Today Is THE Day

Day 18 - June 28 (Pt. 2)

TODAY is the essence of The Vagabond Tour. Today was so smooth and perfect and great! After leaving the McDonalds (see previous update), I headed to the Humane Society of Bay County and spent most of my day serving the homeless animals of Panama City. They had some AWESOME animals too. As I took each dog out for a little time outside, it was inspiring to see how each dog had an incredibly unique personality. From the way they interacted with me, their surroundings, the heat, the toys, etc. It just goes to show that though they cannot speak English, they have personalities, emotions, and deserve respect and appreciation. And though they are dogs – animals we interact with often – they are an example that God created all things individually and regardless of the name and shape of the animal, we should treat them all with a sense of compassion and reverence. Thank you Humane Society for helping me increase insight of the Animal Kingdom and how they relate to God’s plan.

After leaving the Humane Society, my next big adventure was at Pier Park. Pier Park is a tourist hot spot in Panama City Beach. It is a giant outdoor mall at one of the piers. I showed up with my FREE HUGS sign, and began walking! I got a lot of smiles, strange stares, hugs, and pictures! I felt like a celebrity as I walked down the street with all the people that wanted to take pictures with me! A few people offered me some money, but I was successful in keeping it in their own pocket… except for one persistent lady. It was a fun time at Pier Park. Good times for sure!

My night came to a close back at the one and only Noah’s Ark Beach Ministry (the place that let me use their shower about a week ago). Almost every night, they have a free concert, so I showed up to show some support! They put on a good show, and they had a nice mini sermon at the end, which was great as well. The quote that stuck with me the most was something like… “We can’t assume people are loved, but we do need to show it.” A lot of times we go through the motions of interacting with those around us as if everyone’s life is perfect, happy, and full of wonderful people.  We assume that people are in great situations at home, work, and school. But in reality, some people don’t feel loved. It is up to us to show love to everyone we come in contact with so that others may feel of their great worth. That they may know that you and God, if absolutely nobody else, loves them.

So go show the love and share the love.

Peter.Moosman.

God Is Good.

Day 16 - June 26:

What a day that one was!

I had given my morning update, but what happened after that is just plain cool.

Church. It was great! There were some powerful messages throughout the entirety of it. I had an opportunity to speak with the missionaries as well.  The crazy part was this:

I walk into church and take a seat on the side of the chapel. As I wait for the service to start, I begin to look around and people watch. I noticed a face or two that looked oddly like someone I knew from back home, but didn’t think too much of it. I looked a few more times to see if they would increase in familiarity, but I brushed it off. I am in Panama City, Florida… I am not going to know anyone here.

Well, the service ended, and I went up to talk to the missionaries. While talking with them, I hear a, “Peter?”

I turn around and the girl tells me who she is - my dad’s best friend’s kid - and we laugh and find out why each of us are in Panama City instead of home in Utah! What are the odds of this?! Traveling to the opposite end of the country and running into old family friends? Woah.

After church, I went home with them and we played games, ate, played more games, took a little stroll in the woods, watched the Brown Tony Bracelet DVD from Invisible Children, and cleaned up the place a little bit. It was a party and a total blessing that they were there and were willing to take me in for the night.

Day 17 - June 27:

We all woke up around 4am because they needed to hit the road to get to the airport on time to fly home. After finishing cleaning up the place, we went our separate ways. It is just crazy that the whole experience happened in the first place!

Since it was so early, I took off to my trusty classy McDonalds, parked, reclined my chair, and slept for 4 more hours – surprisingly well, too! When I finally woke up from there, I headed inside to use the internet to figure out what I was doing for the day, revamp the route of The Vagabond Tour, find places to sleep along the way, and of course, check facebook. While there, a lady walked up and started talking to me.

“They have free internet here?”

“Yes ma’am. I have been stopping at all the McDonalds across the country to use their Internet.”

“Oh, you work for McDonalds? Are you an under cover person?”

“No, I am actually just traveling the country to spread a message of change.”

“Are you on your mission? Are you LDL?”
“LDS? I sure am! But this isn’t my mission. I did that a couple years ago. This is just a personal effort.”

---Small talk---

“Well I am gonna buy you a salad.”

The lady bought me a salad! Such wonderful people! Blessings are flowing in from all over!

