I got up at 3am on Wed, 1/23, to head down to Midway for my 6am flight. It was one of those below zero nights we were enjoying in Chicago last week. On 3hrs of sleep I was just trying to make sure I did not fall asleep on the Red line before hopping on the Orange line. I also wanted to make sure I did not hop a Green line by mistake like I did last time. Everything went smooth and my first Frontier flight to Denver went without any difficulties. It is tremendously hard for me to sleep while traveling under any circumstances, but it did not help that the only reading light on in the entire plane was the jerk right behind me. I could read in my seat by his light as well. None the less I was able to doze a little.I scrambled across the A concourse at DIA to catch my flight to LAX. It had begun boarding when we reached the gate so it was a sprint. We bounced down in LA on time and I headed out to get my shuttle to the rental lot. Again, no troubles just unfamiliar. The set me up with a Hyundai Santa Fe witch had a dashboard like a cockpit.
Super nice. At this point I reluctantly decide to grab some food. I mostly wanted to try to get everything done. I had to make this trip fast as the rental was expensive. I booked it for pick-up at 10am on Wed and return at DIA by 10am on Fri. I stopped in Hollywood and had lunch at Sharky's. So friggin' good! I sat there and watch several production trucks drive by (a big rental lot was next door), and chuckled at the familiarity. Sharky's was my big meal on return days for production. It was also a good stop for ioWest nights being around the corner from them also. It was fascinating to see the old neighborhood. I was a little bent on getting the task accomplished though.
The Storquest on Sunset was fun. I unloaded everything in less than an hour with Tanya's help. By the time Suzanne arrived, it was game of Tetris and prioritizing.
Those two women saved my ass by helping me fit more and more into my over packed SUV. When all was said and done, only the IKEA furniture purchased out there had to be sacrificed. I wished it didn't since most of it replaced IKEA furniture sacrificed to move to LA and this is getting redundant. However, everything that truly mattered made it. I had begun to rain before the doors were even closed. Tanya and Suzanne, you are my heroes!!!
I hit the 101 at 4:15pm in a full rain storm. Traffic was typical for such conditions. From the 101 to the 10 and finally to the 15, it took me 2.5 hrs. I never got faster than 30mph. That whole distance was just 45 miles. Then I had a white out on the first mountain curve with 3 lanes of cars slamming on their brakes. Ah, now I know where the California driver come from that slide of our Colorado highways every winter.It took me 7hrs to get to Vegas and it became obvious to even me that a stop was necessary.
By this point it was approaching midnight. I pulled of in St. George, UT. That was the best hotel room I have ever had due solely to its timing and location. I hit the road by 8am the next morning and with the exception of driving most of it in snow and rain, it was uneventful. 
The Santa Fe was excellent on the road and I will forever long for cruise control now. I listened to Jack Kerouac's On The Road and Tiff's mix CD that featured some great CA songs. I recommend "Los Angeles" by the Sugarcult and "California Songs" by Local H if you get a chance. That CD is still in my player Tiff! It is fantastic and I miss you!
I am now fully packed away in my folks basement. The picture of the livingroom is pre basement push, but it is impressive the amount of stuff that came out of the Santa Fe. Again, Tanya and Suzanne- you were amazing! It was easier than Storquest to be sure. It's good to be a little more consolidated, but that lingering feeling of this being a final hurrah to nomadic life is still there. For now I will be in CO for the next month or so for Caldera. More thoughts to come on that, Colorado, and my pursuit of acting to come, but this is a way too long entry as is. Till next time...
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