Slightly Different

McDonalds is everywhere.
Gas is really cheap as you drive East. 
Food is really cheap as you drive East.
There are not real veggies in the middle of the country.  Most of the time I thought I was eating in Seattle Children's Hospital Cafeteria.

Here is an example of a Low Fat Healthy Choice:

There are lots of things to buy.  Fudge is ubiquitous.  Good Coffee is not. 

Barns in Illinois are different than in Iowa.  Iowa barns had quilt squares on them.  Illinois had weird barns. 

Trucks drive differently in each state.  Hate Kansas and Ohio and Missouri, they don't have to stay on the right except for passing and they are really trying to get somewhere.  So you don't have any idea when they are going to jump out and cause trouble. 

Back to coffee.  OMG.  Nothing. The entire state of South Dakota has not Starbucks (my least favorite).  I did find that if you go into a McDonalds in Missouri and ask for just shots, nothing else, it is almost drinkable.  That is how far I slipped.  

Dogs in Missouri are better behaved than in Seattle. 

Missouri smells like freshly turned dirt and Kansas smells like

Syringa.

Donuts are everywhere. People eat them and are not ashamed. 

We went on a big adventure but like most of life it was made up of very small things of great wonder.  We took time to observe.  

Still looking for  Moose, a funnel cloud and a White Castle Burger.  

Driving in the dark.

Our last night in Twin Falls, I had a dream we should stop in Yakima and see Amber and gang.  It all played out in the dream.  Goats, Allie, Sam and his crazy idea that pizza should not have pine nuts and goat cheese on it.  But then I knew we had smelled the barn and wanted to be home.  We were ready. 

I knew staying in Twin Falls would make the day longer.  A couple of hours longer.  I did not know how long or how far. 

I must say I was pretty impressed that we had driven all but 110 of that distance since leaving at 10:00 am.

Granted we did not leave Twin until about 11:30. 

Car needed to be washed, we needed gas, MEB needed boots. Cowboy boots and we knew we were headed back to the City.

  I need to see the Niagara of the West.  

 What more can I say.  We were avoiding the inevitable.  

I don't think I can express in words how fabtabulous the journey was. It was important to disconnect and really hit re-set for us.  It was necessary to reshape our relationship, our reality and to do so in the vastness of this country. We were rushed, but not really.  Whenever we stopped at a planned or unplanned destination, we were not rushed.  We did not leave before it was time. We stayed focused on the event.  We waited for things, we observed, we soaked it all in and only then moved on to the next thing.  

Cancer has given us the ability to focus on the NOW.  Not next week or the upcoming anything.  We are just able to be here, now. 

Time is a gift. A gift we often squander. A gift we waste with alacrity.  We are a fast, rushing people. We are too busy doing too many things at a time. We have lost our ability to just "be" with each other and connect.

While we didn't want to leave Twin Falls we knew what was waiting for us at home.  Dogs, people, gardens, job applications, on-line college courses, but more importantly our friends and family. 

We drove in the dark, we slept in our own beds. 

We are glad to be back and have created enough memories to push  Cancer Part Two... to a more manageable place in the memory banks.

Short Update

Spokane
Liberty Lake
Top of 4th of July Pass
Missoula

Clinton
Drummond
Philipsburg
Anaconda
Butte
Crazy Mountains
Bozman
Billings
Pompey's Pillar
Little Big Horn Battle Field
Broadus (Powder River Tavern, Cassino, Bowling Alley and Arcade)
Devils Tower
Newcastle

What can I say as we wander

our way around the West.  Long roads, no cars, blue sky, cows, deer, antelope ranging, elk, prairie dogs, horses. (Crows and Cheyenne have better horses)

This is a trip of amazing vistas, mind expanding experiences and wonderful time with each other.  We are great road trippers. We laugh, we talk, we say "oh look" all the time.  Nothing boring, nothing simple, nothing complex, just exploring.   

I do love driving 80 miles an hour.... 
On to the Jewel Cave.