My VStrom is a-waiting me in Germany

Hi Again:

School started in August, not long after Odysseus and I got back from Alaska (Odysseus, as you probably know, is my faithful friend and traveling companion -- better known as my trusty VStrom 650).

This is my final year of teaching school, and it flew by I can tell you. Never have I had better classes or a better time. My students have been wonderful, and everyone on the staff has been marvelous. The projects and school programs and activities we did were tons of fun for us all, and the students were interested and eager and fun to teach. They soak up learning like little sponges.

Was I that bright eyed and smart when I was their age? I don't think so.

I wake up each morning eager to get to school.  Truly, I have been blessed in my choice of careers, and especially in my good fortune in finishing my 48 years of teaching at St. Mary's School.  My heartfelt thanks goes out to everyone who made this year so special!!!

In early May, I took a couple of days off work to make a quick trip from Illinois to Florida to meet up with Stefan Knopf. Adventure motorcycle riders know about Stefan -- He lives in Heidelberg, Germany, where he stores motorcycles for guys like me who want to have their motorcycles over there ready for fun and adventure.

 

Stefan was shipping 45 motorcycles from Orlando to Heidelberg this Spring, and Odysseus was going to be one of them. This is Stefan in the picture above, helping me unload Odysseus from my trailer early in the morning. I had just arrived after a furious drive South from Illinois.

 

Battery unhooked, windshield off, almost all the gas out of the tank -- Odysseus is all ready to go meet his fellow motorcycle traveling companions. I hope he is excited.  Stefan, himself,  just got back to Orlando after riding his own motorcycle to Key West. He said it was a great trip.

 

And there goes Odysseus, up onto his palate. The man in this picture is Stefan's friend from Heidelberg. Unfortunately, I didn't get his name. Do you see the bikes in the background. I don't know if Odysseus is going to get a bunkmate like they have or not, but it looks like he gets to sleep on the bottom bunk if he does. 

 

There were tons of paperwork, mostly dealing with the legalities of import customs into Europe. I was surely thankful that Stefan knew how to get all that done correctly.

Paperwork finished, the next step for Odysseus will be to get into a truck, go to the ship, then take that long sea voyage to Holland. I hope he doesn't get seasick. From Holland, he goes overland to Heidelberg.

 

Meanwhile, I have to hurry back to school. There is a lot to do:

 

Such as take the upper grade students to the ballgame. These are some of my sixth graders. Try to ignore Gary back there. He is being Darth Vader (Smile).  Can you tell these kids are St. Louis Cardinal fans?

 

We did a lot of field trips this year -- I won't bore you by listing them all, but I can tell you that they were fun for students and teachers alike.

 

Only a week more, and I will officially retire and join the ranks of the jobless. Then I am off to Europe. I hope Odysseus is staying healthy and is eagerly awaiting my arrival. Lots of things to do here first though. Better get at it.........

 

I will post again this weekend.

 

Ron

 

 

 



 





Spakane, Washington

Hi from Spokane:

Odysseus and I came down through the last of British Columbia this morning, passing big ranches at first, and then, later, going through the high desert where they grow all manner of fruit: apples, cherries, grapes-- I could not begin to name them all. Once again I have to say that I am very taken with British Columbia. It is certainly one of the most beautiful and rugged places I've been, yet it also has nice towns and excellent roads. It certainly has a lot going for itself.

Shortly after lunch, Odysseus and I crossed over the border and made our way into upper Washington State. It was rolling prairie up there, with gigantic fields of wheat and hay that stretched as far as the eye could see. Some of them were still green, and others were a beautiful ripe gold. They stretched on mile after mile.

Now I am back in the lower 48 states. I have come full circle, and I can tell you that it feels good to be back -- everything is so much cheaper for one thing. Gas, food, motel rooms -- bargains abound.

And so, my summer's adventure is winding down. Map Quest tells me that I am 12 hours from my son's house in Wyoming. It is Interstate all the way. With any luck I will be there tomorrow evening. A visit there, possibly some motorcycle riding in the Black Hills with my son if he still wants to do that, and then its time to take Odysseus back home to Mt. Carmel. I am certainly looking forward to seeing everyone again.

I thank all of you who followed me on my blog. In case you couldn't tell, I had a marvelous time and learned a lot. I saw tons of wildlife, met many wonderful people, and explored places that I will never get to see again.

Soon it will be back to school for my final year of teaching. In March I plan to ship Odysseus to Germany, and then next summer, if all goes as planned, Odysseus and I will head off to explore more of this beautiful world. I hope you will join me for that trip also.

Saint Augustine once said: "The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page."  I have a lot of reading yet to do.

More later,
Ron