After finishing my salad and my new route, I took off to a car dealership for an oil change. There was a nice guy at the Watermelon Festival that offered me a free oil change, so I decided to take him up on the offer. I dropped off the car and took off with Travis Nellums to Fort Walton, FL.

A little while after we left, I got a bummer call. It was the dealership letting me know that they had finished with the oil change, but that they found some problems with the vehicle… Ugh. After a short conversation, I gave them the go ahead to get the work done… When they had finished, it came out to be about $450 or something like that, which is pretty good, I guess! Seeing the signs in my car, and hearing my despair on the phone, they cut down the labor quite a bit and I walked out of the dealership saving over $100. God is GOOD!

On the way to Fort Walton, Travis felt the need to stop at every thrift store. So, we visited quite a bit of them that day! We also stopped by quite a bit of arcades. “It’s my vacation,” he says. :)

We ended up at a Young Single Adult Family Home Evening (YSAFHE!), and while they were talking about movies, I snuck out and taught a lesson with the missionaries! Greatest thing ever. I want to be a missionary again SO SO SO bad! After the lesson, I reunited with the YSA group and we played Sardines for a couple rounds. Then we were on the road back home!

The car dealership was closed by the time we got home (10pm – of course it would be!), so Travis just dropped me off at my temporary home with a Couch Surfer. We visited for a bit, and then… fade to black.

Day 18 - June 28:

Tropical Storm! The rainfall down here is pretty intense! And it comes and goes in an instant. Since EVERYTHING was in my car, I didn’t really have a desire to get ready. I had no clothes, no toiletries, nothing. I left it all in my car in the next city over. Luckily for me, my host worked right next to the dealership, so I hitched a ride to my car on his way to work. Isn’t it ironic??? Don’t you think…? To top it off, as I got out of the car, I dropped my sunglasses. He rolled forward and ran them over. BUT! They were my trusty $0.80 thrift store aviators, and they survived! There is a crack in one of the lenses, sure, but they are still perfectly wearable! Talk about a blessing AGAIN.

I paid for my car, and headed off to McDonalds so that I could provide you with this wonderful update. So, here we are! I suppose another update will come soon! Take care.

Peter.Moosman.

Wow.

I don't even know where to begin... How 'bout the night of my last update.
So, I was giving my update of the day at McDonalds, right? About that time, I decided I might want to figure out what I was gonna do for the night. I figured that since I hadn't made any contacts that day, I better give up on the hope for a nice shower before bed on a comfy couch... I found a little Baptist church down the street and decided that it would do for a nice place to spend the night. I pulled in... it seemed safe enough... so I parked under a "TOW AWAY ZONE" sign and got ready for bed. I don't remember if I mentioned my state of being that night. I was sticky, sweaty, sunburned, tired, sandy, etcetera, etcetera. I felt worse than disgusting. I cracked my windows just enough to let some airflow in, but to keep bad guys out, and closed my eyes. Eyes open, eyes close... eyes open, eyes close. Open, close. It was ridiculously hot in the car all night long, the back seat of my car was covered in sand from the beach, and it was probably the most uncomfortable situation. EVER.

Bottom line: I didn't get much sleep.

Day 13 - June 23:
Morning came, and with minimum sleep, I took off to find a bathroom. I drove an awkwardly long time to find a gas station, and when I did, the gas station only had port-o-potty. There goes my chance for a sink bath! I was right next to the beach, so I figured I would walk down the beach to find a beach shower. I walked for quite a while before I found a shower, but I found one, nonetheless! Now that I knew where a shower was, I headed back to my car to get my stuff. On the way, I found a little place called Noah's Ark Beach Ministry. On the sign it said, something about a gift shop, free wifi, and concerts every night, so I decided to go in for a minute to look around. I met a couple nice people and took a look around the gift shop and was on my way. I got back to my car and started driving towards the beach shower, but decided to go back to the little ministry. I walked in and awkwardly asked for a shower. I told them what I was doing with the Vagabond Tour, gave them some flyers, and they showed me to a shower! I don't think I have appreciated a shower more in my life! I felt so so so disgusting, and to be clean felt like heaven!  I definitely owe Noah's Ark Beach Ministry some service! Great Christlike people that deserve many blessings.

