Ok so around June 14th I drove down to Nashville in hopes of relocating there. I drove almost straight thru from Michigan. I got a cheap hotel room in Ohio but after I layed my head down my dog went nuts. Come to find out the field accross the street was hosting the 2007 police and firemans games for the state of Ohio. There were K-9 everywhere and Baxter wouldnt let me sleep. I finally got up anf loaded the truck and left. The hotel was $40 bucks and a major dump but the owner wouldnt give me my money back hehe.

So I got right back on the freeway and Baxter and I were Nashville bound once again. I hit an outlet mall somewhere in Kentucky so I could stretch my feet a little. I bought a new pair of running shoes in the Adidas store. They were the first pair of new shoes and as the matter of fact, they were the first real thing I've bought myself since I arrived in Mississippi for Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It was a good feeling and I felt "free" for a moment. Not even a year before this I couldnt afford to buy deoderant so ya, it's a good feeling. It's almost impossible to get sponsorship for disasters if you have too much pride to ask like I do. I hate that about myself. I would rather sleep in my truck and eat ramen noodles then ask for help. I just cant do it. So ya, it was nice being able to buy something for myself.

So I get back on the road and I'm just pumped up. I love driving and more important, I love the adventure! Around 4am I arrive in Brentwood, TN. I knew the first place I was going before I even left Michigan hehe. Theres a small gas station there that sells the best, freshest banana chips I've ever had. So I dropped in there and bought a bag and a tall black coffee. I arrived at the hotel sometime around 5am. After checking in and unloading I took a hour long shower and just before I passed out from exhaustion I managed to slip into my bed.

The next afternoon I met some old friends for coffee. Tom and Rhonda are a fantastic couple I met when I was here before. We had alot to talk about and after decided to head to the Country Music Hall of Fame in downtown Nashville. It was WAY too expensive to get in there especially for someone like me living on a small budget. But I sucked it up and payed the lady but she got the evil eye if you know what I mean! Anyway once inside I was amazed. The statues, wax look-a-likes and all the stuff in there made me realize why they charge so much. All I have to say is WOW! After another coffee I left Tom and Rhonda and headed back to the hotel to give my feet a break.

When I was there in December 2006 I loved it so much I wanted to move there. They have some awsome radio stations there also. I only mention that because it's hard to find good christian rock stations anymore. So I could just sit in my room or in my truck for hours and listen to all the best toons ever. I love that station!

Anyway I fell in love with Nashville and the Granny White Church of Christ. It's a fantastic church and reminds me of my father. He use to write songs and back in the 70's he wrote a country song called "Ole Granny White". I never understood the song and never put much thought into the song but I use to love it as a kid. One day I was driving down Granny White Pike talking to my father on the cell phone. He told me the song was written BECAUSE of Granny White and the historical significance she had on our troops in the civil war. It turns out Brentwood, Tennessee has quite the history and it inspired my father when he lived there long long ago. I thought that was pretty cool.

After calling a lady I made arrangements with prior to coming down here, I discovered I dont have a home to rent after all. So craigslist.com I went. I called and I called and I called. Man it seemed like everything was too expensive and if it wasnt it wouldnt allow a dog. I was having horrible luck. I went thru the papers every day and still had no luck in the area I was looking.

On June 20th I had been at the hotel longer than I anticipated at this point. I couldnt stay there much longer or I wouldnt be able to afford a deposit and first months rent on a house. So I had to make some emergency decisions here. Do I put my dog in a kennel till I find something more permanent? Do I get rid of my dog so I can get something in my price range? I seriously went back to step one and didnt know what I was gonna do. So I turned on the TV and poof, there was a story on Hurricane Katrina and Mississippi. I'm thinking to myself, should I go back down there for awhile? Should I go back to Michigan? What should I do and where should I go? I turned the TV off and prayed about it. I asked God to help me decide. I asked him to draw a map for me.

So I went to bed and woke up the next morning. I made a pot of coffee (if thats what you wanna call it) in the pot in my room. I flipped on CNN to see what was happenin and drink my coffee. What I saw was Hurricane Katrina again. Wait! Thats looks like Katrina but the wording said "Texas State Police" on the bottom of the screen. I kept watching and learned there was a major flood down in Gainesville, Texas. Man it looked just like Katrina from the pics. Choppers flying over and rescuing families and the whole shot. WOW! I never even knew there was a storm there.

I thought it out and jumped on my computer. I looked for a hotel or apartment for rent down here. I found it on the map and made some calls. It's a small town on the border of Oklahoma. It's about an hour north of Dallas and 2 hours south of Oklahoma City.

Anyway I've been here in Gainseville, Texas since June 25th. I'll write more later but gotta run.