My ears are ringing

The One Direction concert was at Soldier Field on Friday night. Tim, my sister, and I headed to Chicago to explore the area around Soldier Field before heading to the event; since it was Labor Day weekend there was a lot to explore. My sister is the biggest fan out of any teenage girl I have met, or at least I thought so before the concert started.

After the expedition of trying to find our reserved parking place in the Chicago traffic, we walked and explored the downtown area. Hanna wanted to be sure that she didn't miss anything, so it was her plan to arrive to the concert 6 or more hours early. Thus, we didn't spend as much time exploring as I would have liked. We walked around Soldier Field, most likely more than once, before figuring out which line we needed to stand in. Since we had seats on the first deck, we had to go in at one of the tunnels. We said goodbye to Tim and went to stand in line. He decided to go explore a little on his own, find some food, and come back when the show was over.

Hanna and I headed down in the tunnel only to be met by a long line and it was only about 3 pm in the afternoon. As we were standing in the crowd I noticed all of the parents that had come along as chaperons. There I was standing in a crowd of a few hundred girls aging from 16 to 10 and their parents. .....To make the experience more ...exciting, as the floor of the tunnel sloped down it provided a small area where the inside of the stadium could be seen. Now keep it mind that it wasn't just an open window. There was a screen and different parts of the wall that prevented you from seeing people clearly. You could tell it was a person, but you couldn't see that person's face or really tell much about them. So when a group of people came to stand in front of the screen from inside the stadium, the entire group of teenage girls erupted into screaming because they all thought it was One Direction. This lasted until the gates were finally opened. One little girl, maybe 7, was crying because everyone one else was screaming, which supposedly meant that they saw one of the One Direction members and she didn't get to see.

Inside the stadium was a little better in terms of the screaming until it got closer to the concert starting. We were sitting on the first deck at the right side of the stadium. This meant that you could somewhat see people moving around backstage. Thus, anytime of the the girls in my section thought they saw one of the One Direction members moving around back stage they started screaming, which meant that the entire section started screaming. At one point my sister was like "OMG Sara I saw Harry. He waved at me." I responded for the sake of my ears, "Do not tell anyone."

A few hours later the concert started. 5 Seconds of Summer played first for about an hour. They were a pretty good opener. Then like all concerts there was an hour wait for the main band. In between the stadium was playing Top 40 songs, so the whole stadium was celebrating in song for a good hour. Much easier to listen to than screaming. However, once One Direction came out the screaming didn't stop for about 4 hours.

As someone that is not a super fan, a word I would use to describe most of the girls there, One Direction gave a great concert. They played 2 albums of songs with so many firework performances throughout the show that you were really never sure when the show was going to end. Come to find out during the show, the stadium was sold out that night and every night for the weekend. The Chicago Bears should be jealous. Just think, 61,500 thirteen year old's all together busting everyone's ear drums for 3 days straight. 

                               

After the concert we were greeted by hundreds of fathers sitting outside of the stadium. Dads of course would not want to sit through something like that, so they did what Dads do and sat outside and waited for it to be over. Tim sat with them. After asking him how waiting went, he mentioned that he could hear the screaming about 5 blocks away when he had gone to get food. That fact did not shock me. He also mentioned that every time the fireworks went off him as well as the Dad's were thinking to themselves, "Great, it's almost over." However, they were bummed to find that those fireworks were followed by another hour or more of music.

Overall, I would say that the concert was a success.

Waiting for closure

Before finding out that my Grandfather had died, My sister, Tim, and I were planning on leaving for Indiana the morning of that Wednesday. We had the intention of going to the One Direction concert in Chicago that weekend while we happened to be in the area. Since the funeral plans were still undecided, we waited for what to do next. My grandfather died on the Wednesday before Labor Day weekend. Due to the three day weekend it was decided that the funeral would be on the Tuesday following Labor Day. Therefore, my mother thought it would be a good idea if my sister, Tim, and I went to the concert and also brought my youngest sister in order to get everyone's mind off of what had happened.

