The CGØ [rail]Roadtrip, January 08...

... which began New Year's Day, and stretched 3 full weeks.

Also known as the trip in which Terpsichore saw, for the first time, with her own eyes, the Mountains, and the Ocean.

Postcards

A private-press recording sent to us by Laura Balch a few weeks before we set out on our train trip. Incredibly poignant; thanks Laura!

The train journey was 52 hours from Chicagø to the Bay. Among our most important provisions were dice, cards, and tea - stored in this plastic red lunchbox - not to mention one particularly notable object...

... kept safely in this box...

... which we applied everything we could -

- including things like scorecards, which we had plenty of. This stamp would, once in SFZero, be applied to the notebooks, napkins, and bodies of souvenir-seeking local players.

We had eachother to keep company for the 3 days on the train...

but we also solicited other passengers to make conversation.

Justin and Mindy were excited about grass cells and grammar, respectively.

Rob taught us Yatzee.

Michelle is a woman who travels from place to place. Darren is a quiet Welsh boy studying in New Zealand.

We also made friends with the cafe-car meastro, Sid, who taught Dax how to pick locks (but that was on the way back).

Dax also painted lots of pictures of Terpsichore, for which she held incredibly still for minutes at a time.

The most beautiful things can be seen from the train, as this photograph demonstrates.

Terpsichore in Colorado, viewing real mountains (the Rockies) for the first time.

Yep.

Terpsichore was fascinated with the bright red clay of the mountains which the train tracks sliced through - against which she is here pictured.

Terpsichore traveling in style through the Sierra Nevadas. California, at last.

Dax had a list of magical places to visit around the Bay. These included Sutro Baths (pictured), Moss Beach, the Chapel of the Chimes & Mountain View Cemetary of Oakland, the Wave Organ, the Musée Mecanique, Paxton Gate, and the mystical Purple Buffalo of Golden Gate Park.

And Terpsichore saw the ocean.

Along our travels, we met with players, and made our auspicious mark.

Freight Train

This performance of "Freight Train" by Ester and Avery in Santa Clara would become the soundtrack of our travels.

Ester and Avery in watercolor (painted later, from memory).

Terpsichore always held her BART ticket in hand while riding the trains, in anticipation of having to use it to exit the station (this never happens in Chicago).

We ate copious amounts of Naan 'n Curry while in the Bay, but, more importantly, we breakfasted multiple times at Dax's favorite restaurant ever: The Home Made Cafe in Berkeley.

The cutest portrait of Terpsichore was painted at Home Made, naturally.

An attempt to photograph the most beautiful view of Sutro Tower, from the top of the Mountain View Cemetary in Oakland. The tower is located at that bright spot in the middle of the skyline... honest.

The social climax of our visit was to be the Insatiability Party with SSI. This is a gift of Haiku from Terpsichore to Sam.

And once at the party, we stamped...

and stamped...

and stamped.

Tiny Dancer sang Dax a song in order to receiver her stamp, which was the most significant barter of the evening.

Arthur!

If you weren't at the party, you missed some... things...

We also visited Yosemite. Holy Shit.

Dax got in a snowball fight with his father across the Yosemite Falls creek. Dax attributes his humiliating defeat to the icy precipice from which he was attempting to lob the fluffy missiles.

This is an attempt to photograph magic. Can you see it?

Our last day in San Francisco, by the Wave Organ, hanging out with these shivering SFØ ninnies.

Cheers to exquisite memories.