The Return Trip

The theme at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland certainly can sum up the theme of my life. What a long, strange trip it has been… and will no doubt continue to be, at least I hope it will so I don’t lose my sense of wonder at it all.

Sorry we couldn’t take pictures in the Hall of Fame but we did take a few shots around the area before we left town.

We left Cleveland Wednesday morning and headed south to Wright-Patterson Air base and the BIG Air and Space museum there – it was so huge I could not walk all the way through it in one pass. This museum is free to the public and should not be missed if you are ever near Dayton, Ohio. 

We spent that night in Cincinnati We Cincinnati, the next night in St Louis, Missouri.

We continued west each day –

– Tulsa, OK. Tucumcari and New Mexico weren’t really remarkable places except for the noisy pimp and hookers at the Tulsa Red Roof Inn (where the management there seemed intent on ignoring that sort of behavior) and the nice dinner at the “Pow Wow” in Tucumcari – until we got to Sedona Arizona where we stayed for one extra day.

Then we decided to sprint for home instead of taking one more night somewhere.

The End

Re-Union Is a Blessing After All

Greetings - tonight from Tulsa, Oklahoma. I am a little behind with this news but with all the travelling there just isn't much time. Again as time permits I will be adding more pictures to this post.

We arrived in Cleveland on schedule and we were able to meet my older son James right away. After a tense, tearful moment of being somewhat overwhelmed James was accepting and we were able to connect and spend some good quality time together. We went into Downtown Cleveland for a great Dinner at the Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse. The service was impeccable, the food - especially the dry aged beef - was too good for words and the ambiance of the place was peaceful, comfortable and had a secluded feel to it - perfect for getting to know my son again. James came with us to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the next day 

David was unable to come along because he had to study for his college classes and it turns out that he was hesitant to meet me the new me. This was a very difficult time for me as it came down to our last day in Cleveland and he had been unwilling to meet me. I had to steel myself emotionally for being rejected and only re-uniting with James, but at the last minute he came with us for dinner that last evening at the Great Lakes Brewing Company in Cleveland. They have awesome Pot Roast and amazing Stilton and Cheddar Cheese Soup. And, lest I forget, their beers are really good too so if you see any Great Lakes stuff at Trader Joe's you should pick some up, especially the Porter, the Irish Ale or the Cleveland Brown Ale. 

I really need to thank many friends and members of my Church in Riverside for praying for things to go well. 

Thank You all - your prayers were answered! Praise God!

(Left to Right: Ken, James, Me, David)

While in the area I met with the founder of the TransFamily of Cleveland support group, Karen and her husband Bob over a nice lunch at Ruby Tuesday's. It was nice to learn some of the history of this support group which was so much help to me when I was first explaining to my boys about my transition and wanting to provide some local resources for them should they be interested in learning what I was doing from others on the same path. I wish I had more time to meet with others across the country but we don't really know where we will be until we make plans at night for our next stop. At some point we will be in Sedona, AZ for a couple of days but that's all I know for now.

Now I'm off to bed and an early start on the road again. When I get home I'll get the last installment up so until then may God bless you all richly.

Hugs,
Eva-Genevieve!