'Bringing sexy back'

We have been staying busy window shopping in historic Ellicott City, dining at Fells Point in downtown Baltimore and attending the wedding of my second cousin. I had to pass on the Electric Slide and Macarena, but we did dance as a family to a variety of songs both old and new.


Originally, we were going to rent a hybrid car and drive cross country back to California. But a dwindling budget, outrageous one-way rental car prices and soaring gas costs made us think twice.

We received several offers from an online posting I made on a rideshare Web site. Those offers ranged from driving someone's moving van out to Denver for them to catching a ride with someone else to Montana.

In the end, we decided it was best to fly back so that's what we're doing. We arrive in Oakland tomorrow night and will spend some time in the Mariposa and Sonora area before going on our journey's grand finale -- a backpack trip to Ediza's namesake, Lake Ediza.