is there any more pie?

Seeing the mountains appear in the distance…

And get closer…

And wondering about the people who worked in that barn…

Hello, Wyoming!

We finally had a sunny day! Woke up to blue skies and sunshine this morning, and we actually got on the road by 8:15, due to forgetting about the time change. We stopped on the way out of town for gas, water and coffee. I don’t know why it felt like such an easy day–maybe it was the lack of rain.

Mile 112: stopped at the “Coffee Cup” gas station for, well, coffee. Saw three men in cowboy hats, which is always a thrill. Since I couldn’t sneak a picture of any of them in the parking lot, I took this:

Mile 246: stopped in Sheridan, Wyoming for lunch and gas. Glen opened a new bag of sunflower seeds, and we got lost trying to get back on I-90 due to construction and detours.

Mile 298: I yelled at Glen for the first time (not bad for Day 5). He was giving me directions while I was trying to find things for him in the back seat. I then took a nap.

Mile 370: stopped in Billings, Montana for ice cream at the most beautiful McDonalds I’ve ever seen. It had couches, a large tv and laptop stations. I took over the driving and Glen took a nap.

Mile 521: arrived in Bozeman after 7 PM. Ate a couple of tacos, went to Walmart for a few groceries for breakfast, and ended up in the hotel in time to see the last 20 minutes of “The Bachelorette”.

We expect to be at the lake tomorrow afternoon. Hurray!

Restaurants: 1 Perkins, 1 McDonalds, 1 Taco John.
Road Kill: 1 coyote, 3 deer, 1 antelope and 2 unknowns

Another long day on the road (almost 500 miles), but an easy one. Interstate all the way, with the usual rain and road construction. Heading across Minnesota and into South Dakota tomorrow.

Will give you the road kill and restaurant report in the morning…

Please, do not judge me.
I hadn’t slept much. I sat in an oatmeal bath at 5:00 AM.
“Pitiful” was my middle name.
I ate plain, nonfat yogurt at 6 AM. With fresh fruit that I cut up myself. I did not eat the free waffles and whipped cream in the breakfast room.
I made an effort to look less like a bag lady today, by blow-drying my hair and even curling it.  I put make up on.
And I didn’t get cranky when Glen had to work until 9:30 this morning because the stock market has been insane.
I helped pack the car. Despite the helicopter in the field next to the hotel’s parking lot, and the rain. And the wind. My hair no longer looked nice due to the damn helicopter, which sat in the field whirling and did not take off the entire time we were loading up our stuff.
My legs itched.

So, before we got on the interstate for another fun-filled rainy day, I asked Glen to stop at McDonald’s for this:

Kinda makes life worth living, doesn’t it?

To be continued…

Thursday, June 23
Departed at 9:30 AM  (later than we had hoped, but the car had to be packed and I had to make a CVS run to get prescriptions for Glen).

It took me three years, but I managed to sneak the guitar-shaped cake pan into the trunk.  I bought the darn thing at a yard sale 6 years ago for 5o cents, so it’s a precious possession.  I don’t know why Glen thinks it should go to the dump.

I thought we did a good job this year. You can’t see the 7 glass pie plates wrapped in bubble wrap and tucked into the trunk, but they’re there. I’ve been collecting them all winter.  There is also a banjo, guitar and violin, plus assorted bags of music.

3 miles:  Glen realized he’d forgotten his cell phone charger, so we turned around and went home to get it.   I was in the middle of painting my bug bites with clear fingernail polish when we discovered we weren’t exactly on our way.  The night before while we were watching recorded episodes of Masterchef (Glen’s favorite) I saw itchy red bumps popping up on my feet.  By the time we finally got in the car to leave, huge quarter-sized bites were all over my legs, too.  And since I’ve had experience with bug bites (yeah, highly allergic), I always carry nail polish.  Just in case chiggers attack me.  Which I guess they did.

Anyway, Glen waited 45 whole minutes before asking me a map question. Stopped for coffee in Connecticut.  And by noon we’d crossed into New York, where the rain was still coming down in torrents.  I painted 29 bug bites with calamine lotion, which is not a good look when wearing capris.

200 miles:  We stopped for lunch at a Wendy’s in Pennsylvania.  One of the best things about road trips is looking like a drowned rat (I forgot to pack my hooded sweatshirt) wearing socks and sandals, with pink-spotted legs, and knowing you’re not going to see anyone you know.

234 miles:  I drive while Glen takes a nap.

244 miles:  I wish I’d splurged on satellite radio.  Maybe it’s not too late?

245 miles:  I start counting road kills.

416 miles:  Glen wakes up.  We stop for gas and I inhale a bag of potato chips.  I itch.  I scratch.  I think I’m going to throw up.  I eat an Atkins cinnamon bar.

508 miles:  We arrive in Clarion, PA and stop at Walmart for oatmeal bath powder, yogurt, and 3 college football magazines.  I sit in the tub for an hour, call Mom, eat yogurt, and then spend an hour and a half trying unsuccessfully to insert a google map into this blog.

Hotels:  1 Comfort Inn

Restaurants:  1 McDonalds (coffee), 1 Wendy’s, 1 Subway

Road Kill Count:  4 deer, 1 groundhog, 4 unknowns.

We made it!  It was a busy, rainy day on the road, but we’re tucked into our motel room in Clarion, PA now.  I’ll post the details of Day One after I eat dinner, a bowl of yogurt and blueberries.  It was an uneventful day, except for a mysterious rash and having to turn the car around and go back for Glen’s cell phone charger.

Stay tuned…