A journal entry

Saturday, July 22, 2006, I started driving at noon. After a stop to send an email to HELC saying I was beginning my journey, I headed for Missoula. I arrived there about 6pm and went into a K-mart looking for a power inverter…ended up asking a dude at a gas station where the Wal-mart was and got a power inverter there…… Drove and slept by the Yellowstone river (after looking at a couple “Fisherman’s Access” places - labeled “Day use only”). Found a little spot by piles of barbed wire and telephone poles and brushed my teeth…slept in car about 11:30.

Woke up about 6:30 after a hearing a few trucks go by. I was a bit concerned that I was parked in someone’s backyard so I sat up to see a jack rabbit grazing beside the car and cow trucks going by. Got out stuff and fried a couple eggs for breakfast. Took some photos (jackrabbit, scenery, cranes), washed dishes, started driving. Talked to a few people on the phone, got gas….got gas (emailed from a hotel)...stopped in Miles City, Mt to have a look at the Holiday Inn Express that beat the Hunt Lodge in ratings…after Wal-Mart the car started making a wob wob noise so I became concerned. I found the uninteresting Holiday Inn (they must be cheaper!), and asked where a tire place was. They sent me back to Wal-Mart and the guys there didn’t think it was a tire thing but balanced my tires anyway (they were off). This didn’t fix the problem so I called home and jointly decided to head for Bismark, ND, and try to find a mechanic in the morning. I got to Bismark around 7pm and since it hadn’t gotten much worse, continued to about 30 miles shy of Fargo. I exited at the exit labeled “Ayr” and found a dirt road past a farm and slept by some red barns. Had cereal for breakfast, took some photos, and headed for Fargo. A got off the freeway a couple exits into Fargo and wondered around before finding a Goodyear tire shop…I asked them where a mechanic was and one of them went for a drive with me…their in house mechanic ended up confirming it was my passenger front wheel bearing. Called Dad…$180? Told mechanic to do it and then wandered around for a few hours…typed this bit.