sick

damn i caught some silly american cold. i thought i'd shook it then camped out in sequoia national forest and the temp dropped to like -10deg during the night. i woke up freezing cold and just jumped into the driver's seat and drove with the heating on max, until my feet had thawed out. so i don't feel sociable and i feel all sleepy and just snotty. grrr.

since SF its just been mostly a sort of inadvertant national parks tour -- yosemite, sequoias, death valley, zion, and grand canyon. i made a detour via grass valley to try and find ed buryn, the guy who wrote the inspirational "vagabonding in the USA" in 1975 or summat. it was pretty cool managing to meet up with him. however, horribly, his daughter had died in an auto accident only the month before. i just hoped that half an hour talking to me about travelling might help ease his pain. made me ratchet down my speed a notch too -- tho 60 in the burban feels like about the most it'll do anyway.

most amazing day must have been in lone pine, where i was stranded one day waiting for the truck to get fixed after it overheated in the desert (not my fault! the radiator was cracked!). i went into the chamber of commerce asking if there was anything to do in town for one day, seeing as i didnt have a vehicle (they just looked confused). when i came out this lady got into some crazy electric car, i go "wow what a cool ride" and she's like "want a lift?" so i followed her round her hilarious small-town organising day. linda snell USA.

most amazing night was last night. stayed in tecopa hostel in death valley. there's no clouds, and its absolutely silent, and the ex-hippie that built the hostel built a tower u can climb up and watch the stars, and talk for hours setting the world to rights with some random literature major grad from seattle on his own trip, the only other guest in the hostel (and human for hundreds of miles, it seemed!). saw some shooting stars and definite UFOs over nevada desert too...

right goin to bed. try and get rid of this stoopid cold.