Jan 31

Today is my sister’s 44th birthday, so I called her up and left a message on her machine, calling her an old hag and wishing her a happy birthday. It’s what brothers do.

Well, I have just gotten you all caught up on my adventures in North Dakota. It is a Sunday, so I am working on this blog, catching up on stuff and preparing to send out my Honor In Office Newsletter. Doing my laundry and all is well in Bismarck.

That penny is still frozen to my car. I wonder if it will be there throughout the entire winter.  I’d like to wash my car because the outside of it is filthy, but fat chance that will happen in this weather.

I’ll be doing these blogs once each evening before I go to bed.  Tomorrow, I get to visit with a Native American friend of a friend. I am looking forward to it. I am sure the country is gorgeous there.  Until tomorrow…

Jan 29

These apppointments in Bismarck are really going well.  One for one, people are supporting this initiative, including my media appointments.  More on that later.

I am leaving an appointment with a general manager of a TV station and I comment on the fact that the snow never melts here. It just turns to ice and expands.  He said “yeah, I have about 2 or 3 inches of ice in my driveway and it won’t be gone until April.  April!!!!!????

What happened to the kind of winters I experience in California where it rains a couple of days and then warms up — and that is winter in California.

Whoa!!  And I am going to have to go from door to door about my initiative day after day for weeks or months in zero degree weather?  No….say it isn’t so, Joe.

Jan 28

I went to Grand Forks this evening to a townhall meeting to see if I can get these folks interested in my initiative.  It was well recieved, as it always is, no matter who I talk to. But that morning while I was still in Bismarck, I went outside and noticed that it was a bright, clear, sunny day. It even felt warm. I din’t have my huge jacket on or gloves and it felt great.

I then looked at a digital thermometer – they apparently have a lot of them in the cities – and it said it was 7 degrees.  Wow, I have already acclimated.  Oh yeah!!

So, I  am in Grand Forks, about 110 miles south of Winnipeg and I am getting ready to leave the next morning for my next round of appointments in Bismarck. Not having fully learned to pay attention to the weather yet, I was feeling cocky. I thought to myself. Do I need my boots? No. Do I need my long underwear today? No. Do I need my jacket or gloves? No. Nor do I need my cap. I’ll just pack them in my suit cases. And there is only a slight breeze. Besides, it really is a chore to do all of the proper layers of clothing and stuff.

I haul the luggage on the luggage rack to the car which is about 100 feet away. By the time I get to the car, my hands are literally in pain, along with my ears and other parts of my body. I am so, so cold.  Well it turns out that 7 degree weather is not that bad, compared to -10 and a slight breeze to bring the temperature even further down. uuuhhhhh!!

Rest assured, I won’t be so cocky next time.

Jan 28

I decided to stay in minot for a second day, just to catch up on business work and also to organize the rest of the week.  The day before, I had noticed a splash of oil on the ice. I didn’t worry about it because it wasn’t my car.  But this morning I look at another splash of oil, about a quarter of a cup, on the ground.  And this time I see it is most definitely coming from my car.  What the?

So, I take it to a mechanic in Bismarck, as I had appointments I coudn’t miss.  Now, understand that just before I left California, I made sure the car got a once over, including changing the oil. All was well said my California mechanic. But the Mechanic here in Bismarck looks at it and informs me that the oil filter, which had just been put on my car a few days ago  – the oil filter seal broke. Apparently, one shouldn’t expect a California oil filter to hold up in North Dakota conditions. My brother-in-law then tells me that I really should have an engine warmer for my car. An engine warmer? That’s a device that a mechanic installs to warm up the engine block before you start the car.

So now, when I get up in the morning, I put on some warm clothes and run an extension cord from the motel to the receptacle sticking out of the hood of the car.  I’m supposed to use this heater about an hour before I start the car, he says, any time the temperature reaches below 32 degrees.  Well, hell, when is it going to reach 32 degrees or higher?  There’s still a penny frozen to one of the side runners of the car. It’s been there for days and well over 1000 miles. It’s not going anywhere!

