Day 23 & 24 (Montana to Seattle, WA)

I know I'm a little behind on my postings but the trip has gotten a little more difficult due to scheduling coordination and last minute changes.

So I started my day in Idaho and eventually got a little bit of a treat. I happen to be looking over in a big marsh off of Interstate 90 when I noticed a young moose strolling through the marsh. I immediately pulled over very quickly to get my camera out of my trunk and I noticed someone else saw what I was looking at. It really was pretty cool to see a moose in Idaho.

I continued on towards Washington State where Lisa and I lived for many years before we met and eventually I was there for a total of 16 years. I had been driving all day when I arrived at the state line but I wanted to continue on through the night so that I could go to my former church to watch a very special young girl (Emily) get baptized on Sunday. So I sucked down a 5-hour Energy drink and headed west to Brier, WA where my friends Doug and Mary live. I think I arrived around 1:30am and who came to the door but the shirtless zombie (Doug). So he got me settled in at his place and the next morning I woke up and went to church to watch Emily get baptized. It was so great to see everyone there. It made me miss being back in Washington but I like the ability to be able to ride my motorcycle year round and to have a better cost-of-living.

I did take some time to drive around to see if much had changed. Some things were new but all in all, it was as Lisa and I left it back in September 2006. Unfortunately, I was not able to see everyone and I ended up leaving a day early because of needing the travel time to Tuscon, AZ. I went to Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle on Tuesday (2:30pm PST) and met with Kit Herrod who gave me a very thorough tour of the main facility. I was really impressed with the three people that were Nobel Laureates. (Noble Prize winners). These individuals are still very active doctors and scientists.

After my visit at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, I wanted to visit the Seattle Chapter of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. I met with their Executive Director, Anne Gilliam (hope I got her name correct). Pretty much everyone was gone after working a big campaign fundraiser but I was glad to meet her. I decided to get a bite to eat and then headed southward and finally got a hotel in southern Washington State. I'm just amazed just how easy it is to have a hotel drop there rates when you can see that hardly any rooms are occupied (curtains opened on vacant rooms). Yes, I was working it for all I could. This is on my dime and not anyone elses.