portland, Oregon.

(Posted by Cora, even though it says Father of Pearl at the bottom. There was a small technical difficulty.)

Bellingham, Washington

2009-08-09T18:01:00.001-07:00

On our way to the coast of the Pacific Northwest.

Love on the boardwalk in Bellingham.

Beach sculpture by Eli.

A moment to sit and look at the water together. I thought we should actually BE in some of these pictures!

That's me (Cora) kayaking on the Bay. Being so close to the water nourished me and I felt like a real mermaid. One with a boat.

Super Eli in his life vest just before getting into the row boat on Chuckanut Bay.

Bellingham, Washington is where our friends, Matt and Michelle live. It is a lovely town--very quaint and clean and full of cute shops and pretty places to be. On our first night there we took a walk on the boardwalk and watched the sun set. We all bent down to the water and touched the Pacific Ocean together. It felt like a huge accomplishment just getting ourselves that far.

A Little Road Weary, But Up For The Adventure

2009-08-08T15:08:00.000-07:00

Three weeks on the road with a family of five is a lot of fun, but it's also a lot of work. Preparing meals, setting up and breaking down tents, navigating new terrain, and processing the tons of information that come from putting ourselves in brand new environments every few days--it takes a while to recover and rejuvenate between activities.

Here I am napping in the middle of the day on concrete steps next to Lake Washington in Seattle--a little road weary, but up for the adventure.

Pearls: Things of Beauty Born Out Of Irritation

2009-08-05T08:14:00.000-07:00

In 1993, Cora and I decided that we wanted a new last name. Somehow, the names we grew up with were not fitting anymore and we wanted everyone in our family to have a shared family name. We searched for a name that was both meaningful to us and related to our family history (Pearl comes from my great-grandfather's last name and was Cora's great-grandmother's first name.) This decision was one of many endeavors of balls out creativity and self-determination that has characterized our marriage and life together as a family. Each day the name becomes even more relevant to my life experience.

This photo is a rock pearl sculpture made by Eli while we were in Yellowstone.

He found a little translucent stone and put it between two halves of a rock that had a perfect break in the middle. Isaac and I shined a flashlight on it after the sun went down and snapped a few photos of Eli Pearl's pearl.

As I was admiring Eli's vision and resourcefulness, I couldn't help but think about how fitting the name Pearl is for our family. A pearl starts as a microscopic piece of sand that is trapped inside an oyster, creating a discomfort and an irritation. From this rub, the oyster creates a gem.

Although this trip has led to a lot of fun and adventure, much of this family odyssey grew out of irritation and discomfort.

We needed change. We were no longer feeling "at home" in our house. I was no longer feeling creative forward motion in my studio. Some friendships and family relationships were beginning to feel strained.

So we decided to start again--getting rid of many material belongings and stirring up change.

It has been a beautiful journey so far, but the rub of feeling misplaced is well within reach of my memory. I remember this irritation daily and appreciate its role in creating forward motion-- especially when it's time to create beauty out of a new irritation--when I hear kids fighting in the back seat or somebody got too tired or hungry while driving for too many hours or one of us feels stressed out about the uncertainty of where we will end up living. I look to these momentary irritations to provide us with the bit of sand that we can grow and polish into a gem.

When we took on the name Pearl, about 16 years ago, we were saying 'yes' to this aspect of nature that creates beauty out of irritation. We decided to take the irritation of our pasts (of which there will always be an abundance) and create beauty out of it.

May we continue to find that clarity as our travels progress.

More Glorious Wyoming, Montana, Idaho and Washington

2009-08-04T17:50:00.000-07:00

Our current main home. This version of it is in my favorite campsite so far, near Cody, Wyoming.

Pools of hot sulfur water steaming out of the earth in Yellowstone.

Old Faithful geyser in Yellowstone National Park erupting. Boiling hot water shoots out of the earth every 90 to 125 minutes. I don't know the guy in red. He was one of the many awestruck geyser watching audience members. I like how his red shirt adds to the composition of the photo.