Jan 27

I made it to Minot and to my first appointment. Ron says he’s going to jump on board and sponsor this initiative.  Excellent. Then he courteously drives ahead of me to my next appointment.  Guess he knows he’s dealing with a greenhorn!

My second appointment was equally productive and this fellow happens to also be a radio host, so will be plugging this initiative too. A good day.

But wait, I go to my motel and unload my car. I then go back to the car to open the door and drop this single key, (because where I had the keys made, they had no key rings). I immediately stoop over the pick it up and the key is freezing to the ice on the ground.  Now that is just WRONG!!

Jan 27

With my new boots, the three extra spare keys made and the snow tires, I am ready to drive over the Minot, North Dakota. Again, a wonderful drive. Not eventful.

Jan 26

So, I call my first appointment in Minot, North Dakota to let Ron know I am on my way. He tells me to stay where I am, that the driving isn’t safe due to the 45mph winds and blizzards and such. I checked with my brother-in-law to make sure I wasn’t being a wuss again and he confirmed that I couldn’t do any driving today toward North Dakota.

In Miles City, which by the way, in my opinion, is out in the middle of nowhere, we decided to go and take a look at the 20 acres my brother bought. The property is 12 miles outside of Miles City and another 23 miles on dirt roads. Compared to Miles City, his place is out in the middle of nowhere.  Unbelievably beautiful country! It is no wonder people live in places like North Dakota and Montana. It truly is God’s country. Stunning.

Jan 25

Montana is one of the states I have to go through to get to North Dakota for the route I am taking. I bought another pair of boots.  Again, the selection was pitiful and this time I was able to buy a pair of $40 boots that are supposed to protect the feet even in -30 degree weather.  NOT TRUE.

However, at this stop in Bozeman Montana, I was able to get some new tires. I was asked whether I wanted all-terrain tires or snow tires. Given my harrowing experience on the ice earlier – and by the way, when I ordered that double at the Ponds Lodge and told the waitress my story, she looked at me like I was a wuss – I opted for the snow tires.

It was a nice easy drive through beautiful, beautiful country to Miles City Montana where I stopped to see my brother-in-law. I asked him to help me find some boots. He knew just the place to go and what socks to buy. The boots were $120 and the wool socks were about $14 a piece. Oooooh, but they were nice.

Jan 24

Well, I bought another set of chains for the rear tires, after Tripple A bailed me out. Somehow the folks in California think that chains on the front tires are sufficient. That’s just ignorant! But since I didn’t know any better, I followed the advice.

So, I am driving through Yellowstone at about 32-39mph, though the advice I was given was not to exceed 35mph. I figure it was sort of like the signs you see on the road when you go around a curve. Who goes the recommended speed around that corner or curve? Apparently with chains, these folks are serious, because the next thing I know is that one of the chains’ links broke and I had to get out of the car, in the freezing cold in those rediculously useless boots and a dinky pair of plyers to get rid of the broken links.  Ugh.

All of the cars are passing me and I am constantly pulling over to let them pass. Then I go around a blind curve downhill and I look behind me to see a big rig coming up fast. He won’t be able to stop in time with the roads a slick as they are.  Here he comes….I sped up, chains or no chains!

I accomplished 110 miles of driving that day, due to getting chains, locking myself out of the car, etc.  Good thing I cut that trip in Park City short. This trip is going to take a while.

Jan 23

While I was in Yellowstone, I decided it would be good to get some real winter boots, knowing that the ones available (very skimpy selection resulting in buying the only pair they had which cost me $20) in California wouldn’t fit the bill. And they didn’t!

So, that morning I woke up, packed my stuff in the car, started the car to warm it up and went back to the cabin to check it one last time. I had to use the spare key in my wallet because somehow, no matter how careful I was trying to be, I lost my keys. I checked the cabin and saw I forgot some of my clothes. I grabbed them and went to the car. I am driving a 2001 Toyota Rav4 and for those of you familiar with the car, as soon as you start the car, all of the doors lock. When I started the car the doors locked, but my door was open, so didn’t have to unlock it when I got out of the car. I closed the door.

Damn!!  Now I am stuck in the snow, locked out of the car freezing my butt off wearing these boots that do nothing for the cold. Luckily I have tripple A.