Pedaling Pilgrim Blog Home

This day feels like it’s been years in the making, yet it’s suddenly here. I packed my daughter’s car and loaded up the bikes and made the first move west today.

I can’t recall how much I shared about this stage of the journey… Our youngest (Caroline) is moving to Corvallis Oregon for grad school. She needs to get her car out west (pictured here) and pick up all of her furniture and other possessions from Cedar Falls, Iowa. So, all of our biking payload and trusty steeds are in the care of her Nissan Rogue. We’ve driven it to Cedar Falls where tomorrow I’ll pick up and load a UHaul truck with all of Caroline’s possessions. We’ll stay for some visits in CF for the weekend, then Monday I start the 28 hour drive with Caroline and my wife Christin.

This whole move and the logistics brings its own set of anxieties, so I feel more relaxed just having things loaded and being 4 hours from home. If you know Cedar Falls, we’ve got an Airbnb above Singlespeed Brewing downtown; the bicycle themed brewery is certainly appropriate to keep my mind on the challenge that starts in less than a week.

As I was driving today, I realized that I don’t think I ever explained the Pedaling Pilgrims theme. If you look up a definition of pilgrimage, it will be described as a special journey, typically to a place of spiritual significance which can lead to personal transformation, usually involving physical challenge. I’ve not talked to Geeto and Lecy about why they’re doing this, and whether the pilgrimage moniker rings true for them (we’re guys… we talk about sports and music and movies), but I expect this journey will serve in this capacity for the three of us. The “place of spiritual significance” here is either the wide open North American outdoors, or the space between my ears, or maybe both. I know in the physical journey we’ll marvel at the diversity and beauty that God has created, and we’ll also spend time alone with our thoughts. I don’t know what the transformation will bring, but I’m sure this pilgrimage will have a lasting impact.

Yesterday I saw Geeto and Lecy for brunch and bike transfer. It’s surprising now to think the next time we meet will be in Oregon, preparing for our first ride. We talked about some logistics over brunch, one of which was an attempt by me to get promises that whatever happens, we won’t eat each other. We’ll be traveling well north of Donner Pass, but it’s still a promise I hoped we could make in case things go really pear shaped. Mark and I agreed to abstain from cannibalism, Geeto was noncommittal.

Today I felt ready for this journey to begin. Last night Christin wished me a nice final sleep in our comfy bed; soon my resting place will frequently be an air mattress on the ground. But, my sleep has been pretty poor lately, with some odd and disturbing dreams. On Wednesday night I had a dream about my Uncle Lou. He’s a good guy, Uncle Lou; he’s the uncle that I’ve always been happy to see as he brings a lot of love and laughter. When my mom and him were kids, they jumped off the garage roof together using umbrellas as parachutes; maybe they just saw Mary Poppins at the theater, I don’t know, but I Lou has been a unique and fun loving guy from early on. Two years ago I learned that Lou always carries around a very small set of tweezers in his pocket in case he needs to pick up a dime. Maybe too many leaps off the garage left him with some synopses that don’t fire quite right. At my nephew’s wedding I gifted him a pile of dimes to occupy his time and effectively keep him off the dance floor.

Well on Wednesday night, I dreamt that we were back at a wedding reception. My grandson Judah was there. And my Uncle Lou was there, raring to get on the dance floor… in his zebra costume.

Finally, through the power of AI, I can help others visualize some of the weird things that happen inside my head. I don’t know that Lou owns a zebra costume, but it wouldn’t surprise me.

So, I’m slowly heading west to start this pilgrimage. I hope this brings some positive transformation, large or small, for me, Geeto, Lecy, and others we hope to encounter. And I hope to have more fabulous dreams, and I wonder what kind of crazy outfit Lou may come up with next.

For today’s addition to the playlist, I’ve opted for Taj Mahal. I think my brother-in-law David first introduced me to Taj Mahal; I don’t recall when or where. Or maybe I’m confused as he’s the only person I know who’s been to the Taj Mahal. Whatever the case, this song was released the year I was born (1967), but it’s timeless. And it speaks to both the packing up to go, and the mixed feelings of leaving home: “I woke up this mornin’ with the blues three different ways, you know one say go, the other two said stay…” That’s pretty fitting for me: I’m committed to go west and start pedaling but there’s maybe more pulls on me to reconsider. I have a wonderful life, why do I want to put it on pause for this pursuit? Enjoy Taj Mahal’s: Leaving Trunk.