I just arrived in Portland, having spent my third and final night in Seattle. Here in the Rose City, as in the rest of the Northwest, the skyline is obscured in a smoky haze from the B.C. wildfires. I had to remind myself that normally on a clear summer day one can see an exquisite …
Continue reading Day 9: The Kurt Cobain Memorial is a Brilliantly Appropriate Dump
Maybe it's the heat, or maybe having slept in the same place for more than one night is making me complacent, but I'm feeling particularly lazy today. My mind is hazy, I find myself reading slower. Each day I worry a little less about Trump and, even more astoundingly, I'm not even offended that the …
Continue reading Day 8: It was no day at the beach (except it kinda was)
Even in Seattle, there's no escape from the Sun. Throughout this entire trip it's been hot everywhere I traveled. I've basically given up wearing sunscreen, my once pasty-white complexion has morphed into a dry rugged leather, by the end of this journey I'll basically be a human raisin. But I at least expected Seattle to …
In the weeks before I set out on this journey, I kept dreaming about the cities on my itinerary; what their skylines would look like, which museums I would visit, which restaurants and coffee shops I absolutely had to hit up. I envisioned it as a series of individual experiences, bullet points of adventure that …
Continue reading Day 6: Fire and Friendship in Missoula and Seattle
God, it's hard to believe I'm only on Day 5. I've covered so much ground, seen so many things, downed so much beef jerky and granola, as well as micro-roasted coffee from all kinds of wonderful establishments. Right now I'm in Zootown Brew in Missoula, MT, where the coffee is discounted if you purchase it …
Continue reading Day 5: The Agony and the Ecstasy of Mount Blackmore
I staggered into Bozeman, Montana at around 7 pm local time. I'd been on the road since about 6 AM, stopping only for lunch/blogging time at a Bismark Starbucks and for a quick espresso at City Brew in Miles City, MT. I was exhausted, my knees ached, my nerves were frayed from all the steep …
Now THIS is where true road warriors are tested, my friends. Driving West on 94 through North Dakota, the Great Plains, a vast civilizational void, America's Siberia. Hours and hours of empty prairies and farmland, landscapes devoid even of billboards, Exit signs that read "No Services" more often than not. On the radio nothing but …
Continue reading Day 3: Slogging through North Dakota, the Drive Gets Real.
As they say, All's Well That Ends Well. Once again, fortune shines upon The Ghost. Yesterday I wrote about the brief lodging conundrum that ensued when my Airbnb host flaked out on me. As I was finishing up yesterday's post I managed to find a new listing from a guy named Matt who lives in …
Continue reading Day 2: I Slept at Matt’s and Later Ate at Matt’s
First of all, a big thanks to all of you who have Liked and Shared this blog so far. I’m putting my heart and soul into this and I intend to keep all of you entertained. I conceived of this plan many months ago, and when I finally allowed it to leak out I was …
Continue reading Day 1: Solving Ghost Puzzles in downtown Minneapolis
My journey begins tomorrow. Holy fucking crap. All the months of dreaming, saving money, bragging to friends, toying with potential routes on Google Maps; it all comes down to this. And do I feel prepared? Of course not. Today is my third day of being officially unemployed. You would think that I would have used …
Continue reading The Night Before: Preparation, Procrastination, Perspiration…
Ghost on the Highway 