scenes from the road

2350 miles, 5 days, 3 sets of relatives, no exhaust system at all.

Average speed in Nebraska: 88. That includes breaks.

Coming west out of Denver on I-70, I floored it for a good 3 minutes. My speed went from 55 to 52.

The unexpectedly nice thing about Starbucks putting its stores next to local coffee shops is that Starbucks becomes a reliable guide to local food. I stopped in Pittsburgh, PA, and Avon, CO, to go to Starbucks so I could get something better than gas station coffee. Both places, there was a local bakery next door. Pittsburgh fed me mediocre coffee, tasty pumpkin bread, and a slice of phenomenal oat bread; Avon gave me free tea. ("Excuse me, I just got a cup of tea. I should pay for it, right?" "No, don't worry about it.") Highly recommended.

On I-70 west of Grand Junction, the sign for Mack, CO, says, "Next services 56 miles." 80 miles later, the sign for Green River says, "Next services 110 miles." The speed limit drops to 30 during dust storms.

Loa feels semi-mythical. I'm not totally sure it exists. Tomorrow I'm gone for 8 days: let's hope the world doesn't go to hell too badly during that time.