Lesson #1: Always Watch the Local News

Hello Everyone!
I am writing this from the Great State of Wyoming, home of Yellowstone National Park, and very few people. However, as we have not had the internet for a few days, I will be writing about our experiences in Minneapolis, while Chris will be filling in everything after that.

First, I want to say that when Chris described my awe at small town America in the last post, he was not exaggerating. I have been completely in awe of every little bit of rural and small town life that we have experienced. After living in the biggest city in the country for most of my life, it is amazing to see smallness, and space (soo much space!). So when I saw the Mississippi River for the first time, it was completely breathtaking. Its like a lake that travels the entire distance of the United States from north to south. It was something I had read about my whole life, whether in Mark Twain books or in history class, and it was incredible just to see it in person. It reminded me why I started this trip in the first place, to just see my own country after years of seeing other countries.

In Minneapolis, we got to walk along the river and skip rocks from the shore, just like Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer did, although they were much further south. This was one of my favorite experiences so far, not only for the sheer novelty of skipping rocks on the Mississippi, but also because I was able to make fun of Chris for his utter and complete lack of throwing ability (seriously cannot throw at all. At one point he almost hit me with a throw from the shore and I was standing next to him. It gives literal meaning to the phrase "couldn't hit water if he was standing in a boat. Truly hilarious)

We also went to the Mall of America, which might be the most soul-sucking location in the whole world. Ive never been so exhausted in my whole life than after spending the day there.

However, the highlight of our whole trip began on Thursday night, what was supposed to be our last night in Minneapolis. After watching the Steelers eke out a victory over the Titans, we were waiting for Conan to come on, and we decided to watch the local news just for kicks. This was the best decision weve made so far, for the headline story was the impending visit of President Obama to speak at a rally on Saturday in Minneapolis!! If we hadn't been watching the local news, we would have missed him completely and driven off to South Dakota blissfully unaware of what we could have seen.

But we were watching that local news, so after another excruciating day wasting time at the Mall of America, we woke up bright and early at 530 am on Saturday morning and waited in line for four hours to see my President, and some dude that Chris really wanted to see speak, address the Minnesotans on health care reform. And while I have been disappointed so far with the President on this issue, theres just something electrifying about seeing him in person and hearing him address the issues directly to you. Chris and I left the rally completely fired up and ready to go! Which is good because we have 2 weeks of camping in the national parks ahead of us!!

Keep it real

Nick