End of the Road - Almost...

Fort Wayne, IN.
3 countries, 29 states, over 10,000 miles by car, about 14 weeks on the move. Talk about a re-entry experience. From Idaho we drove across Montana (getting snowed on in one memorable mountain pass) into North Dakota (which welcomed us with the heaviest rain I think I have ever attempted to drive through - but now I've been in all 48 of the lower states). North Dakota surprised me with how different it is from South Dakota - overall, much more interesting terrain, at least what I could see from I-94. We proceeded down to Minneapolis, Minnesota and enjoyed reconnecting with one of Amy's good friends and met a great couple who have been a part of AMI's board of trustees. Minneapolis is an interesting city - some beautiful old neighborhoods, fascinating industrial heritage, and a pretty happening arts scene. There are also a large number of gigantic old church buildings, including the oldest basilica in the USA. Someday we'll have to see about visiting St. Paul, on the other side of the river.
Yesterday (Sunday) we drove the final leg through Wisconsin and Illinois back to Indiana. Chicago traffic was typically ridiculous, Wisconsin surprised by having dumb speed limits, but overall a pleasantly uneventful drive.
We're done with the major part of our travels, but we still have the move to Boston to finish things up. Somehow I had forgotten that upon our return we would not only have to unpack the car, but also the shipment of stuff that we sent from Aberdeen back in January.
At the moment we're wilting in 90(F) high humidity, very much missing the mild climes of Scotland!
Andrew

Northern Idaho

Today is our last day in northern Idaho. This has been a great time - we had the opportunity to meet and spend some time with the family of one of our co-workers (he is currently serving in Estonia) and have finally had the time to explore an area of the country that we've only ever visited on the way to somewhere else in the past. Well, I suppose we are visiting on the way to somewhere else this time, too, but we've had time this time around to slow down, spend time with people, and even managed a nice hike (with our host).
This evening we are looking forward to a more informal time with Community Presbyterian Church. We're looking forward to spending time with some great people, and also looking forward to the final 'official presentation' of this journey.
The ups and downs of the road will once again head into a dip as we take our leave of the family we've been staying with here in Idaho. At the same time, we'll be on the 'up' of some spectacular mountain scenery and the anticipation of seeing one of Amy's good friends and meeting some of our board members face-to-face for the first time after much long-distance correspondence.
Time to pack up for the work ahead this evening!
Andrew

Eastern Washington

Ah, Eastern Washington. Well, not as far east as, say, Spokane. It's been a more laid back week, primarily because we've been in the same place since last Saturday afternoon. We've managed to visit our two favorite area locations - Barracuda Coffee (twice so far!) and the Mongolian BBQ (now under new ownership). Great coffee, and spicy noodles. Yummy.
We've had another glass replacement on the car. This time, a rock chipped the windshield driving up the I5 back in Oregon. I tried having the chip repaired, but the repair ended up failing and yesterday afternoon as we prepared to head out to an appointment we found the windshield had split. A rather spectacular failure from such a small repair. Anyway, we received a new windshield today at no cost out-of-pocket to us, so I guess it's a happy ending. Plus, we got rid of the final strip of annoying after-market window tinting, so that entire question is now answered.
With the MegaTransect nearing its end, we've started working in earnest on the next Big Project: finding a place to stay in or near South Hamilton, MA. I'm feeling pretty hopeful that something good will turn up - we've made a few inquiries already, and although we haven't found a place yet the fact that right at the start there have actually been places worth asking about seems promising. If you or anyone you know has a medium-sized house in or near South Hamilton that you'd be willing to rent to a poor seminary student at a mega-discounted price, let me know!
Andrew

Turning East

Saturday we reached another major milestone in the MegaTransect as we departed Seattle and began the long journey east towards Boston. We enjoyed a good-weather day getting out of Seattle, but ran into unexpected rain on the desert side of the mountains. On the plus side, that means Washington's eastern desert is all in bloom and looking quite spectacular.
This week we're staying put in Kennewick, WA. We've enjoyed catching up with many of our friends and supporters at Westside Church in Richland, WA, and are looking forward to making more connections over this coming week. The advantage to staying put for a few extra days is that we're more available and flexible for everyone's busy schedules, and get to spend more face time with everyone who wants to see us.
The extra time we've got right now makes us feel like the journey is beginning to wind down. In fact, we've got almost the entire USA to drive across before we're completely finished, with two more major stops along the way. We will return to Fort Wayne next week, though, and that will pretty much be the end of the MegaTransect in terms of visits and speaking engagements. So the end is nigh!
Andrew

Seattle Adventures

The drive north from Portland was great, primarily because it was so short relative to our previous month's marathon driving days. We enjoyed time in Olympia and Auburn catching up with supporters, family, and friends. And now we are in Seattle.
Seattle is a really cool city. The people that live in and around Seattle are cool. We're staying with one of AMI's trustees and his family (who are excellent hosts and great fun). This particular trustee works for Boeing, and he arranged for us to take a tour of their big 'ol factory here. A most amazing place: the largest building (by volume) in the world. State-of-the-art assembly-lines, building new 747-8's, 777's, and 787's. Apparently we are now among the first people around (outside of Seattle, of course, where they've been running test flights for quite some time now) to have seen the 787's (having now seen jets 19-21 in situ on the assembly floor). My more technical-industrially inclined brothers-in-law will be jealous, I am sure.
At this point, we're starting to feel some of the wear of living on the road for so long. It's been refreshing to have a little bit more time in one place, as it is allowing us to catch up on correspondence, re-sort our luggage, change the oil on the car (24 states so far), and set up meetings with folks on our Support Team around the Seattle area. This morning we were able to meet one of our newest trustees - something we wouldn't have had time for in a tighter schedule. So while the length of this journey is getting a bit old, the value of spending actual time with people has indeed been worth it. And we've now added an extra city to the MegaTransect: Minneapolis, MN.
Andrew

Really heading North

Portland, OR. This is a really cool city. We're staying with and catching up with some friends who used to be a part of AMI (and still are, really) and now work with a downtown church in Portland. In an interesting change, they also live right downtown in the city center, in what is known as the 'Pearl District.' It's a fascinating area, with lots of local restaurants, coffee shops, pubs (not bars), and art studios. Walking around it feels more like a European city. The cars even yield to pedestrians.
We had a great time in San Francisco. I've started working on plans for my 'East Coast Associate' responsibilities with AMI, which will kick into gear once we get up to Boston in July.
The drive north today is a major turning point in the MegaTransect. We've completed our California leg and are now perched on the very northwest corner of Oregon, ready to launch the final phase of this trip with stops in Olympia, Seattle, the Tri-Cities, and finally Post Falls, Idaho. Oh, and we're now thinking about adding a stop in Minneapolis on the way back East. More on that later - but it would be cool if that works out.
We're definitely going back through North Dakota, because as I added up the states today (something to do on the 10 1/2 hour drive) I realized that North Dakota is the last state I need to have visited every one of the lower 48!
Andrew