It was a long and gorgeous drive across the rest of Wyoming into Yellowstone National Park. Yellowstone has acres and acres of natural miracles. The whole park is situated on the most active volcanic activity on the earth. The last time the whole thing blew was 500 million years ago. No one knows when it could blow again. When it does, it could take out all of North America. Seeing the earth boiling around me was very impressive. It reminded me once again of how small I am and how big and powerful the earth is. In a strange way I find that comforting, remembering the forces that are way bigger than me.

Although I loved the beauty and strangeness of that place, it was really quite the tourist attraction. There are several major campgrounds with as many as hundreds of sites each. We were situated among several RVs and a tenting family that seemed to have at least half a dozen small children under the age of 8. They had a baby that was howling incessantly as I tried to fall asleep. It was like being in the middle of a small city, in the middle of a forest. When I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth the next morning, there were women in there with makeup bags and blow driers who had a whole beauty regimen going on. I even saw one gal with high heels on! I realized then that I had turned into Camper Girl, much to my surprise. At that point, brushing my teeth was my big effort toward extra personal beauty.

Upon leaving Yellowstone we had a beautiful drive through the southwestern portion of Montana. We stopped in Bozeman at a Barnes & Noble bookstore. First we used the bathrooms, then we bought some books. Isaac found a great book about colleges which is helping him figure out which schools he would like to visit on our journey. When I bought the book, the saleslady was moving at a pace that to me, felt like slow motion. I became aware of my fast talking, fast moving, east coast ways. I noticed my own impatience with her lack of speed and realized that faster is not necessarily better. What was my big rush? Did I have a plane to catch? Montana in general was laid back in its energy and every person we met was so nice and helpful.

We also stopped in Butte, which used to be an old copper mining town that now feels like a bit of a ghostown, and we also stopped in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, which was a lovely lovely place that we thought we might like to visit again. Idaho was very beautiful and mountainous and had its own special character. It is amazing how each state really has its own personality, and even in just the panhandle of Idaho, I found that to be so.

We continued on past Spokane, Washington (which for those of you who don't know is pronounced Spo-CAN) and drove all the way to a Shilo Inn at Moses Lake, Washington. Moses Lake wasn't too exciting, but being in a hotel sure was! Swimming pool, kitchenette, internet access, beds, SHOWERS. So many good things. So much deep appreciation for all of them. We enjoyed full use of our hotel experience and were renewed by freshening up after a full and intense week of camping.

Next stop.....Bellingham.

Wyoming Is Heaven on Earth

2009-08-03T23:32:00.000-07:00

Joshua and the kids walking up the mountain at over 9000 feet elevation to touch some snow.

Paradise.

Can you tell just how BIG everything is in this part of the country??

Sage and mountains and big sky everywhere you look.

Some of the rocky mountains had more trees than others.

There are miles and miles of roads that look like this. Stunning.

Rock formation at Big Horn National Forest.

Wyoming took my breath away the entire time we drove through it, from one end of the state to the other. Every mountain pass awakened the cowgirl in me, and I didn't even know I had an inner cowgirl! I could easily imagine riding a horse through this land, with wind blowing in my hair and not a care in the world. Even in our Honda Odyssey, I felt a deep connection to the mountains, rocks, lakes and big sky all around us. It was a magical place. If you want to experience heaven on earth, drive through the Big Horn National Forest. My heart sings just thinking about it.

More South Dakota

2009-08-02T23:13:00.000-07:00

Joshua playing a piano from Deadwood at The Bay Leaf Cafe, a restaurant with a healthy and delicious menu in Spearfish.

On the way to Spearfish, SD.
The location of Joshua and Cora's first fight on the trip.
(May it be the last.)

Deadwood, South Dakota.
The real town that was dramatized in the HBO series a few years ago.

From the Badlands we drove to the Black Hills of South Dakota to the town of Spearfish. On the way we had our first fight--just a misunderstanding and release of built up tension spurred on by a dramatic phonecall from my grandmother. The loud stream right next to us helped move the energy quickly. It was a sudden burst of extreme emotion that ended with some good hugs and a return to love.

