The End is Near!

It is 2AM MST as I post this. The Internet is finally working. I guess they had to wait for the night shift to come in to reboot the router. The jerk on duty when I suggested that didn't know what I was talking about! And about my being up at 2AM, well I went to sleep at 7:30PM and woke up about an hour ago. I'll probably go back to sleep after I post this.

We beat the sunset into Albuquerque - it was just 3PM (MST, 4PM CST). We got an early start, 6:30 AM CST, out of Tulsa on the Turner turnpike. traffic was light most of the day. The bird fought a brisk head wind all day, so I’m sure her MPG will be down. Speaking of down, that’s what the free wi-fi internet access is at this Days Inn, so I’m writing today’s blog as a text file to post tomorrow when we get to the park and get the network up and running.

We drove past a small wind farm early in the AM, just west of Oklahoma City. The wind turbines were about 100 feet tall and just off of the highway. The spinning blades cast disconcerting shadows across the highway. Saw a large wind farm in TX that had about 30 of the big turbines - 300 feet tall, but they were quite a ways from the highway. And, of course, we were treated to the sight of the largest cross in the western hemisphere in Groom, TX, always a sightseer’s delight! Other structures around the cross are incomplete, but the gift shop is open!

SuperMom was much better today! Leaks have dried up, but she talks like a whispering frog so I can never understand her! I did get 50 miles out of her today, though. She drove after the fuel stop in Armadillo (did I mention I strongly dislike Texas?) but had to quit when the Coriciden kicked in and she started to doze! She made up for her miserable night, last night, and slept like a baby in the car.

Now it’s my turn! I sneezed a lot and had a leaky nose most of the afternoon. I’ll do the drugs tonight to get a good night’s sleep and hopefully be fit to drive in the morning. It’s 5 PM here now and I’m sneezing my head off! Wish me luck.

Tomorrow is my favorite drive day; it’s the last day; it’s the shortest day; and it is the prettiest drive of the trip. We drive I-40 for the first part of the trip, and the scenery in western NM and eastern AZ is not too shabby, we go thru a part of the painted desert and see some petrified logs on the roadside. We plan to leave I-40 at Winslow and take AZ 87 (Beeline Highway) southwest through the pine forest of northeast AZ. That is beautiful scenery, and a shortcut into the valley - quite a bit shorter than going all the way to Flagstaff.

The weather today was clear and windy. Tomorrow’s forecast is for cold (in the teens) and clear in the high country of NM and AZ, but sunny and mid-60’s in the valley. Mmmmm, warm!

And we’ll have good music tomorrow, finally. We will be able to use the iPod in the car. When we tried Sunday, nothing worked. The iPod battery was dead, and the adapter/FM transmitter wouldn’t work! I charged the iPod last night, and found the reason the adapter didn’t work - the guts were gone from the plug! Well I searched the car after we arrived at the motel, and found the pieces. It was repairable and I got it working. Tomorrow is looking good!

OK! Time for the drugs!