Kevin Standlee: Fandom Is My Way of Life

Today was the nominal climax of our trip and reason for coming out to Layton, and that was to visit the Utah State Railroad Museum, which is housed in Ogden Union Station along with several other museums, displays, exhibits, and event spaces. After breakfast, we made our way up to Ogden over surface streets from Layton on account of medium-heavy fog; it seemed safer to do it that way.

( This Is The Place )

There's more to this building that just trains.

( Other Museums )

That was just the museums inside. Outside there was even more on display, although before that I got distracted by an anime costumer.

( Costume Time )

After the anime side-track (ahem), we returned to train-spotting.

( Outdoor Equipment Displays at Union Station )

After spending most of the day exploring the museum, we concluded that we had certainly gotten our money's worth, but that our legs and feet had had enough. We made a brief stop at a nearby model train store where Lisa found a few bits and pieces, and then it was time for an early dinner.

( BBD #44 )

While the fog had lifted, the freeway was still showing slow due to construction, so we made our way back to the hotel by surface streets again. This wasn't a bad thing, as it allowed us to have a look around, which we appreciated. Back at the hotel, we put on our swimsuits and took advantage of the hot tub. Unfortunately, Lisa's tinnitus is kicking back up again, but she was able to sit in the hot tub with her white-noise-masking radio wrapped in a towel. After about fifteen minutes, however, a group of children appeared, and between the screaming and the splashing (for which their mother apologized but was not quite able to corral), we decided that we were done.

We're still considering our travel plans for tomorrow as we head for home. It will depend upon the weather.

Today, around 30 members of SpikeCon/NASFiC 2019/Westercon 72 carpooled out about an hour north of Layton to tour in the ATK Rocket Garden (formerly Morton Thiokol) and get a talk about rockets at this location, after which we drove up to the Golden Spike National Historic Site, where we got to both see and participate in the reenactment of the driving of the last spike of the Transcontinental Railroad. I eagerly volunteered to be part of that.

( Governor )

The best compliment of my performance was from Bandit, who told me, "You do pompous well."

( Previously, at the Rocket Garden )

While there, we heard a presentation from an ATK employee who had been with the company and its predecessors for more than thirty years.

( Time to Eat )

After lunch, Scott Sanford, in whose car we traveled due to the Astro being hors de combat in Elko drove us to SLC Airport, delivering Linda D., who also traveled in Scott's car in good time for her flight home to Seattle this evening. Linda dozed off on the drive to SLC, and I came pretty close myself. Scott then brought us back to the hotel, where he and Lisa socialized while I got the video off of Scott's tablet computer and uploaded it thanks to the great upload speeds here compared to my home connection.

( Hidden Dinner )

We're here in Layton tonight (along with a small number of other hold-over guests), leaving for Elko tomorrow. I checked with the mechanic's shop, and we're still good to retrieve the minivan first thing Wednesday morning. I'm glad that we split the trip into two halves, even if it didn't turn into a requirement due to the minivan meltdown. I'm extremely tried.

Our big thanks to SpikeCon/NASFiC/Westercon for arranging for this fan expedition to see Rockets and Rails today, and I'm very happy that I could stay over an extra night here to make it possible. Lisa and I might just decide to make another trip out to these parts on our own to check out the various tourism opportunities without the pressure of a convention around us. But maybe not until after the 2021 Westercon.

Once we decided to go home via the faster route via Wendover rather than via Ely, the more direct route would have been via US-6, roughly paralleling the D&RGW (now Union Pacific) Railroad. However, we've driven that way before, and things we read yesterday about Interstate 70 in its final run to its western terminus in Utah led Lisa to suggest that we follow I-70 west to explore the San Rafael Swell, so we did. As Lisa did all of the driving, I had time to take lots of pictures.

( Leaving Green River )

Devoid of services west of Green River I-70 may be, but not devoid of scenery, especially if you like impressive mesas.

( Silly Hobbits to Climb Into Those Mountains )

I took a whole lot of photos of the passage through the Swell, which I have posted to their own album on Flickr.

At Salina, we left I-70, which runs a few miles farther to the southwest where it terminates at I-15 near Richfield.

( Through Utah, Bound for Northern Nevada )

The Red Garter is a bit of a disappointment after all of the Holiday Inn Express properties, even somewhat lackluster ones like the one in Green River UT. There is no fridge, the rooms are small, and there is no elevator, so we had to lump our bags up to the second floor. But there is a bed and a bathroom, and we don't need a whole lot more tonight.

Tomorrow, we go home. I think it's about time, too.

Today's travel mostly repeated an equivalent day on our 2008 trip to Denver for Worldcon, although we didn't have the unwanted auto repair adventure in Wells. (We hope the difficulty with the blower motor earlier this week was sufficient sacrifice to the minivan.)

Last night, while unpacking at the Rainbow Hotel in Wendover, I realized that I'd left my electric razor back home in Fernley. This is particularly galling because I specifically remember getting the razor (a second one that I'd bought so I'd have one in the Rolling Stone all the time) packed and ready to go. Apparently, I set the bag aside and forgot to actually put it in my luggage. I made do with my backup blade razor, but this was not going to be a viable long-term solution because I have really sensitive skin. Still, there was nothing to be done about it immediately, so we got breakfast, packed the van, and set out east. Lisa continued to drive us, leaving me free to take photos from time to time.

There are many photos behind the cuts here. There are even more on my Flickr account; click through any photo to go see the others if you are interested.

( Across the Salt Flats to SLC )

In Salt Lake City, we stopped at a Target store to look for an electric razor for me. I feared that I was going to have to buy a model that had more bells and whistles than I wanted just to get the features that I did want. Fortunately, we found a model that was almost perfect, other than not being the same as my current two razors (so the parts can't be shared between them). On the other hand, this one might become my new preferred model for road trips, because it doesn't require a drop-in charger; the charger just plugs directly into the base of the razor. In any event, Worldcon is spared my "fashionable stubble" look this year.

( Salt Lake City to Echo Canyon )

Not far beyond Echo Canyon, I-80 enters Wyoming. I was amused that the Wyoming port of entry (truck inspection station) is so close to the border that the exit is numbered using the Utah sequence.

( Western Wyoming )

We had been getting steadily farther behind schedule as the day wore on, but that's okay, as we had lots of time to spare. Passing through Green River, Lisa decided to go look at the railroad there, and that turned out to be a really good decision.

( Green River Yard )

We continued on to Rock Springs, where tonight we are staying in the Holiday Inn, where we stayed on August 3, 2008. Today's trip was under far more pleasant circumstances than eight years ago, although we still had to do a room shuffle to find a room with a bathtub (not just a shower stall) in it.

( Bus Tag )

We're very happy to have given ourselves time today to stop and sightsee. Tomorrow is similarly planned so that if we find stuff we want to look at, we don't have to skip it due to an iron timetable.

Lisa noticed at a room party this evening that other rooms had wired internet connections, and when we came back to the room explored and figured out that there was a wired connection in the wall, but it had not been plugged into the console that has various power and data connectors. She plugged it in, I connected the wired connection, and presto, we had wired internet.

Today, Lisa and I had few time-specific commitments. We therefore slept in late, and didn't get moving until nearly noon. This gave us time to go over and see a sight I never though I would see (or hear).

( Inside the Tabernacle )

Just before midnight, we returned to the hotel room to get wound down. Although we're not needed until the Fannish Inquisition at 11:30 Friday morning (I'm moderating; Lisa is recording), we can't lie in as late as we did on Thursday, and we're not able to party all night and con all day the way we were twenty or thirty years ago.