We did another hour of driving after the fighting incident and we stopped by a campground that I remembered staying in twenty years ago. We got to view a spot near there where a key scene in "Dances with Wolves" was filmed. It was hard to imagine a whole movie crew in such a remote location. We considered staying at that campsite, but it was our nineteenth wedding anniversary and we had reservations at The Bay Leaf Cafe and really wanted to go there. The choice was to stay in a beautiful campground and skip the restaurant or stay in an RV campsite that was not as nice but close enough to the restaurant that we would still be able to eat there. Food won out over campsite and it was a good thing too, because the next day rain overtook the whole place. The amenities of the RV park were very helpful in those conditions. I spent hours in a white cinder block laundry room doing laundry with Fiona and Eli while Joshua and Isaac cooked breakfast (!) and broke down camp in the pouring rain. I did an extra load of laundry with the clothes they had been wearing as well as everyone's soggy sneakers. A woman who worked there, who had a voice scratchy from lots of cigarette smoking, heard all the banging from the shoes and said, "I hope that doesn't dent my drum." It took me a while to realize that she meant the round thing that holds everything and spins around in the machine. There were no dents in the end and there was a load of dry shoes, much to everyone's delight.

We didn't exactly fit in with the RV crowd at Elkhorn, but it was fun talking with a 64 year old man from Texas married three times, with a few near death experiences and an artificial heart valve that you can hear pounding away if you are standing next to him. I asked him how those experiences changed his life and he said that they made him realize that it is best to enjoy life, and live it to its fullest, because you never know what can happen. He was certainly living his dream of getting away from the Texas heat, driving around in beautiful places and motorcycling with his honey here and there. He said that the only time he loses awareness of the somewhat painful pounding of his heart is on his motorcycle--something about the vibration of it and getting lost in the experience of joy. I always like seeing someone live their dream and am fascinated by all the ways in which each person's dream is truly a reflection of who they are.

The Badlands

2009-08-02T22:53:00.000-07:00

The actual jail in Interior, South Dakota just outside the Badlands. Population: 71

Plains that stretch out forever.

Brothers at the Badlands.

The beautiful Badlands as far as the eye can see.

Eli waking up in the tent at the Badlands. He was very sweaty. The tent got hot in the morning.

I'm backing up a bit now since I had very little internet for the last week or so. We were in the Badlands around July 27th, which at this point, feels like about a thousand years ago. We have covered a lot of territory since then, but for now I will just say that I didn't remember the Badlands being as stunning and beautiful twenty years ago as I did on this trip. I loved the absolute abundance of these stony mountainous shapes stretching out in every direction with colorful plains in certain parts dotted with prairie dogs popping out from nowhere.

We all loved our campsite at the Badlands. We had wind, rain, and hot sun in the short time we were there. We devised a makeshift shield for our rainy windy picnic table using a plastic tarp and bungie cord. I held the tent in place will all my strength to keep it from blowing away while the rest of the family was climbing mini mountains. And we all woke up sweating in the morning from still having sweat shirts on after a cool night.

If you ever go to the Badlands, make sure you take the scenic drive all the way through them. Twenty years ago we neglected to do that, and so, did not get the full awesome experience of having our minds blown in the way we got to this time. As we drove through all we could say was "Whoa!" and "Wow!" No other words would really do.

West Yellowstone, Montana

2009-08-01T12:12:00.000-07:00

We're in a parking lot of the Best Western in West Yellowstone, Montana, after the most amazing few days in Wyoming.

So much to say, so little internet.

More posts to come as soon as we have internet access beyond sporadic level.

Mitchell, South Dakota, Home of the Corn Palace

2009-07-26T18:15:00.000-07:00

The gorgeous view outside the car window for miles and miles. It was like this on all sides. Can you see how big the sky is? That iPhone takes great pictures!