Later that Wednesday afternoon we all were finally packed and ready to head out. Since my grandparents live only 2 hours from Chicago, we planned on staying at their house. However, the drive is about 14 hours so the plan for the first night was to get to Omaha and stay at my aunts house. We were on our way and had just crossed the Colorado/Nebraska boarder and it started pouring. Literally pouring, and it continued to pour for the rest of the trip across Nebraska. We stayed at my Aunt's house that night and then headed the rest of the way across Iowa the following day. Of course, it rained the whole way across Iowa as well.

One weird thing about death . . .

There was one weird thing about my grandfather dying that I realized about death, and that is who we choose to be our bearer of bad news. I was sleeping when my brother woke my up to tell me that my grandfather had died. I then asked him if my middle sister knew, and he said my mother should tell her. Then, I asked about my youngest sister knew. I was going to tell her, when my middle sister said she would tell my youngest sister.

We all preferred to experience the initial shock of knowing that my grandfather had died with a specific sibling. I suppose it has something to do with how the news is communicated. I tend to be more straight forward and blunt, so when I receive bad news I don't want it to be sugar coated. My brother tends to be more blunt with me than the rest of my family members. I suppose the rest of my siblings have similar reasons that fit their own communication preferences.

With that, our family waited to figure out what was next.

Our Last Goodbye

To end my summer trip, one of my younger sisters asked me to take her to a One Direction concert. We planed on attending one in Chicago because it is not only close to where my grandparents live but it is also on the way to Indiana. Therefore, I figured I would be able to use my sister as woman-power and have her help me move. Our last night in Colorado my family went to dinner with my Grandma and Grandpa (Step-grandpa technically) in order to say our goodbyes. My Grandpa hadn't been doing well for some time before that. He found out a few years before that he had cancer in his bones, and by this time it had spread throughout his whole body for the most part. Plus, he was in his late 80's if not his early 90's; so he had definitely seen some stuff in his long lifetime.

That night at dinner he seemed to be feeling better than I had seen him in a long time. He was joking and laughing quite a bit, calling my Grandma cute, the whole sha-bang. I always took it upon myself to help my grandparents walk (for balance issues). We went to leave the restaurant, walked out with them, and went to say our goodbyes. Tim and I said that we would be seeing them both when I came home and when Tim came up for Thanksgiving. The night ended and we were supposed to be off for Chicago and the concert the next morning.

The next morning, my brother was sitting upstairs and woke me up. He told me that my Grandfather had died in his sleep that night. My Grandma had called my mom and dad, and they were down there to be with her while the Sheriff and the Coroner did their jobs and help her with the initial shock.

Finally, Cowtown USA

After spending some time with Tim up in Wyoming, it was time to head home for a bit. I needed to get my car fixed and decided I could spend some time helping my Dad with his business and my Mother with errands. I remember when I was younger and there were times that I absolutely did not want to help my parents, I suppose mainly out of defiance. Now that I am older and only am only able to go home for a few weeks out of the year, I find myself offering my assistance to my parents whenever I notice something that needs to be done.

Sometimes it's kind of weird. I sitting there thinking "Why did I ever complain about doing this, it takes 5 minutes." However, I'm pretty sure this wisdom came from doing things for myself for the last 4 years. When you are younger, it is easy to complain about doing chores or things that you know if they aren't done, there are other people that will do them for you (in some cases). However, in the case of my family, if you didn't get your stuff done you were not only reminded by my parents to do what you were told or you missed out on something that you wanted to do. Looking back, I regret complaining, however I am glad that I have been on my own to learn to not only do things for my self, but also have a more motivated outlook on simple tasks and chores.

A little exploration never hurt anyone

For Tim and I's last trip while I was in Bairoil, we decided to do a little site seeing. After seeing Independence Rock, I was itching to do a little more site seeing. The next place on the list was Sinks Canyon. The canyon has a river of water that disappears into the mountain.

