Road Trip 2003

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Ponder at the weirdness of Road Trip 2003 that took me, Cassie, and Misty on a magical journey...

This is a replica of Stonehenge near Goldendale, WA. It was out first stop on our road trip. Here Misty is checking out the names on the columns. Each one has the name of a soldier that died. I wonder what made someone think Stonehenge would be a good war memorial...

Here's me at Stonehenge. I don't know either. I must have been in a calender girl mood.

We stayed at Cassie's in Vancouver, WA one night and we couldn't resist the cute little baby goats! This one was my favorite. I wanted to take her home, but I don't think I could have passed her off as a stuffed animal.

Our next stop was at The Vortex near Grants Pass, OR. The Vortex is a disturbance in the Earth's magnetic field. Basically, everything is messed up. You have the feeling of having to lean instead of standing upright. You appear taller or shorter; though I know you're all thinking, "How much shorter can Mandy get?" You're even 10% lighter! Anyway, check out these way cool photos! Here we're out front where The Vortex doesn't reach, but one step inside and the weirdness begins.

The House of Mystery at The Vortex used to be a miner's building. It slid down the hill against a tree and now is all off kilter. It's so very cool, though. Cassie is leaning, but that's the most comfortable way to stand. You square your shoulders and relax and you're leaning forward!

Our tour guide used her magical powers to float a broom! No, not really. It's tramped down so you can stand it up, but the cool part about it is that it naturally leans forward. Pretty cool, huh?

The guide was showing us how you appear to get taller or shorter. She and Misty stood across from each on level ground for the before...

And then they switched after. See the difference? Misty got shorter! Or did the guide get taller?

Here's some more taller to shorter pics. It's kind hard to tell on these because I'm so short. Pay more attention to Cassie and Misty.

Can you see the difference?

Okay, these crack me up. Look how short I am! Anyway, me and the guide stood on level ground and put our arms like so. Then, without letting go, we rotated.

See me get shorter? When actually doing this, I could see her get taller. I recommend everyone takes a trip to this wacky place and experience it yourself. It's tons better.

Our trip took us to Craker Lake next. It's really pretty. Here's Cassie with a look that she describes as "too weird." Apparently, so bad that she didn't even want it :(

I don't know why I had so many "ass moments." Here's one at Crater Lake, OR. As you might have guessed from the snow, it was pretty cold. You had to watch out for that snow while taking pictures. There's a slope right into "bye-bye, you're dead" land.

Cassie had a little list of places she had to go to; mostly bizarre. Here I am at the Peterson Rock Garden. Apparently, some guy had so much time on his hands that he just had to make big things out of rocks. They're pretty cool, too. There are a couple of castles, houses, and of course the Statue of Liberty! The place was also filled with peacocks, chickens, and guinea fowl. I am not ashamed to admit I chased a peacock trying to get a feather...*sheepish grin* I also played a little "Crocodile Hunter" with a huge gardner snake. Unfortuantely, he got mad at me for playing with him and did what all his species do when threatened...pee on me. Very nasty it was. Oh, well, it was fun while it lasted.