I'm hiding and updating while the sun's too bright / high. There is WiFi here, but not free, so I'm sitting in the Element typing up all of the posts I've been thinking about over the last couple of days.
So here you are: The great insights into some of what I've been thinking as I travel.
Title: The gentle tap-tap-tap of...
the friggin' bugs hitting my windshield!
My car and windshield are covered in their remains. I am now an expert in the sound to splatter ratio. From the gentle tip of the little ones to the SPLAT of the big streak-leaving ones. I have no idea what kind each is, other than to mention the various resistances to windshield-washers their corporeal remains leave. Oh well, at least they're not birds.
Update: Damn! That one was a bird! I got lucky that it didn't hit my windshield. I didn't even have time to react / slow down / swerve. I just saw something large flying across my view, then THUD! and a shower of feathers. A little while later, when I stopped to take a picture of something along the road. I noticed that the dead bird was stuck inside my grill. Ick. I felt bad, but, hey, it was either him or me, right? (Why am I reminded of South Park? He's coming right at me! *blam* ) I did feel so bad that I didn't take a picture of the carnage. It was kinda colorful, in a nasty sort of way...
Title: Montana's a big damn state.
So, I pulled into the info station as soon as I hit the eastern border. The lady inside told me (in such a sure tone) that the best route was to go up to US 2 and over. I saw on e the map that it is along the Lewis and Clark Trail. Ok, I figured, that must mean there's stuff worth seeing. And there was, if the stuff you like seeing is great big expanses of flat. Towards the end, I did pass south of the Sweet Grass Hills, which are kinda neat, but only a little and only for a little while. The entertaining thing (to me) is that, since much of what I drove through was Indian Reservations, there were casinos everywhere! And I don't mean big ones, but little one or two room dealies, often attached to gas stations. I wonder how they came up with that concept. Hey, I wonder if those folks who need gas want to risk their money in a tiny, frightening casino. Yeah, I bet they do. What a great idea! I should have gotten the courage to stick my head in, or even waste a couple of bucks just to see who goes in these places. Maybe I'll do that on the way to Seattle. I'll report back with the scoop, if I see one.
Title: The Caccoon
Ruby (the Element) has ended up being a great way to travel, but somewhat limited as a camper. When I'm ready to turn in for the night, the routine goes: Screens up (one is just this side of falling apart), hop in so I don't let the skeeters in, practice some 4th level yoga moves to get the front seat down while I am in it, arrange the bed, then put up the privacy curtains, while I am lying in bed. Let's talk about the curtains. I forget how much I paid for them; they're the ones Honda sells. Of the four things I bought with Ruby (curtains, sun-roof screen, table legs, and arm rest), so far the arm rest has been the best value (and I had to search to find it - it's not one of their "premier" accessories). The curtains could have been much better designed. They have these little tabs that slide into the tiny gap between the plastic molding and the fabric above the windows. There are a couple of hooks that actually attach to something, but the majority of the support is from these little tabs. This all means that, if I am not careful, it is really easy to bump up against the curtain, and cause one or more of the tabs to slide out. Now, I'm not too worried about someone seeing in. (In the back, the windows are very darkly tinted.) But finding the right spots for these foolish little tabs while lying on my back is a pain in the arm.
(They're finicky little things; there's only so many places they'll actually go, and of those places, you gotta find juuust the right one so as to not pull out any of the adjacent ones.) I can't help but think that a couple of snaps or some velcro would have been a much better concept. And there nothing on the bottom of them to keep the curtains from moving, or falling down once you touch them. Again, just a little more work would have made this a much more useful product.Anyway, once I am in for the night, it's not bad. Although I miss my wonderful bed back in Mass, the platform and mattress are doing alright. I've certainly slept on much worse.
So there you go. Anyone who was interested in knowing what (if anything) is going through my head while I'm driving. It's not just that my mind wanders a little, it's also that there's so much space out here for it to wander. Then again, maybe you didn't really want to know all of the above. Perhaps some things are better left as a mystery.
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