From the Road #5

June 25th, 2006
One of my trepidations prior to departure pertained to kibbles and bits.  The eats you can find w/i a mile of the Interstate are decent, but not for 15-straight days. So when, Camille Schumacher, a media studies major who’s documenting the trip for a project at the University of Illinois, invited some of us to eat at her aunt & uncle’s Italian restaurant in Lemont, IL, I immediately RSVP’d and then stalked her all day to extract details of when/where we were departing.  Turned out even better than my already high expectations.  And not just because the food was fresh, prepared with care and delicious. 
Camille took us to ”Valentine’s Italian Bistro” on Canal Street in Lamont. It’s named after her great-grandmother who immigrated to the U.S and then Americanized her Italian name “Valentino.”  The restaurant has no back door because it’s housed in a long, narrow brick building that’s nestled less than 3-yards from the rail line thru Lemont. No doubt the walls rumble when the Amtrak passes thru. Owner Mike Schumacher (who BTW treated his niece like royalty) opened Valentine’s about 18-months ago after years of travel all over the U.S. selling parts for newspaper printing presses.  (”Perfect training for opening up a restaurant from scratch,” he joked!)
For me, what made the night special was great food, yes. But also the tribute to family heritage in both the restaurant’s name and Camille’s pride in showcasing part of her personal life with people she’s come to call friends.  And you also gotta’ admire Mike and his wife Lynn . He gave up the financial security of a regular job to take the leap on starting what has become a thriving restaurant.
See you down the road!
Steve Jarriel
June 25, 2006

 

From the Road #4

June 23rd, 2006

I’m a gear head. Always have been. In 1969, my Mom and Dad bought me one of those Tandy “100-in-1″ electronic kits for Christmas. I used it to build a AM radio which I immediately tuned to 1600AM in Rockville, MD and listened to The Beatles song “Let It Be.” During the 70s, when I travelled with my family across the country in a passenger van converted into a mini-camper, the CB radio sat on channel-19, the hailing frequency for countless. “Hey there good buddy! What’s it lookin’ like over your shoulder.” (Code for any radar traps ahead!).

But even in an age of cellphones, Blackberries, wireless internet, and 3-lb laptops, my gear head alter ego is standing out. Few days back photographer Pete Josendale and I had THREE satellite receivers on the dash. One for XM Satellite (so I can listen in on the World Cup games), one on Sirius Satellite (my regular satellite radio and a Godsend during long-hauls) and a Delorme GPS for the mapping software on my laptop.

Do we need all that? Nope. I made it last time with paper maps and cassette/radio. One thing we couldn’t live w/o. Speed limit signs that say 70MPH! Last time across, when we were keeping an eye out for “smokey the bear hiding in the bushes” the speed limit was 55MPH.

See you down the road!
Steve Jarriel

From the Road #3

June 21st, 2006

“God Bless America” has forever been one of my favorite songs. And though what little musical DNA I possess lies in whistling, not singing, because I love the piece so much, I’ll even occasionally muster up the courage to sing it aloud. Tonight though, in Abilene, KS, the Municipal Band of Abilene performed a rendition that was so stirring, I bowed my head in near-tears as I was overcome with patriotism.

Abilene, of course, is the childhood home of President Eisenhower. Small town, big heart, bigger pride in their connection to one of our nation’s greatest generals and presidents. In my brief conversations with them, I quickly picked up that the people here embody what’s good about America. They’re gracious, humble, and welcoming. And seemingly more than the rest of us, they are connected with the American spirit and appreciate the priviledge of living in the U.S.A.

So there I am, watching and listening, as more almost 200 Abiline residents, welcomed the convoy to the Eisenhower Center and Library, a town green like setting built around his childhood home. The band is playing “God Bless America” just as the convoy (led into town by military units from the Kansas National Guard with American flags attached to antennas) appears around the corner to a rousing cheer from the crowd. At the same moment, Conductor Marc Riegal, brought “God Bless America” from a quiet lull to a cresendo for its final bars, almost as if he wanted the song itself to greet the convoy after a long day of travel.

(Riegal later told me that it was God’s hand at work, that he had no idea the timing was so sublime, so perfect, it seemed pre-arranged)

See you down the road!
Steve Jarriel

From the Road #2

June 18th, 2006

Saturday we stopped for our first pose-by-the-sign shot. You know the one.You’ve been in one. Countless times! It’s when you stand awkwardly by a sign, squinting into the sun as a “photographer” (i.e. the person who most desperately doesn’t want to be on-camera) tries to muster some excitement before snapping the shutter. Well, today that moment came for trip videographer Pete Josendale and me The spot: Bonneville Salt Flats, a place where the “Blue Thunder” captivated me in the early 70s by setting a land speed record of 300MPH or something like that. (Our production van’s max speed?: 79MPH. Going downhill. OK I’m being macho by calling it a “production van,” It’s actually a mini-van that we’ve nicknamed “Soccer Mom”).

In the time since Bonneville, we actually might be mistaken for Japenease tourists on the Mall. If we see someting that’s eyecatching, we stop. We take photos. We pose for photos. We ask total stangers to take photos of us posing for photes. But you know what? The photographers haven’t needed to muster any excitement from us. We’re delighted with what we’re seeing. And who we’re meeting! All due to the comradery that comes out with the camera lense.

See you down the road!
Steve Jarriel

From the Road #1

June 15th, 2006

Fueled by magnificant vistas here in San Francisco, postcard perfect weather, and the enthusiastic response from people who learn about NCN-TV, I’m stoked about the kickoff of this convoy. It promises to be a life long memory for me and everyone else who’ll be making the cross country trip. And if the reception here in San Francisco is a good indicator, a exhilarating adventure lies ahead.

As we track across the US, I’m looking forward to reconnecting with scenic America and encountering the hospitality and goodness that makes ours a great nation. As a teenager, I took several trips thru the midwest in my uncle’s Winnebago, and later did two non-stop cross country scampers in a mini-camper with my father and brothers so we could afford to ski in Colorado, But it’s been more than two decades since my last run. And from my home in suburban Washington, DC, the infamous beltway has become my most frequent “interstate” experience. Or I-95 South while driving any of my three kids sporting events on the weekends!! With congestion, time-pressure, and predictable bumps and turns on roads I’ve driven a hundred times, driving is quite honestly a chore and source of stress. I sometimes yearn to live to vehicle-free lifestyle of an urban area, but with errands, soccer practices, school runs for my kids, and professional commitments, my car is my connection to my community. Unless God sends down a horse that can run 60mph, I’m stuck! (Or maybe some MIT students can hurry up on a Roddenberry vision: The transporter!)

In the coming days, I plan to share stories about the people we meet and place we see. In spite of the negative blare in the mainstream media that almost makes it seem like it’s dangerous to step outside your front door, an essential element in the American spirit is that of optimism and care (as we saw in the aftermath of last year’s natural disasters). I want to find that!! And will share some personal thoughts and I reflect on my own life in a new way. I hope you’ll connect with something in there. If you want to drop me a note sharing your own experiences, please do so.

Till next time, enjoy the ride!