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June 11, 2001 Hi folks. It’s that time of year again. School’s out, the Airstream’s packed, and the Scheuermann’s are on the road again! And this time we hope it’s for the whole summer! Yep, we left June 11 and may not be back until August 23! This year our plans include traveling through the Lower and Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, Iowa, (a quick flight to Atlanta, Georgia, to a school convention for Lise), Kansas, maybe Nebraska, Colorado, and maybe Wyoming. And you’ll hear all about it through email. It will average out to be about one, maybe two, messages for each day, each about a page long. Don’t feel left out if you do not receive a message every day, though. Some of the places we hope to camp do not have data ports. If you don’t get any messages one day, you might get two or three the next. Please, please, please feel free to write us back. Unlike last year, we are using a national email service this year and don’t have to worry about overloading our inbox. But since there are over one hundred other people receiving these emails, be courteous when using your REPLY button. Please make sure it is the “REPLY TO AUTHOR” and not the “Reply to All”. Who are all those other people? Well, suffice it to say some are teachers, some are Airstreamers, some are friends, and some are family. Some are in Ohio, some are in other states, and some are even in other countries! So if from time to time you read a comment that doesn’t necessarily apply to you, please know that this is just the most efficient way we know to stay in touch with everyone while we’re on the road. If for any reason you want to be taken off the list, just let us know. We left Monday morning, June 11, 2001. We made a quick stop at Lise’s school, Brookside High School in Sheffield/Sheffield Lake, Ohio, to finish up some year-end paperwork and give some jealous colleagues a quick tour of the Airstream. Then, Westward we go! Ah, but unlike past years, we turned Northward at Toledo, Ohio. The Airstream thought that the new-to-us Dodge diesel pickup truck was making a wrong turn because our first summer stop has always been West Branch, Iowa. But her confusion was ended when we stopped for dinner in West Branch, Michigan, instead. Scott treated Lise to a dinner out for having survived this past school year and also for only taking half of her closet’s contents for this trip! Actually, it’s way less than that, but it just seems like a lot when you consider we had to pack for anything from 32 degrees in Minnesota or in the Colorado mountains to 105 degrees in Kansas, Iowa, and Atlanta! I think we both finally started to relax and get into the vacation mode at a lovely rest area on I-75 just south of Gaylord, Michigan. Scott was pleased to discover that the trailer tires were running COOLER than the truck tires were. This rest area was incredibly peaceful, despite the highway noise. There was a huge, beautiful pond there with a mirror-calm surface. After this year of teaching, Lise says she’ll take all the serenity she can get. At one point a fish disturbed the surface from below. The ripples affected the surrounding surface. Little things…maybe even little stressed out teachers and busy little accountants… do make a difference! Our first night’s campsite was the Gaylord, Michigan, Walmart parking lot, absolutely free if you don’t count the shopping that we did there. We bought some heavy duty DEET mosquito repellant and AA batteries. This may not sound all that exciting to you unless you’ve seen the size and number of mosquitoes here! Also realize that for “free” Walmart provides nothing except the blacktop we’re parked on, so the batteries helped in the entertainment department. We listened to NOAA weather radio and called it a night. We Scheuermann’s lead such an exciting life! 388 miles today. A little rain as we slept. Once the trailer cooled off and the last shopping cart had been noisily pushed back into the store, we slept quite well. A great first day. --Scott & Lise <>< S.L.SCHEUERMANN@WORLDNET.ATT.NET |