I should have known that would just be tempting fate.
Right now it is 11:20am and I am still in my pajamas working from my bed in the RV, also known as my "office." It is been absolutely pouring rain for the last two days--so hard that the sound of rain beating down on top of the metal RV roof is so loud I can barely hear myself think. I see no point in even bothering to get dressed.
Currently, we are in between YMCA sessions while the summer camps switch over to the after school camps, and with the rain there is nothing Gunnar and I can do other than hang out in the RV, work and try not to drive each other nuts. Ordinarily, he would be out walking and I'd have the place to myself, so with both of us trapped in the RV it is even more claustrophobic than usual. In fact, the only thing keeping us sane (and out of each other's way) is me watching chick flicks in my little room while he reads his body-builder magazines in his bunk. Luckily, I stocked up before I left Minnesota so I have an adequate supply of DVDs on hand so Gunnar and I shouldn't be crossing paths for hours.
Currently, we are in between YMCA sessions while the summer camps switch over to the after school camps, and with the rain there is nothing Gunnar and I can do other than hang out in the RV, work and try not to drive each other nuts. Ordinarily, he would be out walking and I'd have the place to myself, so with both of us trapped in the RV it is even more claustrophobic than usual. In fact, the only thing keeping us sane (and out of each other's way) is me watching chick flicks in my little room while he reads his body-builder magazines in his bunk. Luckily, I stocked up before I left Minnesota so I have an adequate supply of DVDs on hand so Gunnar and I shouldn't be crossing paths for hours.
Yesterday I watched Before Sunrise and A Little Romance. Today looks like a Shakespeare in Love kind of day.
We'll see.
August 13, 2009
Gunnar set out early this morning from the RV park in Bonner Springs heading towards Kansas City. Around noon I caught up with him up at our destination for the day: a trailer park west of the city.
With no YMCA session today, we decided to take our time and run a few errands before hooking up. I was hoping to find some fun stores to check out, however, driving down State Street was pretty disappointing as all I saw were pawn shops, laundromats, check cashing outlets, a billboard advertising a big gun show and a few motels that look like they rent by the hour. Not even a latte or a donut shop in sight.
Our best shopping option looked like a WalMart so we cruised in to stock up on milk and few other staples. After we got our stuff, we headed into the checkout line and Gunnar unloaded the cart while I quickly perused the tabloids to get the latest scoop on the Jon & Kate Plus 8 debacle, as well as other important celebrity news.
I was just reading a breaking news story about who Jessica Simpson is dating when I heard a woman's voice say "you with him, hon?"
I looked up to see the WalMart clerk addressing me as she was bagging the milk. "Excuse me?" I said, not really understanding the question.
"I said are you with this fiiinnne lookin' thing?" she said in a slow southern drawl, nodding her head towards Gunnar and pretty much undressing him with her eyes. (I think she was just being friendly, although her prison-warden stature and missing front teeth were somewhat intimidating.)
"I said are you with this fiiinnne lookin' thing?" she said in a slow southern drawl, nodding her head towards Gunnar and pretty much undressing him with her eyes. (I think she was just being friendly, although her prison-warden stature and missing front teeth were somewhat intimidating.)
"Me? With him? Umm.....sure?" I answered.
"Well those muscles sure are niiice to look at. Ah'm thinkin' ah'd like me some of that, mmmm...mmmmm," she said shaking her head and looking like she's ready to have him for lunch. "I better not even tell you what I'm thinkin' right now."
I did a mental grimace, while Gunnar lost all color his face and swallowed hard. "Yep, lucky me," I said. "Well, gotta go now!" I added while grabbing our milk and quickly steering Gunnar towards the door by his elbow.
Don't worry, Gunn...I've got your back. What are partners for, right?
Don't worry, Gunn...I've got your back. What are partners for, right?
***
We climbed back in the RV and headed to the trailer park that would be our home for the next 12 hours or so.
If there were a prize for the absolute scariest trailer park we've visited so far on this trip, this one would win hands down. As we pulled in through the front gate, all I could see were dozens of ramshackle trailers, growling guard dogs ready to rip us limb from limb, and a creepy ice cream truck (that I'm pretty sure wasn't selling ice cream) slowly circling the neighborhood.
Welcome to "Deliverance RV and Trailer Park."
Gunnar was aprehensive about staying there and worried about my safety after he left in the morning, but I reminded him that I lived in New York for three years. I can handle anything. So we parked the RV out front and walked up to the office to register. Two big dogs were chained up to the left of the sidewalk. One was sleeping while the other was on duty barking at us and yanking at his chain so hard I thought he might break his neck.
