011709

                                                                       Ventura to Santa Barbara to Goleta, CA

Saturday January 17, 2009

     8:30am  I forgot to tell you, I woke up on the roof around seven. I acquired, I Indian-Gave the CamelBak from Lorenzo this morning. He had crashed up there last night too. This morning when I got done packing he was still sleeping. I said out loud, "Lorenzo, I'm going to take back the CamelBak. You're never going to use it." He mumbled, "Okay." That was easy. Ugh, Lorenzo is all happy and drunk with the money he says he's raking in cleaning people's windshields. He's all brainwashed. Lorenzo has a warped mind. Anyway, I walked over to the park by the post office to take a shit. They're feeding breakfast at Catholic Charities at eight, so I'm already half an hour late. I got like four bucks from donations last night. Maybe I'll catch the bus to Catholic Charities and eat breakfast. I don't know if I'm going to leave today or not.

     10:38am  I got a hair up my ass to leave. I have four dollars in my wallet and a Vista transfer. I just got on without paying right now. The guy was cool. He had to come out and close the door for me, for the luggage compartment. I couldn't understand the latch to close it. I'm going to go to Santa Barbara at least and then ride the city bus to Goleta and go as far North as I can. If I don't stay in Santa Barbara for a day. I don't know. Santa Barbara sucks. I'm on the Vista bus right now. Bye-bye Ventura. I am leaving.

     11:30am  I am in Santa Barbara. I'll catch the bus to Goleta.

     11:32am  I asked a driver if he went to Goleta and he told me yes, eventually. He's giving me a courtesy ride. I appreciate it, brother.

     12:10pm  I just got off at Marketplace and Hollister Avenue, over by Storke Plaza and Marketplace Drive.

     12:14pm  I'm going to go hit up La Carreta Mexican Restaurant.

     12:15pm  Sweet, they're hooking me up, awesome.

     12:17pm  Sweet, scored at La Carreta. I'll take a picture of the outside.

     12:43pm  Man, about ten minutes ago I got hooked up with a fatass burrito! I have enough for later too. I'm going to stop in the shade here and take a smokebreak. Hmm, I see No Pedestrian signs. I can't get on the onramp, so I might be walking.

     12:54pm  I came underneath the 101 highway, anyway. There's plenty of traffic. Maybe a cop will stop, tee-hee.

     1:25pm  Dude, right after I took a hit of weed and coughed my lungs up, a highway patrolman stops his car and walks up to me. He tells me, "You can't be on the highway." I gave him the peace sign and smiled and told him, "There's something about the forbidden that makes it strangely desirable." He chuckled and said, "I know." He just told me not to be on the highway and I left in peace.

     1:52pm  I walked over to Hollister Avenue and there was a big protest on the corner. All these kids had posters that said FREE GAZA, SAVE PALESTINE, etc. Talk is cheap, I felt like telling them. I jaywalked across the street and I stopped in the median to take a couple pictures and this police officer starts yelling at me. "Get over here! What do you think you're doing?!" he yelled at my face. I told him, "I was trying to cross the street, calm down." I crossed the street and he yelled at me to sit on the curb, "Right now!" He was all telling me, "Let them have their protest!" I told him I was taking anything away from it, that, in fact, I was trying to document them having it. I was just a casual observer. I asked him, "What did I do wrong, officer?" He said, "Well, for starters, you were jaywalking and that's a misdemeanor." I told him wups. He said that I was ruining their protest by having him run out and yelling at me for jaywalking. What a joke. I told him I was really, really sorry and he patted me on the shoulder and walked off. He didn't even ask for my ID.

                    "FREE, FREE, PALESTINE! OCCUPATION IS A CRIME! Man, talk it cheap. They're not doing anything. Nothing at all. They're not raising any awareness. They need the internet.

                    Protests don't offer answers.

                    I do!

                    I came to the bus stop in front of the KMart and hopefully I can get further North.

                    I just took a picture of my new ashtray! The CamelBak I got hooked up with doubles an ashtray too, cool.

     2:30pm  Oh yeah, the Ellwood bus finally came and he said she only went like a mile more North. The driver asked me if I was trying to hitchhike and I told him yes. He told me I was better off here than over there. He said there's nothing over there. I took his advice and remained.

     2:42pm  Dude, in no-time! I came off the onramp and asked this homebum crossing the street if he could recommend a good spot to hitch North. He told me to just walk the street right there that went parallel to the highway North. I crossed the street and walked down the sidewalk to the next light and unloaded my bags. Like fifteen seconds after I put my bags down and thumbed the traffic Daniel pulls over for me in his white truck! I appreciate it, brother. Everybody gets credit.

     2:48pm  Hell yeah, I just got magically transported to a 76 gas station. I don't know exactly where. I'm going to ask permission to ask for rides.

                   The guy inside told me I could, but that I had to be on the side of the building and I could ask the people who park there. I didn't have a marker, but I made a shitty NORTH sign with a pen I had. While I was writing my sign David walked up and volunteered me some money! Everybody gets credit, thanks.

     3:27pm  I got bored standing on Winchester Country Road and Calle Real. I'm going to walk the access road. There's signs that say NO STOPPING.

     4:22pm  I got tired and bored on the onramp. Nobody picked me up. A couple of people actually pulled over, but I guess they saw my shirt and drove off. I'll just walk. I'm pretty tired. Maybe I'll go look for a place to take a nap.

     4:25pm  Buelton 30, San Luis Obispo 93, San Francisco 325

     4:26pm  Passing in front of the entrance of the Rancho Embarcadero neighborhood. I'm on Calle Real

     4:32pm  I forgot to tell you. I walked a little on the access road and there was a way on the highway, so I thumbed the small onramp.

     4:47pm  I got bored so I walked the highway to this yellow call box. I'm going to sit and smoke.

     5:10pm  I am leaving. In fact, I am doubling back to the gas station. I stood there for a while and I got bored. I saw a CHP across the street, so I took that as my sign to turn around and walk back where I came from.

     6:43pm  I already found my camp for the night. I didn't even walk all the way to the gas station. I'm pooped. Remember how I wanted to take a nap earlier? I was scanning for a campspot. I found a nice campspot. It's good that I found it when the sun was still up. It's perfect. It's off the side of the highway a little bit down the creek here. I'll take pictures in the morning. I'm going to go ahead and crash out. I'm going to wake up early too.

     1:10am  I woke up around 1am with about seven hours of sleep. It got cold as hell last night, but I stayed toasty warm in my bag. I'm going to smoke a cigarette and probably end up crashing out again.

                  Oh yeah, I lost those new batteries I bought at the Radio Shack. That sucks.

 

Next day..