When I left, I headed up to Panama City to meet up with Travis Nellums! We met at an LDS church, where it just so happened to have a zone conference going on! We went in and said hello to all of the missionaries, and I made some contacts to make sure the missionaries would let me go teach with them. :)

Then, I hopped in Sandy (Travis' car), and Travis drove around while I tagged along. We went to play frisbee golf, to the mall to find him some sunglasses - while there, we would talk to people about the vagabond tour and hand out flyers - and got something to eat. Oh, we went to every thrift store in Panama City... Dang! Then we went to play some volleyball with a bunch of strangers. When he was dropping me off at my car to go our separate ways, he casually says something like, "why don't you just come stay at my place for the next few days?" We discussed it, laughed about possibilities, and I ended up emptying my car and loading everything into his car... all at about 11pm in a church parking lot. I put my signs in the windows ("STAY POSITIVE, YOU'RE AMAZING," "The Vagabond Tour" and "Pray for the haters") in hopes that they would deter anyone from towing or breaking in. Once his car was full of my stuff, we hit the road to Chipley! I must say, while driving with Travis, we had some of the best laughs! He even laughed so hard that he spit his soda all over himself and his car. Today had one of the worst mornings of my life, and one of the best evenings. Funny how that works out! God is good.

Day 14 - June 24:
I would like to think that I slept in, but I honestly don't even know what that means any more! I woke up at my regular 8am-ish time... got ready, and actually snuck out while everyone else was sleeping to go spend most of my day with the missionaries. We went to do some service at a Habitat for Humanity thrift store. After helping out there for a couple hours, we were on our way, refueled, and went knocking doors. It started to rain terribly bad, so we went back to the apartment and had a "family study." We talked about mission statements / mottos, the Second Coming, the book of Revelation, and a few other things. GOOD TIMES! I miss my mission like CRASY!
I left after the family study to go have some fun in Pensacola with Travis. As I was walking back to the house from the missionaries place, I was the witness of a tragic accident. A little puppy was running across the street and got hit by a car. I still cant get the sound of the experience out of my head... ugh. It made me literally sick and I was in shock for a while. I couldn't speak. One of the worst parts was that the car didn't stop... they just kept going. Before I could get to the dog (it was still alive), the owners ran out to it and took it into the house. I just slowly walked with my hands going from over my mouth to my ears, to my forehead, to my heart... It wouldn't stop replaying in my mind. Please pray for that little dog. :(

Other than the above experience, the rest of the day was quite enjoyable. The 2 hour drive to Pensacola was hilarious (for as much as I could stay awake for)! We got to Pensacola a little late, but got to see a bunch of owls at a sanctuary before the sun went down. After that, we went to Swing Night. I felt like I walked into the 40's. People were dressed up in their swing garb, swing music was blasting through the speakers, and they had clips of old swing dancers being projected onto a big screen. Woah. It was an interesting night! I played Wallflower and people watched in this strange environment. There are perks to being a wallflower, people.

Day 15 - June 25:
The Panhandle Watermelon Festival! Woot! There was a parade in the morning, but I decided to bypass the parade so that I could do my laundry (hooray for clean clothes!!!) and try to get some writing in. It wasn't very long before they were back and we headed to the festival. I brought my FREE HUGS sign and we walked around for a while. I got about 20-25 free hugs, which is pretty good for being a total stranger in a small town! I also got a free oil change. The first person I gave a hug too was at a booth selling cars. He thought the Free Hugs concept was brilliant, and wanted to show his support to The Vagabond Tour, so he gave me a card for a free oil change. SCORE! Thank you so much, good sir!
We got some free watermelon, watched a watermelon auction and the top selling watermelon went for $700! A WATERMELON! That was the first watermelon, with the rest dropping about $50 each watermelon. Those are expensive watermelons!
After we had seen what there was to see and hug who wanted a free hug, we headed back (I stopped by to see how the dog was doing. It is alive and mostly well - just a messed up leg), dropped off the kids, and headed down to Panama City. We got together with some other people (5 of us total), and played some frisbee golf. Then we went and hung out at an ice cream shop. We had the time of our lives - laughing, joking, telling stories, etc. After that, we went back to the church to check on my car to see if it had been towed, but to our relief, it was still there! We hung out at the church for a bit, and I tried to convince Travis to sleep down in Panama City as a bum with me... but he wouldn't buy it. Bummer. They went on their way, and I stayed at the church. They had a little picnic area, so I got my "bed" together on top of a picnic table, and drifted off to sleep.

