Archer and Saphira's Venture East

The drive to Northern MN was uneventful with a few exceptions. It was the first time Saphira had ever driven so far. Her car, Peggy Sue, an early 90's calico model made it just fine as did ours. The road across MT and the Dakotas was hot and unforgiving. Sweat dripped off my back and the only thing that held my sanity intact was the Lois L'Amour novel I escaped into. After asking Hubby to stop at a creek a few times, he finally stopped late afternoon at The Milk River. I didn't know what kind of creepy things lurked in the MILKY substance but nothing seemed as bad as the smell of my armpits. I plunged in as my kids stood by watching horrified. It was a temporary relief, and eventually the milky muddy stuff dried and mixed with new formed drops of sweat.......

We were really thankful that my mom happened to have a free hotel room and eagerly checked in close to midnight. A strange lad with a long face and hair to match welcomed me at the door, puffing on a cigarette. I asked him if he was the one giving directions and when he said "yes", I told him not to quit his day job. "Night" he corrected me. After that things were a bit awkward until I complimented his forearm tatoo. Soon he was proudly displaying many of them and forgot to continue the checking in process. To my shock and unexpected horror he proudly proclaimed he was a Wiccan and with mock superman like moves, he ripped his shirt open displaying a bold inky pentagram on his chest. I stared at the tat dumbfounded. I didn't have anything snappy to come back with, took my room card and stumbled out to the car befuddled.

Archer, Ali Cat and my grandbaby had already made the trip. Now we had escorted Saphira here back to our ancient homes in Northern MN. We gawked at the big trees that were once small and the strangeness of how things never change but at the same time an eternity has gone by. "Little Bobby" the neighbor boy was now a hulking man no one would ever call little again. Kids grow, people change, but coming home is still the same nostalgic aura. It never changes.

We got to see 2 great great grandmothers brought in from Nebraska by an aunt and sat for 5 generation photos in my inlaws back yard. We did a lot of fun activities with a lot of family and I got one last run in with my Miss Saphira whom I will miss terribly. Miss Moonbeam got to sleep with her and pee on her one last time as well. I kissed my grandbaby for hours and hours and days and days and I was even pleased that with the last kiss goodbye he proceeded to vomit up breast milk in my hair minutes before our departure back home.

Saphira and I visited her new college and we were pleased. The faculty seemed nice and it was just blocks from my sisters. A giant body of water, also just blocks away will keep her occupied and inspired. We even visited the local health food store and knew she'd make out okay. She and Archer will have each other to study with. They have both sets of grandparents, my sisters family and a host of good friends. There is not a better place I could be trusting them to. Before leaving, my mom led us all in a deep heart felt prayer and we all knew everything was in God's capable hands.....

The day finally came, the visiting was over and we said a lot of long goodbyes. The driving seemed equally long and we decided to get a room in Havre. It was dark and wet. We'd some how avoided a lot of serious storms. I stepped into a big puddle of standing water in a dimly lit parking lot off a dark forlorn street. I rapped quietly on the door and then rang the bell. At first nobody came and I was mostly glad. Then as I stepped back into the puddle a sinister looking gentleman appeared, cracking the door just slightly. "Good eveing" he whispered in an almost eerie tone. Hurridly, I paid for a room, eager to be out of the office............. I stepped into another puddle of standing water and then stepped up opening the door to the gruesome interior. A putrid smell of cigarettes and unfamilliar odors assaulted my senses and I battled my way inside. Soon I was face to face with the beast, er room. I pulled back the sheets to see what might be lurking. Mainly old cigarette burns was my only discovery. Then I edged to the bathroom. To my shock and horror, in the tub was alot of long black hairs mingled in with a host of short ones. I imagine possibly a werewolf had recently bathed there. Judging by the rank odor, he may have stored some snacks under the beds to return to later, perhaps half eaten carcasses of prior guests. One of the boys came to the doorway and asked if he could sleep in the car. My husband complained about me purchasing the room and asked if I was acutally going to stay here. Everyone was crinkling up their noses in disgust. I decided we should make a quick escape......

The hotel room was rented by a nice girl who told me there was no house keepers on that day so she would have go go search around to see if any of the rooms were clean. Eventually she rented me a room that looked okay. After I paid for it she asked me if I needed a key. Turns out all its keys were "missing" but she could go to the basement and make one later on. I wondered who had the keys and if they would decide to let themselves in. The door looked like it'd been kicked in and I figured they didn't need the key if they really wanted back in. ArtDog slept with a gun under his pillow and I felt a lot safer only seeing a couple of hairs in the bath tub.

On we drove until we got back to the mountains. A new and unknown adventure soon to begin. Now a family of 5, we would somehow have to survive. Artdog suggested that things would be much cooler now that he was in charge. Miss Moonbeam laughed hysterically pretending she had a monkey on her head alternating with breastfeeding her new doll. She informed us she "squeezed her nickles" to get some breast milk for her babies tippy sippee. Super Catman arranged rubber bands on a board in alien and animal shapes. My husband wore my zebra print sunglasses as he'd forgotten his own. Louis L'Amour and the antics of my family kept me better entertained and the mountains seemed to loom up ahead of us as if by microwave magic. I wondered what kind of adventures awaited us and if this property closing would actually happen tomorrow. Only time would tell. The mountains whispered expectancy of some great thing to come and I sensed I was embarking on some kind of greater purpose my mind wasn't ready to comprehend. Miss Moonbeam informed us "The problem with being homeless is that you really don't have any place to go". Would we continue to live in the forest or would something finally come together? It really didn't matter. I knew we weren't leaving Yaak. For better or for worse, we were making our way back there and I knew come what may my husband wasn't leaving...........