Gas station in Mitchell, South Dakota

Windmill on Route 90 in South Dakota

When Joshua and I took our cross country trip twenty years ago, we stopped in the place where we are right now, which is Mitchell, South Dakota, home of the Corn Palace (http://www.cornpalace.com/index.php). When we passed through two decades ago, we got a Corn Palace pen that I loved and used for years and years until it finally ran out of ink. It had a little liquid chamber where a corn cob would move up and down if you tilted the pen. I am happy to report that I was able to pick up another one, although I was a bit dismayed at the $4.99 price tag for one crappy pen! I hope this one lasts as long as the other one did. Instead of corn it has a moving bird.

Today we drove four hours from Makato to Mitchell. It was a beautiful drive full of miles and miles of corn fields, lots of windmills, slightly pink highway roads and the biggest sky you can imagine. As we drove, Joshua put on great music to accompany the ride (Bob Dylan, Greg Brown, Johnny Cash, and Neil Young). The music made me feel like something profound was happening, even though I wasn't sure what it was. I was amazed to be driving through a place that is still America and yet so incredibly different from Vermont, or Ohio, or Maryland, for example. I tried very hard to imagine what it might be like to live in South Dakota, and honestly, just couldn't do it.

Mitchell itself is kind of a sad and depressing town. Besides the Corn Palace, which isn't all that exciting, there really isn't much going on here, especially on a Sunday. We are at a hotel and were able to enjoy some time at the pool after a day of scorching sun. The rest of the week will be spent heading towards Bellingham, Washington and we will be camping the whole time. We are enjoying a last taste of showers and flushing toilets and tv movies before embarking on lots of nature. Next stop is the Badlands.....

Thank you all for your nice comments. Glad to have you on the journey with us. xo

Mankato

2009-07-25T22:14:00.000-07:00

Fiona and Eli asleep in Mankato, Minnesota.

Visiting with Andrew and Catherine at a wonderful breakfast place in Madison.

Last night stayed in St. Paul with some very new, very generous friends who let us stay in their apartment after only knowing us for a few hours and they even let us stay there after they had to leave the state for their daughter's wedding the next morning. We were nourished by their hospitality and thrilled by having such a colorful and comfortable place to stay. Although traveling is so much fun and on this particular journey, quite the adventure, it is tiring! So many constant new experiences for all. Being taken care of by other kind souls is so nourishing.

Several of us got a bit too hungry this morning, so we made some toast to tide us over. We went to visit some friends from Japan that we hadn't seen since our last cross country trip twenty years ago. We chatted with them for a long time while Eli ran around the yard alternating with Isaac and Fiona as playmates.

I am noticing that I am inclined to write a lot about food. I guess it is because feeding everyone is such an accomplishment on the road--especially the almost seven year old! The eating in and of itself is such an adventure. For dinner tonight we went to a noodle restaurant. They served all styles of noodle: Asian, Italian and American. It was a simple solution. Too bad the seven year old isn't fond of pasta. I thought all kids liked pasta. Hm.

After stocking up at the last Whole Foods we will see for several large states, we drove to Mankato, Minnesota, where we are now, in a Days Inn getting ready to head into South Dakota tomorrow.

Here is a little request. If you are reading this blog, leave a little note or hello if you would. It is so nice to feel you all with us on this journey, and we love hearing from all of you!

Madison to Minnesota

2009-07-24T21:40:00.000-07:00

Cora and Bird in Madison, Wisconsin

Joshua and Eli at Lake Michigan.

Isaac checking out our new tent.

Joshua in front of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music

After several excellent days in Oberlin we drove to Sturgis, Michigan for our first night of camping. On the way we made a stop in Ann Arbor, Michigan where we visited with an old friend of Joshua's from Oberlin that he hadn't seen in over 20 years. Susan and Rob and their two boys greeted us with a wonderful lunch outdoor lunch of homemade pizza and blueberry cobbler. We all had a delightful visit. Once Eli settled in to feeling comfortable, he even played some football with the boys.

After that we drove to the Warren Dunes State Park on recommendation of the Ritchey family. We learned that it is important to arrive at the campgrounds with plenty of time to set up camp, make food, clean up food, and do so all before the mosquitoes arrive. Unfortunately, we learned this the hard way, by arriving late and hooking up with the mosquitoes just as we were sitting down to eat.

