Blogging off

Tuesday, August 18th,  James worked and I packed the car. He arrived back at the house around 2 pm and we were on the road by 3 pm.  It was the final drive.  On the Bay Bridge I noticed the engine was revving high.  As I approached 50 and then 55 miles per hour the car was not shifting into 4th.  Manuelly shifting between drive and 3rd made no change. Something was wrong with the transmission.  James jumped on his iPhone and came up with a mechanic that works on Chevys in Berkeley.  So instead of driving north we exited and searched out yet another mechanic.

The options, as described by Gary our friendly mechanic, were as easy as a solenoid in electrical system of the transmission or as complicated as a new transmission.  He wouldn’t know until he ran diagnostics through the computer system the next morning. James and I left the shop and walked to the North Berkeley BART station for our new journey – back to James’ house.

The next morning I made the first call to the mechanic at 9 am.  After talking each hour it was decided the car just needed a new solenoid and that would be done around 3 pm.  James and I took the BART back over to Berkeley and walked to the shop and were on the road by 4 pm. It had been a 24 hour delay.  We stayed the night in Weed, California and rolled into Portland around 2 pm Thursday August 21st.

Thursday night my parents took me out to dinner at a new Thai restaurant in NW.  When I arrived back at the apartment I found an acoustic concert taking place in the backyard. There were over 30 people in attendance.

Friday night five of us went to a new restaurant and bar “Matador” in NW. At one point in the evening I noticed that everyone at the table except me were on the phone or texting. Looking around the restaurant I discovered our table was not unique.

Saturday I was lured to Reid’s house on a false pretense to find a party. It was a welcome home party with a wide array of family and friends in attendance.  What a great re-entry into the city. It is a joy to be surrounded by the familiarity and comfort of home but the lure of the road doesn’t fade quickly or easily.

It’s taken me a while to write this last blog.  After 33,000 miles, 16 countries, 13 months it is difficult to believe I have arrived at the end. In reality it is just the beginning however what and where the next adventure will be is yet to be determined.

Thanks to everyone who has followed along and given encouragement and support.  I couldn’t have made it through the last year without with it, especially the invaluable assistance of my dad. From emergency car question calls to postal logistics to caring for my vacant subterranean apartment to lengthly video chat updates he was always there and supportive granting me the freedom to continue.