Thanksgiving 2013... On the Road

Our time in the West, albeit short, is done. We saw most of the people we wanted to see (see you next time Laima...) and got to experience the Southwest during the winter (not what we were looking for). We did our work and received our gifts. Time to head back to the island.

The "10" is magnificent. We headed South out of Phoenix to Tucson and down the 10 towards El Paso. So much open space. West Texas is empty and amazing and after 10 hours on the road we pulled off in Ft Stockton for the night. It was 30 degrees the next morning at 6:30AM. The drive East was amazing and we pushed on until 11:00 or so when our stomachs began to growl. It is Thanksgiving and we were hankering for some turkey.

I saw the sign for the Cracker Barrel on a bill board in the middle of the high desert. Exit 335, 56 miles. 45 minutes late, we pulled off the highway and into the mayhem. Traffic was backed up trying to get into the parking lot. Families were standing outside and sitting in the rocking chairs (if you are familiar with Cracker Barrel you'll know what I mean...). I dropped Connie off to wade into the insanity and circled four times before I found a parking spot. After watering the dogs I entered the madness; wall to wall people dressed in their best West Texas garb waiting to he seated. Connie had worked her way to the front and was ordering two turkey dinners.... take out. After 15 minutes we received our food and retreated to the car where we enjoyed a hot turkey, stuffing, mashed potato, corn muffin and pecan pumpkin pie dinner. From payment to completion was 27 minutes. Fantastic.

7 hours later we are hunkered down for the night in Matairie, LA. The dogs have been bathed, Connie and I are showered and we are ready for the final push to SSI for some downtime. We had anticipated a longer stay in the SW, but when you know, you know. So back East we come... It has been a blast; an adventure... and as Helen Keller wrote " Life is an adventure... or nothing."

Life is good.

Los Alamos, New Mexico

Home of the atomic bomb. It was a town created in mystery, labeled "The Town That Never Was", for the specific purpose of beating the Nazis in the development the atomic  bomb.

We drove up this morning and got a good feel for this quirky, nerdy, green, slightly diverse, upper middle class community. Lowest unemployment, highest educational attainment in the state. The National Nuclear Laboratory in Los Alamos is the largest employer in NM with 11,000 employees.

We spent a couple hours in the Bradbury Museum learning about the history of the town and the atomic project. After a great Mediterranean restaurant lunch we hiked the Bandolier National Monument. Great day.

"Little Boy"  the Hiroshima bomb

"Fat Man" the Nagasaki bomb

 We're probably too old to be having this much fun.

 

 800 year old Loop Trail, ladders up the cliffs, grooves in the stone from eons of foot traffic

 I climbed to the top of the mesa and, upon returning, found Connie doing yoga to the setting sun. The pose is called sun salutation. We don't know what the pink orb is in the photo, but we know what we believe it to be. The veil is very thin in this enchanted land.

"Isn't anybody scared? Nobody's holding onto Mama."

              

~quote from Azerbaijan as she fell off the sidewalk

More Santa Fe Sunsets

I remember the first time I saw the Swiss Alps, I was so awe struck by their majesty that I took 4 rolls of film. Of course none of the pictures even came close to capturing their grandeur, especially in those days of the Instamatic Kodak (remember the cube flash bulbs?) .

At any rate, I feel the same thing about trying to photograph these New Mexico sunsets. Every evening I scurry around stunned by the color and the beauty, trying different settings on my new smart Sony Cyber-shot (thank you Katie and Elnur!). It is certainly a huge improvement from 1969, but still only touches the edges of what can be experienced by just standing still on Wayne and Holly's overlook.

No wonder they call New Mexico "The Land of Enchantment".

Santa Fe Sunset

 

 

We are enjoying house sitting for our good friends, Wayne and Holly, here in Santa Fe. The views are spectacular as is their home. We feel blessed.

 

We drove 2200 miles west and 7200 feet in elevation from Saint Simons (sea level). We sure notice the elevation change on our daily walks.  The dogs are peacefully coexisting with a fearless black cat name Ninja. Ninja has decided they are harmless... I think.... I hope.

 

The drive across the USA was, as always, jaw dropping. What an awesome, expansive country, so diverse, so beautiful. Again, we feel blessed.

 

Thank you to our Vets today... and every day.

 

 

 

 



As the Song goes...

"On the road again..."

The grand plan is to spend some extended time in the Southwest which we so enjoyed a few years back. We are one day out from Wayne and Holly's home in Santa Fe and looking forward to seeing them.

We left Saint Simons Island on November 1st "in a fever hotter than a pepper sprout"... as the song goes. It was the weekend of the Georgia-Florida football game and the start of the 4th annual PGA McGladley Golf Classic. The island was hopping! A bitter sweet departure from our wonderful friends and our sweet little cottage. But the timing was right for an adventure so down the road we went.

 We stopped in Monteagle, Tennessee for the night, just up the I-24 Slide from Chattanooga. In the morning I took this Americana picture of sunrise over the Monteagle Super 8 and Waffle House. Yup, back on the road. Feeling good.

First stop, Nashville...

It was a short visit as it turned out to be the Annual Bourbon, Beer and Barbeque Festival, a rowdy scene... not our thing, but Connie was thrilled to meet Elvis.

 

At that point we were only 4 hours from Connie's brother, Mike, and family in Burlington, KY.  Rhonda and Mike were so gracious to invite us for an impromptu visit. And getting to see Molly, Chris, Meghan and Ashley was icing on the cake. Great time. Thanks ever so much...

 We gassed up on the way out of town. Another Kentucky bonus...

We headed down "The 46" on Tuesday morning and thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful day driving through the Indiana farm country all the way to Saint Louis. The next day was a different story, rain and heavy truck traffic on "The 44". No fun, but the weather and the traffic cleared by Springfield and the Missouri farm country was just as scenic.

Wednesday night found us in El Reno Oklahoma where we hunkered down in a nice Best Western and where we enjoyed watching the 2013 Country Music Awards. No twerking, no obscenities, just fabulous music and decent human beings, a Subway turkey sandwich, a cold Yeungling and a good nights sleep. Perfect.

We lingered over the excellent TexMex breakfast buffet talking with an 80 year old woman named Ann Johnson from Kansas who was headed for the salt flats on a birding excursion and a big Okie roughneck headed for the oil fields. Americans are wonderful, genuine folks and everyone has a story they will tell with just a little encouragement. My amazing wife has a wonderful way of engaging people and getting them talking.

 

We drove by the exit for Foss, Oklahoma before doubling back at the next exit. Glad  we did. Here are some photos of the proud little broken down town.

 

 

Connie loved the cardinal... of course.

 

The community tornado shelter.

Main Street

And it wasn't just the Foss name we found in the cemetery...

The poor town struggled from 1900 to 1937 to get on it's feet. They were devastated over and over again, by a flood, by two major fires, by the dust bowl and finally by the closure of a nearby military base. Today there are no stores, no banks, no school, only a handful of homes and a Baptist church. I mean, we Fosses are tough, but holy cow, we also "know when to hold em and know when to fold em"... as the song goes.

"The 40" from Oklahoma City to New Mexico was fabulous; blue sky, bright sunshine, light traffic, 75 mph speed  limit, stunning high desert landscapes, 50 miles of majestic whirling wind machines, butes, canyons, washes, cows... Tonight we ate some incredible Mexican food at Del-reo's in Tucumcari, New Mexico. Our waitresses name was Stormy. She and Connie bonded... of course.

We're having a blast.

Happy Birthday Dad... belated