Day 16 - June 26:
I slept surprisingly well on the table! I felt like I had slept through a rainstorm because I was so wet from the humidity and morning dew, but it wasn't a bad experience! The only bad thing: My phone somehow broke. I don't know if I slept on it and broke it that way, or if the humidity/wetness had something to do with it, but now when I push some of the buttons, it does random things. Like, when I hit the "return" button, it opens the camera first, then the phone keypad. It is just one big mess. I hope I can still get it to function normally (other than the few newfound kinks...).
I got ready for church in the parking lot, and waited and waited for people to start showing up, but to now success. Someone finally pulled in, drove around and then drove off... then they came back and told me that they changed the meeting time. Hmmm... So now I am in the classiest McDonalds I have ever seen! Seriously, people. Let me describe this to you: there is a fireplace, a huge flatscreen tv on the wall, an X-Box and Playstation, really nice marble walls and tiled floors, leather armchairs, fancy booths, A bronze statue of Ronald McDonald, a kiddie section with hamburger chairs, etc. This place is intense! Oh, and of course, free wifi! :)

And there you have it! I hope I didn't bore you!

Until next time,
Peace.Love.Music.
Peter.Moosman.

Update Overload?

Its me again. I am finding that it is hard to stay consistently busy for every waking hour (especially when you stink and are all sticky and gross). Since it has been a challenge to stay busy, I am gracing those who actually read this with another update.

Day 12 - July 22:
Well, I found a place to stay last night, but had to be out by 5:30am. Something is better than nothing, right?!
Since I up so early, I went over to the beach and tried to sleep there for a bit. Harder than I thought! Beaches are hard... and sandy!
When I couldn't "rest" anymore, I got up and started walking down the beach, picking up any trash I could find - finishing when I realized I hadn't eaten breakfast and my stomach was hungry.
After breakfast, I went to the Panama City Beach Visitors Center to see if they could help me find some organizations to volunteer with the area. All they did was give me the phone book to take with me. They also gave me a $5 off coupon to Winn Dixie, so I went over there and got some more food to hopefully hold me up for the rest of my stay here.
I then headed for some shade so that I could look through the phone book and maybe make some calls... only to find that it is nearly impossible to find shade in this city! If there is some shade, it is "Private Property." Sad day... Luckily, I found one on the OPPOSITE side of town. I parked and started going through the phone book...
... When I was awoken by a homeless guy wanting money! The heat is exhausting and I had dozed off... Anyway, I was able to talk with the homeless man - Matthew - for a while, share some of my food, and interviewed him. It was a good time had by all!
After that, I decided to go back to the beach... this time to swim... for the first time in probably a decade or longer! And when I say swim, it wasn't so much of swimming or having a party in the Gulf... because it was pretty shallow for a ways out, and its hard to have too much fun all alone! Instead, I tried to have a somewhat spiritual experience... Just me and the millions of gallons of salt water. I stood in the water and felt the various pulls of the currents near my feet and near the surface, and everywhere in between. As the waves crashed into me, I found it interesting that I had little to no affect on them. They would pound into me and keep on going. A few thoughts...
- I am nothing. In the grand scheme of thing, I am totally nothing... just a small piece of something much greater. But, just like the ocean, it takes millions of single droplets of water to create the ocean. I am just a kid, but it starts with just one to make a difference that can change the world.
- Work with, not against, the stronger power. There is no way that I could fight against some of those huge waves. I would dig my feet into the ground, but I would still be pulled towards them. Why try to fight against that kind of a force? It was much better to lift my feet, float in the water, and rise and fall with the waves (except for the really big ones - then I would have to jump to clear them)
- Stay afloat. When I wasn't paying attention, I would get pounded by a huge wave, get salt in my mouth and eyes, and it wasn't much fun... When I was paying attention, I was able to move with the water - jump over the waves, move with the currents, and steer clear of the burning eyes!
- Laugh at the extra baggage. So, when I got back to my car, I realized that my pockets were not empty. When I put my hands in, I realized that my front pockets were full of algae, and my back pockets were full of sand. LOTS O SAND. I was puzzled at how that even happened, but had to laugh! Granted, I did not want that stuff to come back to the car with me, but they did. I could have gotten frustrated and upset, but that wouldn't have done anything for me, so I decided to laugh it off!

So, there you have it. When you look for learning experiences, you can get them! Even though I am not really enjoying the extra baggage of being sunburned, sweaty, sticky, and covered in salt, sunscreen, and algae.

