Update from the States

Well hello there! If you're reading this, it is probably because I told you I was leaving and offered a URL to track me as I travel. I'll update this blog as frequently as blog-worthy experiences and wi-fi connections allow.
Trip and I have packed away 99.9% of our room at the Lorax. Most of it went to the dark attic storage unit or the front yard free pile. Both of these locations had their own casualties: my camping pot was packed away, most likely below the five to six feet of bags and boxes and my "wabam!" jeans (Trip's words, not mine :) that I scored from a neighbors free pile were sucked back in to the free pile vortex of our house never to be seen again; easy come easy go, I suppose.
I packed my life into my trusty $14 REI Scratch and Dent backpack and said goodbye (not before having a great going away party..see below). My life consists of: a sleeping bag, pad, soon-to-arrive one person tent (thanks girlfriend sponsorship!), two pants, two dresses, one tank top, one shirt, two jackets of different weights and long underwear. Also in my possession is a swim suit and sarong (after seeing Isa, Ian and Yoko with theirs in Baja, I can't imagine traveling without!), five pairs of underwear, three bras (2 sport, one regular), a hat, first aid kit which includes, but is not limited to: Tums, toothpaste (hippie kind), toothbrush and replacement head, meds: malaria prophylactics, yeast infection pills, Cypro for my weak stomach and Plan B! For entertainment I have a book given to me by Isobel, The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende, The Art of War zine, a tiny computer given to me by my dad and the most exciting of all: a blue collapsible hula hoop!
Trip and I had a proper Lorax sendoff last Thursday night. We rearranged the furniture to create the famous "Outdoor-tex" circular couch arraignments in the front yard. Friends starting coming at 7:30pm, and the delicious, one-of-a-kind Nikasi keg was tapped at 8. For the potluck, Isa and Ian made cowzones with homemade sauce, Tim and Mer made the most delicious tofu choco pudding, we provided fresh garden corn on the cob, salsa and chips and Teresa saved the day with not one, but two bottles of Champagne. The night included live art a la Amy Fox and my right arm, a bumpin kitchen dance party, fire spinning (yes, we were probably too drunk for this one) and a melodic water drinking circle to wrap things up.
We spent Sept 5-9th in Geneva, Indiana celebrating my grandma's wedding! Actually, she and her new husband eloped in July and this was the Stucky reception. I got to catch up with all my cousins and spend time with my step-grandpa Jerry. It was nice to be in very very very sleepy Geneva for my last few days with Trip. We went running around the lake, Amish watched, slept in, enjoyed poor cell reception and no wi-fi.
In the Indiana airport, as I boarded for California and he Oregon, we were the typical lovers airport spectacle: hugs, kisses, long gazes into each other's eyes and soft touches to the cheeks, completing the last bit of mental and physical memorization. I was in such a daze when I crossed security that I went to the wrong gate and waited in line for at least 4 minutes before I realized my mistake.
That leads me to now. I'm sitting in the airport in Phoenix, waiting for my flight to Oakland. Trip is en route to Oregon. I'll spent two days in the bay area finishing the final tasks (buy a lighter, mail student loan papers), then leave for awhile to be in Spain and a few other unknowns locations.