> Ell:
> I people-watch too--it's always amusing. No I didn't make any of it up...I'm glad you think my family sounds interesting. I'm not loud and outgoing like they are, and no one can believe I'm related to them. When people think my family is scary or distasteful, I assume that the person making that judgement needs to loosen up. Eccentric people, especially aging hippies, are the best. Has your mother ever admitted to hitchhiking? They never admit it anymore, I guess so as not to encourage us.

Oh, yes, my mom admits to hitchhiking everywhere from Illinois to Vancouver to California, and probably more places that I don't know about. I have no idea how many miles she travelled while using that mode of transportation, but twice she had to flee for her life in order to escape evil-minded men. She had a backpack, a down sleeping bag and art supplies, which usually consisted of a canvas and some oil paints in her artistically-designed art box. It's been 25 years, but she still uses both the art box and the sleeping bag.

My father did the hitchhiking thing too, and I guess he made several cross-country trips using that method. That was 20-something years ago, too, and he now travels by plane and a car (that actually runs).

I have yet to hitchhike, and I don't really plan on doing it any time in the near future. It's more risky for females than it is for males, I like driving and I don't do well standing or walking for hours on end.

Ell"Parental stories are fun"myruh