Anyway, since I don't have a towel to clean me off from that experience, I decided to walk along the beach and clean again until I dried off! I got quite a bit further down the beach this time before I had hunger strike again... I headed to the parking lot of McDonalds, used their restroom to wash my arms off (something is better than nothing, right?!) and then headed back outside for a yummy dinner of canned spaghetti-o's, canned beans, and chips. Mmmm!

And now you know my day! I hope y'all aren't getting bored of this! It has only begun!

Update #2

So, I can tell that updates will be inconsistent... so I am going to refrain from weekly updates. Who knows when I will have internet, so I am going to update WHEN I GET THE CHANCE!

Anyway...

Day 8 - June 18:
My last post talked about most of this day, but to recap, I left Winchester, drove through TN, NC, and into GA. In Knoxville, I had a nice conversation and interview with a lady in the parking lot of McDonalds. Come Georgia, I had quite the experience!
I decided to go visit a friend who was serving an LDS mission in Cornelia, Georgia. I had made contact with some people in Cornelia, and they had invited them over around the time I was getting into town. I pulled in, and as I was hiding my car, he ([Elder] Kelton Gubler) pulled up. I ran around the house to avoid being seen, went inside and slipped into a back room. They came in and were visiting with the accomplices when I casually walked into the room.
"Oh, hey guys..."
Kelton does a double take... "PETER?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? Guys, this is my neighbor!"
The look on his face was PRICELESS. He was speechless for the entirety of our visit as well. He would just look over and stare... then shake his head with a big grin on his face. He asked silly questions like, "How did you get here?"
"Uh... my car."
I told him about The Vagabond Tour, took a picture with him, and then it was kind of strange awkwardness... So I asked if I could help them teach or something before I left. Luckily, they let me come!
After spending the rest of the evening teaching a guy named Bruce, we parted ways. It was SO SO SO GOOD to see Kelton again. He is a stellar missionary. A great example of what the Praise Project is all about as well.
So, I take off for Georgia, thinking I was running behind schedule (I was staying with someone from CouchSurfing.org), so I was booking it down the freeway. I get to Atlanta, and he let me know to take my time. Hmmm...! I am glad he did though because of what transpired next.
I figure I better get some gas, so I start aimlessly looking for a gas station. When I find one, I found a lot more than gas! I pull in, and when I get out of the car, I hear some loud rap music. I take a look around and I notice a little shop attached to the gas station called "Black Hollywood Media" in a nice community some would call "the hood" or "the ghetto." I fill up and was sitting in my car texting or something before driving off, when I get a knock on my window. "Whats the Vagabond Tour?"
I get out of the car and explain it to her, giving her a flyer and explaining Invisible Children and The Praise Project. She was impressed because she told me to get a stack of my flyers and follow her. We went to her store (Black Hollywood Media), swapped info, and she put my flyers on the counter to help advertise. SCHWEET! We talk for a while about a bunch of different things, I interview her, and I just hang out for a while in the middle of the hood. It actually felt pretty great - that is, being somewhere unexpected and seemingly "unsafe" but feeling completely comfortable and safe. Some people are completely misunderstood. That is all!
Anyway... When it was time to head out from there, I took of to find my CouchSurfing.com friend, who was finishing up at a party. I showed up, met some people, hung out there for a bit, and then headed to my temporary home. He was also hosting two people from Germany who were visiting the states for a few months. We had some good conversation, and then I dozed off from exhaustion.

Day 9 - June 19:
I slept in an hour or two, and took of to church. I roll in and there was only a car or two in the parking lot... Stake Conference. Luckily, one of the other cars knew where they were going! I was able to follow them far far away to another church building where, oddly enough, a gentleman spoke from my mission! The Stake President in Lexington, Kentucky was called to the Quorum of the 70 and was speaking at the spot I was visiting... SMALL WORLD.
Afterwards, I headed toward Centennial Olympic Park to meet up with an organization I had gotten in touch with online for a Free Hugs event. I showed up, walked around with my sign looking for them... no luck. I found a Marriott down the street and hopped online to see if they cancelled the event. I searched and searched for them online, but nothing. OK? So, I got back in the car and headed to my next destination. Montgomery, Alabama. I met some nice people on the state line who were headed down to help build houses for tornado victims. I would love to find something like that to do while down here.
Funny story: I took the "Mulberry Street" exit and just drove... I took a few turns and noticed a little plaque. I rolled right in front of Martin Luther King Jr.'s home. What are the odds of that?! It was definitely a nice little town and would love to return one day.
Fast forward a bit and I arrive in Chipley, Florida, home of the Nellums family. I was a missionary with Travis Nellums. It was a blast hanging out in that little country town with that crazy family. That night, Travis took me on a tour of Chipley. After 5 minutes,  we were headed home! To close off the night, I showed the Blue Roseline Bracelet DVD from Invisible Children to some of the family.