At the beginning of the year, when the snow is melting, the water fills up the cavern completely. Only at the end of the summer and in the winter is the water low enough to see the details of the cave opening. The water level is still to high and fast even during the later months of the year, that the caverns are still too dangerous to explore. 

 

No one knows where all that water goes. All they know is where it goes into the mountain, and in later years figured out where the water surfaces. They placed markers in the water, and found that at least part of it resurfaces only a few hundred feet down the road. However, it takes 4 hours for the water to go into the cave and then surface; the path it takes remains to be a mystery.

At the resurfacing spot, we found the largest Rainbow Trout I have ever seen. The water literally leaks out of the sides of the mountain as well as springs up from the rock. Fresh, clear, and a ton of fish.

The fish of course eat well thanks to all the visitors. 

These are the kinds of things I love to explore the most.

1 Year Down

On my last weekend in Bairoil before heading back to Colorado and on to other adventures, Tim and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary. For our date, we got some sparkling cider ( I know ....kid like, but it tastes so good) and went for a cruise. Tim had said earlier in the summer that he found this heart shaped pond that he would save to take me to for our anniversary date, and so that is where we went.

Sadly the pond has a lower water level than it had when Tim saw it causing it to no longer look too much like a heart. However, the though still counted and the drive was great. Once we got back from the drive we made one of those frozen Chinese meals and attempted a movie marathon. A simple yet great date. It was a good and relaxing way to end the Wyoming part of my summer, and great that I was able to spend our anniversary with my guy rather then celebrating 1200 miles apart.

Off On a Cruise

One thing that Tim and I love to do is go for a cruise, also known as a drive for those that are unfamiliar. A short ways behind Bairoil is Green Mountain. For one of my last few nights in Bairoil, Tim and I went for a cruise all the way up the mountain. On the way up we spotted some wild horses. They were beautiful. It is strange to see an animal seen normally domesticated out in the wild.

As we continued to climb, to Tim's enjoyment we had to go through a bit of mud. 

 

From the start of the cruise till the reaching the top of the mountain, the view only got better.

At the top you can see up to 60 plus miles away. An amazing view that is only possible in the west, and one of the things I miss the most when living in the Mid-west for now.

A Little Spontaneous History Lesson

On the drive back from camping at Pathfinder Reservoir, Tim and I stumbled upon the historic landmark Independence Rock. It was one of the progress land marks for the pioneers as they traveled along the Oregon Trail. The rock is absolutely spectacular.

Once arriving at the rock, the travelers would carve their names in the stone. The rock is covered in names of families and the date they arrived at the rock. It was known throughout the groups of travelers that if you didn't arrive at the rock by the 4th of July, that you wouldn't make it over the pass through the mountains before winter came. If you didn't make it the pass would be blocked by the snow and traveling would lead to death. The oldest name and date we we found was from the early 1830's which is in line with the start of the Oregon Trail time line.

From looking at the pictures it is hard to see, but the rock is smooth and sloped at a low enough angle that you can walk all the way up to the top. Tim and I walked on the trail surrounding the rock and then attempted our climb. On the lower parts of the rock there were many names, but at the top there were many more. Not all the names were from the time of the Oregon Trail, many were from throughout the years adding to the history of the rock.

I love visiting historic landmarks and am putting a few more on the agenda while I will be in Wyoming.

Camping - If it can go wrong it will

Only about an hour from Bairoil, lies Pathfinder Reservoir. For one weekend Tim's family and sister's family in law planned a camping trip out on the lake. Tim's sister Shenah, her husband's family are big into camping, 4 wheeling, boating, and all of the above. Therefore, Tim and I headed up to the lake in the Jeep only to be met by 3 other campers among other outdoor toys. On that note, we were the only ones sleeping in a tent on the ground (the only ones ACTUALLY camping, haha kidding).