It was a bit of a rough first night of camping, but when we woke up and put away the tent and all of our things, we drove over to the dunes, which were just beautiful and right next to Lake Michigan. It made the rough night worth it. We wished we could have stayed at the Lake all day, but we had a lot of driving to do and stayed only a little while.

After that we had a long driving day from Sturgis to Madison, Wisconsin. We arrived in time for dinner at the home of our friends, Bird and Tom. We had known these lovely people from Japan and hadn't seen them in sixteen years, when our oldest children were newborn babies. It was great to reconnect and also meet their other two children, whom we had only seen pictures of before. We loved staying with this great family in their beautiful home right on one of the two lakes of Madison. They were all so warm and generous.

While in Madison I got to visit with my childhood friend, Kira, whom I hadn't seen since high school. Kira made us a delicious feast for lunch. It is amazing to visit with people who you know from early on in your life and then see them so many years later. What a thrill to meet her beautiful family and hear about her life for all those years that I missed.

Isaac and Joshua took a tour of the University with Emmett and Tom. Apparently it was quite different from the Oberlin tour. No surprise there, given that the University of Wisconsin is ten times bigger than Oberlin, among other huge differences. I am so glad that Isaac is getting this chance to check out different schools and see what the college thing is all about. It will be fun to show him schools when they are in session in September.

This morning we had breakfast in Madison with our friend Andrew (that we know from Oberlin) and his wife and twin boys. We ate a great breakfast place called Lazy Jane's Cafe. Again it was so great to connect with old friends. Catherine took us to her house and around the neighborhood. Madison is so sweet! What a lovely place. We are looking forward to going back there.

The rest of the day involved driving to St. Paul, Minnesota where we are currently. More to say about that next time. Time to get to bed. I am exhausted.

Being in Oberlin

2009-07-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

The Honda Odyssey pulling away to start the odyssey.

Here we are in the driveway in Wendell about to set off on our journey.

We've had a lovely several days staying with our wonderful friend, Rebecca, in Oberlin. It has been just great showing the kids where we met, where we were married and where we started to find out so much about ourselves and our place in the world.

There have been many improvements made to this great school in twenty years. Hard to get my brain around the fact that I graduated twenty years ago. That is just weird. We took a tour with a student intern from the admissions office. Going around campus with her and walking into many of the buildings brought back so many memories. I remembered how much fun I had going here and what a deeply rich experience it was. Sending me here for college was one of the greatest gifts my parents gave me. I'm feeling really appreciative of that. I'm glad we'll get to pass through here again in September.

We're still figuring out how we do this whole traveling thing--which bags to bring in which situations, the food, the sleeping arrangements. I love our little family and the way we all look out for each other. We're working it all out one little piece at a time.

Awesome Eli

2009-07-19T20:57:00.001-07:00

Eli in Wendell, before we left for our trip. He's just so cool, I had to post this picture.

Wanderjahre

2009-07-19T06:34:00.000-07:00

We are now in Oberlin, Ohio, excited about revisiting and exploring the place where the Pearl family began--where Cora and I received our college education, fell in love during our last year of school, and came back to get married a year later. Oberlin is the place that I envision when I think of the Neil Young lyric "All my changes were there..."

It is here that I was first exposed to a larger world. It is here where I formed my ideals, developed the foundation of my belief system, and discovered that there are others who share in my passion for critical thought and deep creativity. Here is where I met, for the first time, people from radically different backgrounds and cultures. Within this safe, corn-field-surrounded campus, I awoke, over and over again, to the early callings of my Soul.

But that was then and this is now.

Right now, church bells are ringing in the distance as I contemplate what my dear friend Rebecca said last night about the Pearl family odyssey.

She suggested that this entire year, from the clearing out of our material belongings and uprooting of daily habitat and routines, to the exploratory road trip we are on right now, characterizes what is called a Wanderjahre in German: a year of wandering that is usually taken by young graduates between the completion of their formal education and the beginning of a settled career and lifestyle. It is the proverbial year to travel abroad and "figure out what you want to do next." By embracing occasional periods of "wandering" that inevitably arise over the course of a lifetime, people avoid getting stuck in ruts and falling asleep at the wheel of life.