Day 10 - June 20
What a day! Travis and I drove to Fort Walton Beach, bowled a few games, played a game or two of pool, visited the beach, went to a Native American Temple Mound, and to a FHE potluck dinner. Woot!

Day 11 - June 21 (Today)
We had planned to sleep in, but as hard as I tried to sleep in, I was up before 9am... We drove down to Panama City Beach, walked around Pier Park - where I bought some flip flops (yeah, I cant believe it either...), walked on the algae infested beach (the gulf water is GREEN!), and walked along the main road to look at the attractions. Then we decided to go get something to eat... as we were pulling in to the parking lot of Little Ceasars, my car was acting really funny, and when we got back in the car, I noticed that the temperature gauge was to the top of the scale! We were right down the road from a car shop, so we headed straight there. Right as I was pulling in, the car died... :( Sitting half in the road, and half in the parking lot, I was able to get it started, and rolled up to the building... just as the car started to smoke. Turns out there was about $100 in repairs, but they were able to get it working again! Woot! I was NERVOUS that I was 3,000+ miles away from home without any transportation. Talk about one blessing after another blessing...
Now, I am sitting at a McDonalds. I was in my car, because I didnt want to get kicked out for loitering, but it got so hot that I couldnt stand it. Now it is late and I am outside basking in the warm summer night air. While sitting out here, I was visited by two homeless guys. They were probably in their mid 20s or 30s, and had mouths worse than sailors. We talked for a while, they told some stories of how they ended up on the streets (and how to get free coffee from McDonalds...), and they insisted on showing me youtube videos of heavy metal bands... I considered interviewing them, but I was worried about their language. That, and one of the guys was so baked that he was barely making any sense. The other guy volunteered himself to go to Africa and kill Joseph Kony and the Rebels when I told him about Invisible Children. Needless to say, I hope things work out for them and they are able to clean up their lives!
Well... I guess I better try to find out what I am going to do with my night... Where I am going to stay, and what I am going to do tomorrow! Keep it real! Keep praying! Keep doing good.

Peter.Moosman.

Week 1.143

Well, I have been away from home for a complete week (Sat morn to Sat morn). So, without further delay:

Day 1 - June 11: I hit the road at 8am. I drove and drove and drove. I took pictures and tweeted while I drove. I listened to the epic Vagabond Mixtape. I reached my first destination: Erie/Denver, CO. I visited with some relatives and went to dinner downtown with them. It was an honor to spend time with them (Shout out to the Bohns!) and walk the streets of such an incredible city and try to help a person or two. Then it was back on the road! Granted, I did get lost trying to get out of of the city... cause it was a big complicated one... Regardless, I drove and drove until I hit Sterling, Colorado. Sterling was where I slept... In the back of an LDS church parking lot in the back of my car.

Day 2 - June 12: I was able to stay for church in Sterling, which was a ward conference. I must say that the Stake President in that area is a spiritual rock star. He shared some of the most incredible messages I have heard in a long time! And they were much needed messages too, so that was even better!
After church, I hit the road again and drove through the road-trippers nightmare: Nebraska. It wasn't as bad as I had imagined it to be, but it was still pretty dang flat. I landed in Lincoln much earlier than I had planned, so I had lots of time for some relaxing and partying with my buddy Cody Oppermann. I got a nice tour of downtown Lincoln and the campus. Then we went home and watched the (Brown) Tony Bracelet DVD from Invisible Children. Good times were had by all! I got to crash on his comfy couch instead of my highly uncomfortable car. Thank you Cody!