From the beginning of the trip, things started to go wrong. When we arrived one of the campers had been visited by a family of mice, and needed to be cleaned out before the family could get settled. A little while later, the little girl fell off of the bunk bed and broke her leg. The poor girl. We weren't sure if it was broken at first, so she was upset for awhile. A little while later one of the dogs ( a boxer) was acting strange. She kept eating grass, hacking stuff up, and rubbing her face in the weeds. This was all in the first night.

Day 2 started a little better off. Most of the family headed to Casper for a relatives birthday party and decided to get the little girls leg checked out on the way. While they were gone most of the day, Tim and I went with his parents to explore the other lakes connected to Pathfinder and the Dam. It was fun to not only explore the Dam, but it was amazing to see something built almost 100 years ago that is still standing and functioning as if it was build yesterday. Thus, the nerdy engineering side of me came out a little while looking at the structure. As we were heading back to the camp site, Tim was picking on his mother and pretending that he was going to drive through the lake with his Jeep.

Once we got back, a few more things went wrong. Everyone that had been gone was one their way back. When Shenah and her husband arrived the dog jumped on the side of a newly painted truck and left a lovely scratch. Her husband was not happy. Later on the family of the little girl arrived after sitting in the ER for hours and hours. Her entire leg was in a temporary cast; nor t fun for a 4 year old. To top everything off the dog was still acting a little weird. That night they looked at her neck and found bite marks. Later on they figured out that she had been bitten by a rattlesnake due to her face swelling (boxers faces usually sag). That night one of the little dogs also became sick. He was having a hard time with his digestive system causing a lot of worry considering his older age. Altogether it was quite a night. One of the more fun parts was celebrating Shenah's birthday and making a cobbler in the dutch oven. Most of the meals were made in the dutch over the weekend and therefore very very yummy.

To finish up the weekend, on the 3rd day Tim and I went for a cruise in the Jeep, hung out a bit with everyone, and packed up to head back to Bairoil. Through everything that happened, it was still a great weekend at a very beautiful place.

Finding the Wyoming Sahara

My first few days in Bairoil were open for exploration. :) Not exploration where people go out and taste the best restaurants and see the top of the line museums. Rather, a little . . .  land exploration, which is my favorite kind. Tim and I, took his Jeep out on some of the BLM (Bureau of Land Management - aka Government Land) roads and went exploring. Earlier that summer Tim had found some sand dunes when cruising around and decided to take me out to see them.

In Wyoming or the west in general, there is a lot of sand. Most people don't actually realize how sandy it actually is; even in Colorado. Some places there is actual dunes, rather purely sandy soil. The hidden Wyoming dunes that we found, actually move. The oil service companies have actually lost entire oil wells in some places. They will go check an oil well one month and go out a few months later and cannot find it.

If you think about it, the fact that they move is actually pretty awesome. Not only is the landscape is never the same twice, but it changes often enough that the fact that it is changing is more apparent. Usually, I tend to think that changes happen over a longer period of time, but in the case of these dunes, that is not the case.

Once we found the dunes, Tim wasted no time in climbing one of the largest ones. Over the sand and though the sage brush we went. For those that don't know, sage brush is not always what someone would call a "small" bush. The farther from the road you go, many of the bushes get larger. Some are about 4 to 5 feet tall.

At the top, there was pure packed sand and a view for miles.

                                             

After sitting at the top admiring the view, and then writing words in the sand with the Jeep, the wind came up and we were caught in the start of a storm. Being pelted with sand is definately not the best feeling in the world. Therefore, we attempted to beat the storm and headed back to Bairoil.

Sibling Squabbles - It's time for a family reunion

After getting to Bairoil, I was on the road again. My car had been having problems and my mothers side of the family was having a reunion back in Iowa the week after I arrived in Wyoming. In order to get my car fixed I had to take it back to Greeley. Since Tim was coming with me to the reunion, he and I traveled down to Colorado to drop my car and join my family on the trip back to Iowa. 

