Today class, we're going to engage in a little chapter review. August 5th marked one month on the road so far and the half-way point on this journey, much in the same way the Midpoint Cafe in Adrian, New Mexico, the restaurant where I very indulgently ordered a piece of coconut cream pie yesterday, is the exact geographic middle of Route 66. Ever tardy, I realize that I have been remiss in providing details on the road map ahead and the checkered, pothole-laden … [Read more...]
Shower Moment
August 4, 2011 By
You didn't really know this, but I promised to be completely honest with you on this trip. It can't just be la-la-la-la Chicken Soup for the Highway, Tales of Inspiration and Joy From the Construction Zone Across America. Shit's rough sometimes. Now, I hesitate to bring this up, because, let's face it, I did this on my own volition. It makes it that much harder to face feeling like a fool. This was a conscious decision, a "moral imperative" said I, so pointedly in my … [Read more...]
Carolina Comfort
August 2, 2011 By
Before I roll into Texas and the history palooza this immersion will undoubtedly prompt, I'd just like to tell you why I love North Carolina. I guarandamntee you I will choke up writing this. (Now that we've clearly detected a pattern here....) It's because it took care of me. North Carolina took care of me and my children, time and time and time again. A brief history: I moved to NC in February of 1992, the trailing spouse of husband #2, whom I'll call Rick. He was … [Read more...]
True Grit
August 2, 2011 By
I called his number, a little nervous. It had been nineteen years since I'd see my former brother-in-law, Pat. I'm thinking,"why in the hell would he want to see me?"; the former sister-in-law, the outlaw, the one who'd asked for the divorce from his little brother. Into every life, a little guilt must fall. But it was in fact my first ex, the high school sweetheart ex, my favorite ex, who encouraged me to call his big brother, Pat, the retired Navy captain. I was only … [Read more...]
We Tried to Make ’em Go to Rehab
July 27, 2011 By
I've needed to talk about this for a long time, my brother Garrett. Even though the death of my brother Don eleven months ago weighs fresh on my heart, I lost another brother back in 2002. I still miss him very much. I'd intended to tell you about Garrett on what would have been his 60th birthday, on June 27th. Wow, 60. That's as hard to imagine as JFK being old, you know? Anyway, June 27th, was supposed to be my last day on the job and I had this great tribute to … [Read more...]
Get Another Dog
July 24, 2011 By
So one of my readers, Alysa from France inspired me this morning. Merci. I have never set eyes on this young woman who is undoubtedly young enough to be my daughter, who encourages me all the way from Europe, some days, when I need it more than you can imagine. As much as this may seem like a lark, (I know, nobody put a gun to my head) it's lonely on the road. I get down. I get homesick. I get fearful of getting sick, losing Libby, getting a flat tire or the trots. It's … [Read more...]
DC, Where Quarters Are King
July 19, 2011 By
Getting ready to roll out of our nation's capitol and it's been alternately fun and frustrating. Some lessons learned: 1. Me and my 86-pound mutt can indeed stowaway in the women's dorm for three days. 2. The money I saved on hotel bills was made up for in parking fines outside the building. 3. Chicken bones abound. 4. My daughter is as scrappy as I am. More on that later. 5. People wear ridiculous shoes - both tourists and the millions of office workers on the … [Read more...]
Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs
July 14, 2011 By
There were many, you know. To ignore them would be folly. One just has to be open to receiving them. Of course the first sign, the epiphany day, was like a billboard for a Triple XXX Adult Book store on a rural Missouri highway. (Why do they have so many adult book stores along Missouri highways? It's more prevalent than meth these days.) But Libby's dramatic interp with the powerless fence, was most assuredly, a sign from the universe. Then, they became more subtle. … [Read more...]
Into the Light
July 13, 2011 By
I'm in Brooklyn, trying to write in a hipster coffee shop, with alternative music blaring, where hipster types (if you've been to Brooklyn lately, you know what I mean) have flocked to sip iced coffee and get out of the heat. I don't blame them, beastly hot here. Libby's at my son Pat's apartment around the corner. I was never so glad to see one of my kids in all my life! He's working today, no wifi at his place unless you hang out the window... so I gave up on that … [Read more...]
Bad Boy, Bad Boy, Watcha Gonna Do?
July 9, 2011 By
Sunset just west of Toledo last night and I was feeling all zenny, enjoying the late afternoon shadows laid across all manner of barns, big and small, old and new, red and weathered beyond all palette recognition and my GPS told me I just eleven miles out from my Motel 6 stop for the night. Remember, I’m on a budget, as in: I don’t have a job. Son Pat had booked it for me, as I was too busy trying to get out of the snarl of traffic in Chicago, (bad taste after a lovely … [Read more...]
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