Day 3 - June 13: After arising bright and early for the third day in a row (probably a record!), I hopped in my beautiful vehicle and headed eastward! As I drove over the Missouri River into Iowa, the rivers had been flooding, so I had to drive on the side-ish part of the road, since the other half of the freeway was covered in river. Yeah...
On this day, I drove through 4 states before noon. Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, and Missouri. I stopped in Kansas City and wandered - trying to share my message of the Vagabond Tour. Harder than I thought. I left the city sweaty (HUMID!!!) and a little discouraged (I am not a missionary any more) and full of secondhand smoke (maybe I just came at the wrong time, but I was AMAZED at how many smokers there were. DANG.)
A little while later, I landed in the wonderful city of St. Louis! I went directly to the home of a gentleman I ran into on my mission by the name of Eddie Byrd! It was so good to visit with him! During our visit, I was able to show him the (Grey) Rescue Bracelet DVD and we had a nice little discussion afterwards on it. Schweet!
After leaving Eddies, I headed on over to a friend from college who happens to be living just outside of St. Louis: JaNae Stoddard. Talk about a freakin' rockstar (and a great story teller). We talked about the Vagabond Tour, religion, diversity, LGBT topics, cicadas, Invisible Children, and a plethora of other things. I must say that she was an EXCELLENT host (I slept on their couch). Thanks JaNae and friends for the great time.

Day 4 - June 14: To continue the record, I arose early, got ready, and snuck out while everyone was still sleeping, only to be faced with a long stretch of old pavement. While I drove a minivan drove by and a couple kids in the back seat took a bunch of pictures of me with their camera. OK? I was hoping they would post them on the facebook page, but nope.
Fast forward a wee bit and I roll on in to Kentucky! The greatest place on earth! I drive in and the first thing I see: The West End (of Louisville). I would have it no other way. :)
I didn't stop in the West End though, but rather headed back up into Indiana. I went to visit the one and only Marie Robertson of the Sacred Heart Catholic Church. Marie is one of the most charitable people ever. She is getting on the older side, and needs knee surgery, so she has been down and out for a bit - please pray for her health and Gods will for her. It was an excellent visit!
After that, I headed to the glorious West End. I was able to spend some time with Jerry Cox and Jim Coombs (awesome Portlanders). Then, I went on a search to find another person I had worked with and baptized as a missionary. I tried to find his number... it was shut off. I tried to stop by his old place... nobody was there. I tried finding his new place - He had mentioned the last time I talked with him that he had moved to a certain street - I drove up and down the street a couple times, then got out of the car and started talking to anything that moved if they knew him... no success. Finally, I thought I would go try a phone book at a gas station... no good. All that work and I wasn't able to see him. Super bummed. BUT! When I was leaving the gas station, I ran into someone I had known from way back when! We talked for a while, and I ended up going over to visit him and the family later on that day. What are the odds of running into someone at a gas station?! It was crazy.
After my run in at the gas station, I went over to see if my favorite person - Mike Thompson - was still living in the same place. As I was going up the stairs, a neighbor told me he wasn't there, but down at the liquor store on the corner... I went down there and found him sitting in the liquor store, smoking a cigarette and drinking. "Hey you're that Mormon boy, right?" We talked for a while and then were eventually on our way. It was sad to see him in the state he was in... Hmmm...
As I was headed to another church parking lot to sleep, I remembered that I was supposed to be on TV the next morning, so I tried calling my friend who had set it up to get the details. When she heard that I was in the West End and headed to sleep in a church parking lot, she used some strong language to tell me otherwise. I ended up sleeping in her guest room. Thanks Tara! I have such amazing friends.

Day 5 - June 15: For breakfast, Tara and I went to Nancy's Bagels, which was where we first met one fateful day in 2008. Afterwards, we cruised on over to the studio and I awaited my time on the air. I ended up going on and we talked about my experience coming home from an LDS mission and trying to stay actively involved in the community, first by starting Project: 1200 and then by now going on The Vagabond Tour. We talked about Project: 1200 for a bit and then talked about Invisible Children. It was such a great opportunity to have air time! (ps - I went on right before Paula Dean).
After the show, I headed to the mission office and mission home. I was able to do my own little "going home" interview with President and Sister Glende, since they are going home in a week or so. After our discussion, President Glende gave me a blessing and sent me on my way. It was such an honor to spend time with such an amazing couple.
I then hit the road for a drive out to the country to visit the Toombs family at their new home in the middle of nowhere. I got a little lost, and while trying to find the house, I totally saw a few goats kickin' it IN a broken down van on the side of the road. It was hilarious and definitely something you only see in the country. The visit with the Toombs (when I finally found them) was great!
I had to cruise back in to Louisville QUICKLY to make it to see the Gabays before they got too busy. It was a short visit, but definitely a nice one. (PS - Thanks for the pizza!)
My last stop in Louisville was the Emge residence. I crashed their dinner and was granted a delicious homemade popsicle. I even got to visit Brother Hanson, since he was over for dinner, and Newborn Emge, who... kind of just laid there the whole time. ;)
Then it was on the road again...
I arrived in Lexington pretty late in the evening and had a fantastic conversation with Armando Chavez, a close friend that I had met while a missionary. He actually managed the apartments that we lived in, so we saw him quite often.
Then... I slept.

