Intro

Welcome to a story, or stories I should say. A compilation of adventure tales. An ongoing itch to see, smell, and touch the world, or at least the deserted roads and rarely trampled mountains of America. Characters within the descriptive paragraphs of these stories carve out the coming and going companions in life; vital life people and pieces that parallel a universe for moments, days, years. And then spear off, leaving granules of magnificent memories of magical places. They leave a lasting trace, a gained sense of courage to stand tall on oxygen deprived mountains and shout absurdities like: I love you Ralph! Ralph is a teenage reindeer stuffed of the finest synthetic polyester fiber poof; he says made in Indonesia but really tells me he is from the North Pole. Delivered through a chimney one December night 20 years ago, we instantly became cuddle buddies upon that morning's sunrise. He is the instigator. The inspiration. And the imagination. He breathes creativity. Laughter. His is a dear companion. And yes, at 4lbs he tags along atop a pack or strapped to a rack. In delirium of 107 degree heat, the small possession of material belongings gain a persona. Innate objects become friends of the road and trails. And as for the humans who accompany, their presence reads priceless. Without O'Reilly, a 29 year old New Hampshirian with superior taste buds, the mathematical six foot four inch tall German, or handful of organic peanut butter and 99 cent jam eating munchkins, there would be a lot less excitement. The encounters we make with our specie, encapsulating the world with their awkward ways and over consumerist love, somehow we have managed to become overly adored creatures. Their generous hearts restore a faith that goodness prevails in the upheaval of a sometimes lost humanity. As for myself, I'm just the navigator, paddling up the stream of life munching on Clif Bars, with an iPhone documenting the frailties and goodies underneath all the simplified complexities in the world we reside. So again, I welcome you to get lost and dream a little through this typed text and your imagination. My name is Kristen Gentilucci. I live in Berkeley California and I love dogs.


Sunday, July 22, 2012

Day 34. 2 states, 1 day, before 9am

Miles: 60
Weather: 102 and i think, Ive never been happier to report we have passed into territory of DRY heat!!

It was one of those days, I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed. All I had to do today was ride my bike and despite this very simple task I love unconditionally, somehow everything seemed made my skin want to crawl with annoyed angst. It was nothing or no one in particular, maybe the miles after mile, lack of sleep, the side of the road laced with a never ending line of pro life billboards, the fact I couldn't stomach another apple cinnamon Honey Stinger energy bar, or that we were headed to a town called Vinita Oklahoma that was know for its once largest McDonalds in the USA. Cause, me being an animal lover and local food activist, that was definitely on my life list of things to see. A headwind so strong that we must have hit an invisible wall on old route hwy 66 didn't help. Even the crispy corn fields were annoying me.

We hit Kanas at 7:30 and not much further down the road Oklahoma at 8:15am. I guess mooning the Oklahoma sign sparked my mood for a few minutes.

The good news I guess is that we can now change up our lunch menu since the asphalt is now so sizzling hot from the days after days of absurd heat and dryness that we can now prepare gold brown grilled cheese sandwiches in a mere 3 minutes on the worlds longest frying pan.

My twin Alyssa was a trooper and tagged along with me and my bad attitude that I just couldn't shake all the way from Joplin to Vinita. At about mile 45 we were both sick of this day and decided to book it. We took off like a plane on a mission, averaging 25 mph the rest of the way. The miles flew by and we left our pathetic moodiness behind. We ended the day in Vinita to an unexpected American famous restaurant thanks to the Food Network. Like I said, it was one of those days, the only vegetarian dish a side of green beans, iceberg salad, and mashed potatoes. With everyone else eating free famous chicken fried steak, I chomped my last chocolate power bar with a frown.

Our church host treated us like king and queen eating champions, which we are now. I don't know what they put in that delicious meal but suddenly the room broke out into laughter, so hard tender Tim was bawling chuckles of tears from his eyes. I laughed so hard my collar bones felt like snapping and puddles of happy tears ran down my cheeks. For 15 minutes this went on for till our cheeks and stomachs hurt more than the laugh was worth.

Tomorrow we head to civilization again in Tulsa Oklahoma and tonight I sleep between the pews of an aquatic blue carpeted chapel in peace.