Tim, the brave soul, traveled 14 hours plus (always more hours with my sisters around) with my sisters, mother, and I, back to Iowa for the reunion. Upon completing the long drive we finally arrived at my grandparents house. One of the best parts about Iowa is the food. My grandfather's family was an Iowa farm family. They know how to eat. My grandpa grew up during the depression and was affected greatly by the dust bowl. During that time, his family didn't always have a lot to eat so it is impossible to leave my grandparents house hungry. They, especially my grandpa always make sure that everyone has enough to eat. Plus, I mean farm food, it's the best kind and always followed by dessert. 

Whitey's Ice Cream is theeeee boommb, and has always been a favorite part of visiting.

                                           

The family reunion was held in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Both my grandma and grandpa are from the area with most of their siblings still living there or around there. This reunion was with my grandpas family, more specifically his siblings. He is the oldest boy of 8 children from a very loud purely German family. Since they are all siblings there are always ....family squabbles. However, seeing them all through a grand-daughters perspective is actually pretty exciting and entertaining. I have siblings and don't think we act weird when we are together, but after seeing my grandpa and his siblings, grandma and her siblings, or my mom and her siblings, I now know all sibling groups just act a little weird together. 

My Uncle Paul ( the youngest boy in my grandpa's family), wasn't able to make it to the reunion. My great aunt was sick and had been for many years. I think it was the 2nd or 3rd time she had cancer among other issues with her kidneys. Therefore, she wasn't supposed to travel and instead we called them over Skype at the reunion. It was a bummer that we weren't able to see them in person, but I was glad we got to chat with them a little.

My Aunt Joyce is the youngest girl in my grandpa's family. She and my uncle Paul were the only siblings to leave Iowa. Paul lives on the east coast and Joyce lives in Texas. Joyce is pretty chill. She texts me every once in a while to see what's up and if I get where I'm going when traveling. I appreciate the worry since people don't usually worry about me or if they do, they tend to not voice it. 

Seeing these two, the other siblings, as well as spending time with my more immediate family was a lot of fun and a great added adventure to my first week of my summer break. 

Bairoil, Wyoming - Elevation 6800 ft, Population 106

As soon as my internship was over, I loaded up all my stuff and headed west. On the way I dropped off everything I wouldn't need at my grandparents house in Iowa. They both are awesome in letting me store it there for the month that I will be home until I will have to move it all back to Indiana for the fall.

My first stop for summer vacation is Bairoil, Wyoming in order to see my boyfriend Tim. Now most people know and realize how far away Colorado, Wyoming, as well as other western states are from Michigan. The long distance (1,345 miles) usually means a few days drive. Well the beast that I think I am, decided that I could do it in 2 days, rather than a modest 3. The plan was that I would get to my grandparents house the first day and rather than stopping at my aunt's house in Omaha, Nebraska, on the second day, I would just drive straight through. Yes. I know. 14 hours straight from Iowa to Wyoming, with just me and my rabbit named Peter. (ya, he came along for the car ride. no animals at grandma's house) The poor rabbit and stupid Michigan roads. He was so scared he just sat in his litter box the entire way from Michigan to Iowa. Nebraska roads are the best, in which he was a lot more comfortable and relaxed a little more.

Upon arriving, with the help of Tim's sister, we were able to come up with a plan of surprise. Turns out it worked! I not only surprised him a little ( a few hours), but by about 2 days. It was great, considering I was able to arrive during the weekend so that we would have some time to do fun stuff before his work week.

Now for those that have never imagined a town like Bairoil, it is on the smaller side with 106 people (maybe), no services (no gas, or food, stores, nothing), lots of oil, and its closest neighboring town (larger ones) Rawlins, which is about 40 minutes away. While some might complain about the size and such, it is so beautiful out here. I have really missed the west. It has the roaming hills, and mountains, and SPACE. The lack of people is compensated in space, and I don't mind one bit. You can see up to 60 miles away, its really quite breath taking.

For the first week of my actual summer, this little town is what I need to not only get back to the area I know but force me to take a break from everything. For those that know me, you're like suuuurrrreee Sara, like you're really taking a break. And you're right, but compared to most of the time, it's probably as close as I will get.