Day 6 - June 16: After breakfast with Armando, he went to work and my explorations began.  I headed over to the Lighthouse Ministries just in time to help out serve lunch to those in need. Lighthouse Ministries is a little organization that we did service with every week while in Lexington. Though nobody I knew was there, the familiar routine and experience was definitely a great one.
I had to leave a little early so that I could catch some lunch for myself. This time, with Armando and the LDS missionaries. We went to Ramsey's, which has the Veggie Hot Brown - the worlds greatest dish. I don't think I have ever eaten anything so wonderful (so, of course I had to get it again)!
Afterwards, we all went our separate ways again, and I was able to meet up with Tyler Isaacs and Curtis Blevins (and Company) for a while. I baptized Tyler many many moons ago! Needless to say, it was great to see the gang.
Next, I went to the Blancett household! What an awesome and energetic family! It started off an empty home except for Tara, then as we were talking, people slowly showed up. About that time, Tara decided to call the missionaries over for dinner, followed by her and I going to pick them up.
After the food, I took the missionaries teaching! We taught a super intelligent lady named... Margurite? I dunno how exactly to spell her, but the whole thing was AMAZING. She accepted the invitation to be baptized when she knew things were true, and had a highly impressive vocabulary for her age. :)
When that glorious experience was finished, Armando and myself headed back over to the Blancett's, where we played cards and talked till about 1am! DANG!

Day 7 - June 17th: Woke up bright and early and headed over to visit with Steve Coffin, a guy I met in Winchester Kentucky. We talked about all kinds of things... The environment, changing the world, protests, Invisible Children, and about The Vagabond Tour. Then, we watched the (black) Sunday Bracelet DVD from Invisible Children and had a discussion on that. Good times had by all!
Following that visit, I met up with Armando and went to an Indian Restaurant for lunch, followed by our final farewell. Then I was off to Winchester!
In Winchester, I tried stopping by an old friend (who had moved, of course!) and then visited the old Winchester LDS Bishop's home. His daughter was home, and after a nice little conversation with her, I headed out with a plan to return for dinner.
I then called the missionaries and spent the next few hours with them. We knocked door after door. It was such a fantastic opportunity to go tracting again! We had some good conversation and has given me a brighter outlook on how things are going in this world! Missionary work is probably the greatest thing on the planet...
When my time with the missionaries were up, I headed back over to the Wells home and visited with them for quite a while! Over dinner, we talked about road trips, causes, Project: 1200 and a TON of other things. I got to hear some pretty crazy stories from the lives of the Wells. That night, I watched the (red) Emmy Bracelet DVD from Invisible Children with Nicole and had a pretty good chat about Invisible Children afterwards. I gotta say that the Wells are amazing people! Everyone I have had a chance to visit with have been OFF DA HOOK incredible. 'Nuff said.

THE END (of week 1)

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Though it isn't part of the first week, I figured I would give a current update as well. I am sitting in the parking lot of McDonalds in Knoxvill, TN. This morning I visited with the Packs in Winchester, and this evening I will be visiting with (Elder) Kelton Gubler - From NSL, UT but serving an LDS mission in Cornelia, GA. I just had a heck of a drive to get to Knoxville, seeing as it has been storming something terrible since this morning. I have never hydroplaned like I have today. These roads are not suitable for driving in these conditions... but alas, I drive anyway!
I just got done chit chatting with a nice lady from Alaska about The Praise Project, Invisible Children, The Tour, and her story as a Native American fashionista/healer/smoker. It was definitely an interesting experience!
Alrighty then... my break time is definitely up. I think the storm I just drove through has passed on to my next stretch of road, so I will probably be driving in bad weather all over again! Woot!

Stay safe and healthy. Be good and kind. Take care!

peter.moosman.