Ashland, OR and Tacoma, WA

On Friday, I left San Francisco and headed to Ashland, Oregon. Once I arrived at the church that I was supposed to stay at, I called to let them know that I was there…. No answer. I rang the doorbell…. No answer. Rather than continuing to sit in the parking lot, I decided to grab a bite to eat and work on my blog. After a couple of hours, I called and rang the doorbell once again… Still no answer. Accepting the fact that there was some obvious miscommunication, I got a room at a motel in town.

Not wanting to have to pay for another night at a motel, I left town on Saturday morning and headed to Tacoma, Washington. On my way up, I stopped at a Cold Stone Creamery and left a gift card with a note on it. A few hours later, I stopped at a rest stop to leave another gift card for a stranger. As I went to hide it in with the tourist pamphlets, I saw a man who was begging for money who looked like he needed it, so I gave it to him instead. After leaving the rest stop, I drove through a magical combination of thick fog and possibly the trip’s worst traffic, but I eventually made it to Tacoma. Once I arrived, I got to spend some time with my friend, Kaeli, and her roommates.

On Sunday, I went to Mass then went to Walmart to pick up some chains for my tires. There are certain tire requirements that need to be met in order to drive through the mountains during winter. Unsure of exactly what those requirements are (and unable to get two matching answers from the locals) I figured I would get a pair of chains just to be safe. After that, I went back to the house to work on some overdue blog entries.

On Monday, Kaeli and I spent the morning and early part of the afternoon volunteering at the Habitat for Humanity Store. Later that day, I had the chance to continue to make plans and catch up on my blog entries. On Tuesday, I continued the planning and blogging that I didn’t get done on Monday. In the evening, we all took advantage of the $5 movie special at the local theater.

Thank you to the motel for switching me to a room where the bed was actually made. Thank you to Kaeli and your roommates for hosting me. Thank you for everyone at Habitat for Humanity for the work that you do. And thank you to all of you who continue to pray for me and support me!