Virginia to Alaska and back on an '86 Yamaha Radian

Thanks, and likewise!
Thankful for you sharing your story also.

All the best to you and yours on this Thanksgiving weekend Anna!
JJ

Welcome back, thanks for sharing.

I never close this window on my iPad in hopes of finding a new entry. Thank you Anna for continuing on with this RR! Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.

JimLob65,
All you need to do is click on the "watch thread" near the top right of the page and you will be notified whenever there is a new post to the thread.
JJ

Yeah, well aware of that....much easier my way,

Fortunately it's not Thanksgiving in Canada! Great to see another installment Anna for those of us who have greatly enjoyed following along. I admire your persistence regardless of time. I never did finish the final installments of my RR from riding the 2010 Mongolia Rally. Maybe one day I will go back to that forum. Rock on!

Thank you for a great road report! If you find yourself in Alaska again- you are always welcome to our campfire.

Yay!

I'm a lil late to the party but I'm all in. I'm Alaska bound in 2020 from WV so I love to read about these rides. Best RR ive ever read, what a truly awesome inspiring young lady.

Part 3—Day 7

Fort Worth, TX—Dallas, TX: 40 miles

September 18, 2012


I stayed with my step-brother, Joel, and his wife and kids for a night in Fort Worth. He and his twin brother Nathanael entered my life when I was sixteen or seventeen. Those were probably the hardest years of my adolescence. My parents were divorced, my siblings had all fled, and my mom had started dating their dad, Tom. It would be an understatement to say I didn’t like the idea.

Aside from seeing how happy my mother was, finally, I still had my reservations about Tom. It wasn’t until I met his two goofball sons that my heart softened a bit and my skepticism of the relationship lessened. My perspective changed once I identified with these two casual dudes that played guitar, made me laugh, and made me feel cool. From the perspective of a sixteen-year-old, my family had abandoned me, leaving me alone, so there was a nostalgic familiarity about having two big brothers again.

I hadn’t seen any family since Portland and the short visit I had with Joel and Nathanael reminded me not just of how much I missed my brothers, but of how much I missed home. Watching Joel and Nathaniel tease each other like big kids, and the compassion they had for their wives and children felt so warm and natural I realized how much I longed for the intimacy of a close family. That was something I had lost long before Dan’s death.


(Nathanael's son Benjamin loved the bike)

After visiting with Joel and Nathanael, I said goodbye to my brothers and hopped back on the highway for a short ride to my grandfather’s house in Dallas. It was a monotonous 40 mile cruise through sticky Texas. I hadn't been there in over ten years and it hadn't changed a bit. I felt like I was driving back in time as if Dallas was a place that stopped moving when the world kept turning.

Both of my parents were born and raised in Dallas. I only have a few memories from when we lived there when I was little. They are not complete memories and some of them may just be connected to photographs I have seen or stories I have been told.

Grandon wasn’t a grandparent that remembered by birthday or sent me a Christmas present. He actually wasn’t in my life much at all. I think the last time I had seen him or talked to him before this visit was on Dan’s wedding day three years ago. And before that, it had probably been close to ten years since I had seen him. Regardless of the distance between us, Grandon was a man much like my father. He had a genuine smile and bellowing laughter that would capture anyone’s attention. He could light the room up with his positivity and happy-go-lucky attitude and he may be the kindest man I have ever known.

As I rode into Dallas I met Grandon at a little diner on the side of the road he suggested. “This place has the best fried chicken,” he said. It looked like a truck stop diner that hadn’t been renovated since 1980. It had yellowed wallpaper thickened with years of tobacco smoke, faded artificial flowers on the tables, and poo brown chairs and tables not designed for comfort. Grandon was right though. That fried chicken was the best.
After lunch, I followed Grandon to his house, just a short drive from the diner, and was warmly welcomed by Grandmother Beth. She is my step-grandmother, and the only grandmother I ever knew on my dad’s side. My dad’s mother died before I was born. I actually have more memories of Grandmother Beth than I do of Grandon. That may be just because I am a girl that connected more with female family members. What I remember appreciating the most about Grandmother Beth is her artistic talent and influence. Around the time I was pursuing art myself, I remember her visiting and taking artsy photos and teaching me how to make beaded necklaces. She is a woman of style and fashion that inspired me in my early years with her elegance and beauty which as a little girl I could only hope to achieve

She was beside herself seeing me pull into the driveway on the radian in all of my gear. She insisted on taking photos and she shined as she walked with her graceful radiance that I have always remembered. Her beauty still stands with her.

It was a wonderful evening spending time with my grandparents. And I’m so thankful I took the time to do so. It’s amazing how easy it is to lose touch with family and yet how easy it is to reconnect. No matter how far the distance or how long it’s been, love is what will always last, and that’s what family is for.

This post is dedicated to my grandfather, Don Neumeister. August 17th, 1924 - January 13th, 2016.

Your Grandfather sounds like he was a wonderful man. Your description of him as the kindest person reminds me of the person I want to be. It is high praise in my opinion. Thanks for continuing the ride report. When it is done i plan to share it with my Daughter-In-Law, who in many ways would truly appreciate your story.

Good to see you again!

Your continuation of this story really added to my day! Thank you for that. I really look forward to your writings.

Did I miss something.....or, more likely, forget something? What happened to the front fender on your bike?
Did it get messed up when you lost the windshield at the hostel parking lot?

I was wondering the same thing.

Anna, hope the six years since this odyssey have been wonderful, and maybe, someday, we can read about it too, in your own special way. tomp dd50

Thank you Anna.

She's back!