Thank you for that term, Rebecca. Although it is usually used to describe an individual's journey, it feels like we have been on a family wanderjahre--our year of wandering (and wondering).

It reminds me of a bumper sticker that I used to see often in Woodstock: "Not All Who Wander Are Lost."

Amen.

The Journey Begins: Ideals and Reality

2009-07-17T08:36:00.000-07:00

As we embark on our Keroakian family nomadic experiment, I am filled with the enthusiasm that comes when one takes a leap into their ideals. At the same time, I am keenly aware of the stream of responsibilities and realities that go hand in hand with any expression of freedom.

Ideal #1: By letting go of our house, 2/3 of our things and many of our routines for a mobile lifestyle, we are expanding our sense of home. Eventually, we will all feel at home wherever we are, regardless of circumstances.

Reality #1: We will be developing systems and routines for setting up camp wherever we find ourselves. This means unpacking (and eventually repacking) two tents, five sleeping bags and rolls, a kitchen made up of a butane stove, two milk crates filled with cooking and dining supplies and a perishables cooler bag, a mobile music recording studio and office, five large duffle bags, five smaller day bags, and five even smaller "handy bags."

Ideal #2: By flying in the face of convention and taking a cross-country odyssey with a family of five, we are expressing the creativity and freedom available to all of us any time we summon it. We are teaching ourselves and our children that when things aren't working, you can just change direction and try something new. From this open context, all is possible.

Reality #2: Everyday continues to be a challenge to make a good life and a good living. Freedom is a state of mind, and the cell phone bills and auto lease bills don't care how free I feel or what state of mind I am in--they just need to be paid on time.

Ideal #3: As an artist, I have the tools and technologies available to be in a constant state of prolific output. Between my MacBook Pro, iPhone 3Gs, Apogee Duet interface, 4 microphones, 2 mic stands, hard drive, and journals, I can record, write, publish, and recieve real-time audience feedback everyday without a physical studio or office.

Reality #3: I fit in my creative expression wherever I can. Between driving, eating, answering the kids' multitude of ongoing questions, emailing, mobile banking, and planning, focus and privacy are precious commodities which will appear unpredictably and must be siezed. I will create when and where I can.

These are just a few ideals and realities that are dancing through this odyssey so far. Sometime the dance is a colorful play of opposites and somtimes it's a battle.

Right now, it is pure fun.

Exhausted

2009-07-16T21:38:00.000-07:00

First lesson of life on the road: ALWAYS have food available to snack on whenever you are in the car.

We were so focused on packing up ourselves and our car for the next two months that somehow the matter of Today slipped by a little bit. Lena made a fabulous breakfast for everyone (heart shaped blueberry pancakes) and somehow in my mind that meant that our kids were fed for the day.

It didn't take long for hunger to kick in a few hours into our trip. Although we had packed all kinds of great food in our "kitchen," it was all in the bottom of the trunk and inaccessible. All the kitchen food was intended for camping. The only food we had that was intended for today was last minute pretzels and peanut butter crackers that Lena gave us on the way out. Thank goodness for those or it would have been a real drag.

We got a roast beef and a turkey grinder in Enfield, Connecticut. If you don't make it to the roadside deli there in Enfield, you won't be missing much.

We had a full day of driving and are now at our dear friends' house in Milford, New Jersey. It is late and we are tired. It is nice that everyone is tucked in bed.

Almost Ready to Go

2009-07-15T20:59:00.000-07:00

It is amazing how a day can seem short or long. Today was one of the longest days ever. So much to do. So much got done. Packing. Strategizing. Planning. Deciding. And many many trips up and down the stairs.

We are almost all the way packed. Tomorrow we figure out exactly how all the bags will fit in the van. We have large and small duffle bags for all our personal items. Joshua has black, I have royal blue, Isaac has red, Fiona has forest green and Eli has bright yellow. The big bags are too big to lug around so we are using the smaller bags to carry enough things for three days at a time. We also have a set of kitchen things, office things, studio/music things, and a very large soft thing that fits on the roof of the van that is filled with tents, sleeping bags, pillows, blankets and camping supplies. We decided to take out the 8th seat of the van in order to accommodate so many things.