Gunnar was aprehensive about staying there and worried about my safety after he left in the morning, but I reminded him that I lived in New York for three years. I can handle anything. So we parked the RV out front and walked up to the office to register. Two big dogs were chained up to the left of the sidewalk. One was sleeping while the other was on duty barking at us and yanking at his chain so hard I thought he might break his neck.
Nice doggy.
We walked inside the office and were greeted by a woman at the desk with a three-pack-a-day voice and and ashtray full of cigarette butts. She filled out all the necessary registration information with her right hand, while her left hand held a burning cigarette with an ash at least an inch long. Then she ran down the list of usual questions about our RV (how many feet, what amp hookup, etc), but Gunnar had to do the talking for us because all I could focus on was her cigarette moving about, and how much longer that ash could hold on. It was mesmerizing.
We walked inside the office and were greeted by a woman at the desk with a three-pack-a-day voice and and ashtray full of cigarette butts. She filled out all the necessary registration information with her right hand, while her left hand held a burning cigarette with an ash at least an inch long. Then she ran down the list of usual questions about our RV (how many feet, what amp hookup, etc), but Gunnar had to do the talking for us because all I could focus on was her cigarette moving about, and how much longer that ash could hold on. It was mesmerizing.
After we paid, we left the office and went down to our space to hook up but Gunnar still wasn't sure we should stay. We were standing there discussing moving somewhere else when one of the neighbors wandered over towards us. He was pretty disheveled and looked like he didn't own a razor, or soap...or a toothbrush. I was prepared to just hand over my purse without a fight when he asked "ain't you that veteran who's walkin' to help kids in Iraq? I saw ya on the news and I think that's just great! Need some help?"
Wow! Gunnar and I both exhaled in unison, relieved that we were, in fact, among friends. Just then the woman who checked us in came down to our spot and joined us. She realized that she had seen Gunnar on the Kansas City news as well and wanted to give us our money back as their contribution to ASM4P.
By this time I was feeling pretty ashamed of myself for judging these folks. The fact that they obviously had very little but still wanted to contribute what they could was a great reminder about why our work is so important.
It also reminded me of a conversation I had back in Minnesota a couple months ago with a wealthy acquaintance of mine. She was concerned that with the bad economy and so many charities going under that nobody would donate to ASM4P; apparently, the rich are too busy worrying about losing their yachts and investments, the middle class is busy trying to find jobs, and the poor can barely feed themselves. According to her, this country was an economic mess and nobody was going to give anything. Period.
I disagreed.
Later that same day I was listening to another discussion on the troop surge in Afghanistan and how we are never going to defeat the Taliban without losing many more American so
ldiers in the process. "If only we could do something," they said.
ldiers in the process. "If only we could do something," they said."Somebody needs to do something."
Well, reflecting on the last seven weeks of traveling through this country I don't believe that anything is hopeless, and I know that people are doing something. They are donating to ASM4P. And even though we are in difficult economic times, in city after city, I have found that the people who have been the most enthusiastic to donate are often the people who can afford it the least:
retired people...
waitresses in diners...
RV park managers...
a guy who recognized Gunnar on the road
...and even children at the YMCA camps have donated to ASM4P.
They are all Americans, too, and not only do they want to do something...they are doing something.
They know their donations aren't much and won't single handedly fix everything, but it's not about how much. It's about collectively being a part of something larger than themselves for a cause that affects all of us; every single American, whether they are old or young, rich or poor, working, laid off or retired...l
iving in a gated community on a golf course or in a scary trailer park. And they know that.
iving in a gated community on a golf course or in a scary trailer park. And they know that.In just a few weeks Gunnar will finish walking and another 9/11 anniversary will be upon us. Most of us Americans will be thinking back on where we were eight years ago. Many will be wondering whether the world has become any safer from terrorism. Some will be wondering what, if anything, they could do to help.
Well, our War Kids Relief programs were designed with one goal in mind: to keep things like 9/11 from ever happening again...and ASM4P was designed as a way for everyone to hel
p. Those who have made donations to ASM4P have done something significant, and I thank each and every one of you for believing that together we can do this.
p. Those who have made donations to ASM4P have done something significant, and I thank each and every one of you for believing that together we can do this. Every one of your dollars will go towards our projects that will prevent another generation from getting caught up in the violence that leads to attacks like 9/11. And if we don't raise all the money we need to launch these projects during this 10-week walk, then we will keep fundraising until we do.
Right now, Gunnar's out on a road somewhere walking to inspire the rest of us to support ASM4P, so that one day this little girl in Oklahoma who donated a dollar with her letter can proudly say "my dollar made the world a safer place. I did something."
Love, Dina
Once again a great read Dina. Hope you Gunnar are doing well.
ReplyDeleteHey Dina - I would love to email you however now that Un-thinkable has shut down I have lost my PC with your email address. Email me back on my personal account. Would love to fill you in.
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