Total disconnect

aka: This summers vacation

A few years back I decided I needed a summer break from work as much as anybody else. I have been closing for the week tied to when the 4th of July is celebrated. If I stay in town I will go to work anyway so I try to get out of town for 4-5 days. This year I took a trip to see some friends I had initially met on a woodworking forum up in Grand Junction, Co.. They had been down here a couple of times for spring training and 2 years ago we all met up in Las Vegas for the Woodworking equipment show. This trip was supposed to have happened last summer but got postponed because gas was $4.00+ gal.. It worked out good this year because he was slow enough at just the right time in his woodworking business I became an excuse to take it easy for a couple of days, something he would have had trouble doing last year.

I totally walked away from everything for this trip. I had no computer access, I turned off my phone, even though I had plenty with me I didn't even smoke a cigarette (nor did it bother me, took me 3 hours at home to start up again). I did not even turn on music in the truck, just me and the road noise.

It is roughly a 10 hour drive, probably 11 for two people. I took a lot of pictures, the entire album is posted on Facebook.

I got to see Monument Valley, several rivers, the Colorado National monument, attended a Thursday night farmers market in downtown Grand Junction. And I relaxed, and napped on the patio, and drank some beers, and talked woodworking. I was treated like royalty, wasn't even allowed to clear my own dishes. I had lots of great food. The last stop on the way home was in Flagstaff where it was 59° and pouring rain and 2 hours later when I got home the sun was shining and it was 104°.

Heading North on 89 out of Flagstaff


Service station, tourist trap in Tuba city on the Hopi reservation.


Thursday night farmers market in downtown Grand Junction.


Rockslide microbrewery, Grand Junction, CO.


Independence monument. Within the Colorado National Monument.
In the background is the Colorado river and Fruita, Co.