Although we are very excited to be taking this trip, we are all sad about leaving our dear Morimoto family. Living with them for the last six and a half months has been such a wonderful, rich, deep, lovely and excellent experience. All of us have been in a bit of a stupor today trying to deal with all the feelings about not being with our extended family for a while.

So many of you have been so kind and supportive of us as we embark on this journey. Thank you all for your kindness and love and enthusiasm! It really gives us a lot of energy.

Trip Preparations

2009-07-14T06:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Joshua and I drove to Northampton to get some work done on the Honda Odyssey that will be taking us on our family odyssey. There was some kind of mysterious computer error that was causing dashboard lights to come on--brake lights, ABS! and a flashing D for drive, even in "park" mode. While they were taking all day to figure out the problem, Honda rented us a very large, gas guzzling GMC Acadia. Being on the small side of size ourselves, sitting in those seats felt like we were driving a truck.

After acquiring the rental car we drove down to our storage unit in Woodstock to get our camping supplies and then to New Jersey to purchase the camping equipment needed for our trip. Thank goodness the kids stayed in Massachusetts with Lena. There was so much to do and so much driving that we ended up getting home shortly before 3am.

Just before heading back to the family we made a stop at the brand new Fairway supermarket in New Jersey and stocked up on some food supplies for the car cooler and also picked up some dinner from the hot food bar--Vietnamise Chicken and Korean Pork with rice and mushrooms and a mini samosa. Oh yes, and taboule on the side. Got a little stomach ache on the way home. I guess there is such thing as too much variety.

Today we found out that the car problem was something to do with a "connector," you know, the thing in the car that connects one thing to the other thing. Make sure you check your connector! You don't want to walk around unconnected, do you?

Today we will return the monster car and pick up the van, make more lists, clean up messes, feed kids, and generally make more preparations.

Started the day with a hot tub with Fiona and Eli. Nice way to start the day.

Getting Ready for the Road

2009-07-12T16:53:00.000-07:00

You know how, when you are giving your computer too many commands, a little rainbow circle (on a Mac anyway, maybe on a PC there is another shape) spins around and around like a beach ball? Joshua and I call that "beachballing." As our family gets ready to embark on a two month Odyssey in our Honda Odyssey across America, we are finding ourselves beachballing! There are a lot of things to think about in preparation for this big trip, but little by little we are getting it done, so long as we don't give our brains too many commands at once.

Aside from the beachballing, there are many feelings to contend with: sadness at leaving the Morimotos for a little while, excitement about traveling, overwhelment with having so many details to think about.

One very cool thing about all this is, that twenty years ago, soon after we graduated from Oberlin College, Joshua and I traveled cross country for two and a half months before we went to Japan. We had a little red 1981 Ford Escort that had a manual transmission with only four gears, manual windows, and no power steering. We called that wonderful little car Sadie Sue Smilowitz and she lovingly zipped around the whole country for us, showing us everything from the Smoky Mountains to the Rockies and a whole lot more in between. Now it is a few decades later and we are going on the road with our family of five. We will show our children the spot where we got married, the Seaquest State Park in Washington state which inspired us so much, the Grand Canyon where a little piece of itself got lodged in my right index finger, and the chance for our children to meet some of the people that we knew before they were born, that we still love and are so excited to see.

For the last six months we have been living with our dear friends, the Morimoto family, in western Massachusetts. We have been visiting with them for the last eighteen years, every six to eight weeks. Who knew it would partially be in preparation for such an extended visit? Living with them for six months straight has certainly upped the intensity and intimacy levels, but it has felt very natural and joyous. Words cannot really describe the love and gratitude we feel for them, but hopefully they can feel it without the words. It is a daily feeling of abundance and appreciation, having such wonderful friends to love and be loved by.

So off we go, with a departure date set for Thursday, the 16th. More news, stories and pictures to follow.

Stay in touch dear ones!