OWAV:) 02/18/11, 7am(mst), 40° Herb says, cloudy-

First my thoughts as we left Joseph yesterday: 02/17/11 Why do I hate leaving home?  Is it because of the weather forecast, or that the roof is partly gone, or just because I feel safe in our home, (even if the roof blew off) and don't want the worries that come with travel??  Face it I'm just a worrier!!  As we leave our house surrounded by a foot of snow, the almost full moon illuminates the valley, the mountains standing out against blue sky.  It is 4:30am and 18°.  The road is very slick on Creighton Lane, it feels like we are driving over a bed of marbles.  At first Herb thinks a tire is low or something, he slows way down to get the car to stop its crazy motion and drives forty miles an hour to Enterprise where he checks all the tires and we go on.  Car is okay now and road is practically bare, very little snow has fallen.  Looks like Joseph got the major portion of the storm.  It is light as we approach LaGrande, roads bare and we are on our way.

Good bed, good nights sleep, nice to have a sister at the half way point, even if she isn't home.  Arrived here yesterday at about 3:30, we had been on the road for ten hours.  With Herb driving all but about two hours of that.  Roads were good and as usual my worrying was for naught.  We stopped at the local Target store to pick up some milk, oreos, etc and to walk and stretch our legs after the long ride.  Unload the car at Mona's and visit with Greg and Jolene for awhile before retiring downstairs to the apartment that Mona and Jerry call home.  After living in Mongolia for two years, they decided that less space was better (not so much to keep clean) so turned the big part of the house over to Greg and Jolene.  It works for all.  Mona and Jerry are in Phoenix visiting Jerry's step mom and helping her with up-keep on her house.  We will meet up with them when we get to Arizona.

We are going to Porterville this morning and visit with my sister Loraine who lost her husband two weeks ago.  Will see some of my our niece's and families.  Then head south tomorrow.  OWA(different)V:-)