Wordsworth

Welcome to the Dairyland. For the past three days in Wisconsin, I have enjoyed a moment at the hearth with old family friends.

Today's westward journey included a visit to an antique store where I purchased an East Lake vanity seat, two claw-footed piano stools, a bird claw and ruby glass lighter, a sterling silver Viking ship and a few other items.

All this leaves me tired, so I will share a poem with you. Enjoy!


Stepping Westward by William Wordsworth

"What, you are stepping westward?"--"Yea."
---'T would be a wildish destiny,
If we, who thus together roam
In a strange land, and far from home,
Were in this place the guests of Chance:
Yet who would stop, or fear to advance,
Though home or shelter he had none,
With such a sky to lead him on?

The dewy ground was dark and cold;
Behind, all gloomy to behold;
And stepping westward seemed to be
A kind of heavenly destiny:
I liked the greeting; 't was a sound
Of something without place or bound;
And seemed to give me spiritual right
To travel through that region bright.

The voice was soft, and she who spake
Was walking by her native lake:
The salutation had to me
The very sound of courtesy:
Its power was felt; and while my eye
Was fixed upon the glowing sky,
The echo of the voice enwrought
A human sweetness with the thought
Of travelling through the world that lay
Before me in my endless way.

A broken heart?

Today I had the great pleasure of driving on a highway courtesy of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The signs were all up, and there were those charming orange cones -- but no workers. Not very stimulating.

Anyways, as goes the broken heart -- I think I am in the heartland, and it seems to be broken.

It was clear that Cleveland was one a bustling, beautiful city. It is filled with beautiful buildings, and the city square boasts a Ritz-Carlton and a gorgeous cathedral. Around the area, however, there are boarded windows, and a gang squad was positioned right outside the Ritz.

I left that deserted city in hopes something more rural would be more to my liking. Lorain. A motel there was $25/night. I take my bed without bugs.

On to the next town-- Elyria. There I found a suite for $99 and the hotel manager who also serves as the front desk person and the maid I suspect, begged us to stay there.

A quick trip to the local Wal-Mart in Elyria revealed a poor-looking family attempting to return a pair of worn shoes to a rather unapologetic associate.

What does this all mean? A brief conversation with the manager/desk person at our hotel, Elizabeth, illuminated the reason for the widespread trouble: a factory specializing in refrigeration, moved to Mexico. This cost the area 2,000 jobs. Some are still unemployed. Other Ohioans will soon face unemployment as GM plants close.

Will this same struggle be found across the U.S.?

An overview

One flood.
Two adventurers.
A three-day ferry ride from Bellingham to Haines, Alaska.
Four new tires. (And five flat tires).
Six boxes of books.
24 days to get to Alaska.
And it all begins tomorrow.

Do wish me luck friends, and rest assured there will be more regular posts on my part from the view of one with the heart of a wanderer, on a long-awaited home-coming journey.

Gearing up

The car is detailed, the belongings are dispersed, and Sir Ian McKellen's "The Odyssey" will be here Wednesday. The blog begins.

Come on back for a visit as I chronicle a trip epic in length by modern standards across America to the homeland. It will take me to New York, over to the Heartland, through Yellowstone and on up to Alaska, after a three-day ferry.

It should be interesting. I hope to avoid the lotus-eaters, and I look forward to my sweet homecoming after a five-year adventure.