Telluride, Colorado

Friends & Family

One of my goals for our road trip is to touch base with friends and family across our route. So, early in the planning process, I reached out to a variety of folks, including friends, family and colleagues and I even posted our route on my high school alumni Facebook Group. All in all, we will be visiting nearly as many friends as days driving. The first were Jeremiah and Theresa in Farmington, NM, about whom I wrote on Sunday night.

We will be visiting with ASU friends, Phoenix friends, high school friends and an alum I have never met, a home town friend I met on Facebook, a former China Mist employee with whom I have built a close friendship, a member of my EMSL cohort, and lots of cousins from both my mother’s side and my father’s side of the family. The trip has afforded me an opportunity to introduce these folks, who are part of my life story, to my son—an opportunity for him to know me through them as well.

For our third and fourth night, we are staying with Phoenix friends Bill Lewis and Rick Underwood and their cat, Diego, in their home in Telluride, Colorado. Suzanne and I have known Bill & Rick for many years, we have friends in common, mostly from common community interests, and we have always enjoyed their company.

The couple also has two Teslas—a Model S and a Model X and a home in Telluride with a garage and a charger, so Watts Her Name also gets to power up and sleep indoors for a spell. When we arrived, I was delighted to find Bill MacDonald and Chris Hartman here on their last day of a visit. After a nice lunch and quick tour of town, we had a grand time discussing EVs, politics and life over a wonderful dinner prepared by Rick and look forward to spending another day with them in this beautiful valley.