Off Topic Tuesday

Folks, time for a little background here as the trip moves from travelling with a friend to travelling solo. I also want to take a few moments to share a little about a new feature I'm adding to my blog, Off Topic Tuesday.

First, regarding the tour. I've shared quite a bit regarding my personal state of being and regarding the words I wrote in my journal. I have not shared anything about what is going on in the background. You see, when you are travelling as a team of two, the goods get split between two bikes. I was carrying most of the cooking stuff and John was carrying the tent. I also carried the water purifier and some other stuff. To go forward alone, I had to find a way to carry the tent too. Well, I thought I had it all figured out. When we bought the tickets in Astoria, I called my mother and asked her to send my solo tent general delivery to a post office in Eugene. This is one reason I stayed extra days here. Unfortunately, it never showed up. This meant I was on a tour and I pressed on without a tent. Yikes! That will come back later to haunt me.

Additionally, I was arranging to meet up with my friends that were planning a big trip to Utah. I had a set meeting date and a place. We were meeting on a specific highway. They were going to come in one direction and I was coming from the other. We were just going to meet somewhere on this 100 mile stretch of pavement in Utah. Sounds simple enough....Right?

I was out of money too. I had roughly $250 to get from Seattle to Moab. I spent some of my last remaining dollars on an Amtrak ticket. Thankfully, my sister sent me $100 to a general delivery location in Grand Junction, Colorado. Yes, I am still in Oregon at this point.

Lot's going on here. These factors really made me nervous about pressing on alone. Any one of these three factors could play into the next part of my tour. Maybe all 3 will come into play.....

Lastly, I'll leave you today with Off Topic Tuesday. I won't be posting every Tuesday, but I'm going to take Tuesdays to discuss some other things going on & other things that I just feel like I need to share or get off my chest.

Today, I'm using today to update folks on my health. Many of my readers have been following my battle with weight and cholesterol. Just a little update here. I've hit my first target weight of 200lbs. that's 20lbs since Christmas. I've pretty much stabilized here. I've been as low as 196 when I've been dehydrated. This is a pretty big accomplishment for me as this is the lowest weight I've seen since the day I finished the tour I'm documenting here on this blog. I was 186 at the end of the Alaska-Utah tour.

It's also a great accomplishment because I love food. This has been challenging. I've fallen off the horse at least a few times and given into my weaknesses more than once. Thankfully, the bike calls me as does the encouragement from my friends and family. It doesn't hurt that I know spring is coming and I know that I'll be riding dirt soon.

There you go. Off Topic Tuesday.

I'm off to beautiful Monterey, California for Sea Otter. I doubt I'll be posting until next Tuesday. You won't want to miss my Utah adventures. I've got loads of stories, a few epic adventures, and some amazing pictures. Stay tuned.