| Well, another great road trip is now history. On Wednesday morning (3-26-08) I drove to Tucson to pick up Sabrina and Cub. They were mostly ready.....If you ignore the fact that Cub was still asleep. Apparently she arises circa 10 am on most mornings. We packed the car (it is an easily verified fact of life that women take more luggage space then men) and were on our way circa 10 am. |
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We took I-10 west, passing through Wilcox,AZ., Lordsburg, N.M., and Deming,N.M., then turned north to Hatch, N.M., where we picked up I-25 and continued on to Albuquerque. There we transferred our allegiance to I-40, and after driving a total of 10 hours, we stopped for the night in Tucumcari, N.M., a small town near the Eastern border of New Mexico. We had lost an hour as New Mexico is on daylight savings time and would lose another upon entering Texas (located in the central time zone). I was afraid that we might have difficulty finding lodging in the small towns that lay in front of us in the wee hours of the morning. (Would you answer the door if looking through the peep hole at a black & orange coiffeur?). |
| Thursday morning, we were back on the road at 0500 hours. (All time herein are given in Arizona time [Mountain Standard to be precise]). After passing through Amarillo, Texas, we reached Oklahoma City, where we left I-40 and took I-44. I-44 is a toll road, which means (for you westerners who have never seen one) you have to pay to drive on it. I had previously discussed this with Mylinda, who assured me, that there was only one toll booth, that it was a manned, and did not require exact change. What we found was, they had added onto the tollway and there were now two other toll booths, neither of which are manned, and both require exact change in coin (not bills)! |
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We stopped at the first toll booth and scrounged up four quarters, but after dropping them in the slot, the light stayed red. That indicated that we lacked something. After a brief discussion, we retrieved the receipt offered by the machine and drove through the red light onto the toll way. This caused an alarm to sound and a flash; which probably resulted in a photo been taken. On a slightly different subject, the wind was with us most of the way there. Strong winds are common in this area--as evidenced by the fact that many things lean. |
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Even the telephone poles lean. I did not, however, note any people walking with a list. Five miles down the road, a sign alerted us to a second tollbooth, also requiring a dollar in exact change. We exited to surface streets, only to find our path blocked by another unmanned tollbooth that required 30 cents in exact change. We deposited 50 cents, but the red light stayed on. So, we again drove on, again causing an alarm and a flash, this time without a receipt. I suspect, eventually, I will receive in the mail, a couple of traffic tickets. |
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After that brief taste of Oklahoma hospitality, we avoided the toll way and drove an extra sixty miles, most of it on surface streets. We arrived in Tulsa about three minutes late for the Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology graduation ceremony, but still in time to hear Zeke's Valedictory Address. |
| Given Zeke's lack of affection for pomp and ceremony, I would not have been surprised to have witnessed some verbal pyrotechnics, but he managed to behave himself; and gave a serious, very main-stream, professional sounding address (I wondered [briefly] if Mylinda had threatened him). As far as I could tell, he did not even use notes, a feat I would not attempt. |
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If I understood what I heard, as a result of Zeke being valedictorian, Spartan College has offered him a teaching position, which, in addition to a salary, includes free tuition to their 4-year degree program (which leads to an ATR [air transport rating--think airline pilot]). Zeke graduated from their 2-year program in airframe and power-plant maintenance. I don't think he has made a decision at this point, and he is not me; but if I had had that option, I would seriously consider it for two... or perhaps three... nanoseconds, before accepting. Then again, being a glorified bus driver isn't for everyone. It will be interesting to see what he decides. |
| Their new addition, Lauren Elizabeth, was not particularly impressed with the proceedings, and she managed to sleep through them. |
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Contrary to what I had heard previously, Zeke's mother was able to attend the festivities. She is a Home Healthcare Nurse, and I got to enjoy some of her war stories. Apparently, I am not alone in my feelings toward the machinations of the medical field. |
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Wednesday, we visited with Mylinda and Lauren (Zeke had to work) and went to the Tulsa Air and Space Museum. Compared to the Pima Air and Space Museum (which is located across the street from the largest storage facility maintained by the US Airforce and benefits from a close relationship with them), it is fairly small and housed entirely indoors (which was good as Tulsa was experiencing a cold [by my standards] blustery day). Still, I enjoyed it. Among other exhibits, it had a booth that you could enter and be subjected to 70 mph winds, reminiscent of being in a tornado (Tulsa is situated in what is known as, "Tornado Alley"). The wind tunnel was an interesting experience but (fortunately for Lauren) lacked the dust and debris of a real storm. |
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| Thursday morning (circa 0500 am), we were again on the road, this time headed towards Arizona. We again tried the tollway, and with a better idea of where to enter and exit, found it to be a time-saving $3.50. We retraced our steps as far as Albuquerque, N.M., and then continued West on I-40 (the freeway that goes through Holbrook and Flagstaff). |
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Shortly before arriving at Grants, NM, We turned south, taking Highway 117 to Highway 36 to Highway 60, which runs into Springerville. This route took us through the Malpais National Monument which, until this trip, I didn't know existed. An oft repeated refrain on this trip, as on most of mine, was "If we only had more time...". We arrived at Ameilia's house about 8:30 pm, having spent 15.5 hours in the car. |
| Cub endured the trip remarkably well, given that she is only 16 months old. After each stop (I think there were only four of them) she cried upon getting back in the car. I might have found that annoying, except that it was the exactly mirror of my feelings (I just was less vocal)... She is very cute, and becoming expert at using that cuteness to get her way. To quote Sabirna, "No!!! No!! No. Well, maybe... OK." |
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We stayed the night at Ameilia's, and then drove to Taylor the next morning, arriving at the blessing of Rachel Emma Hatch with a full three minutes to spare. Afterwards, we visited for a brief time before leaving circa 3:30 pm for the trip back to Oracle. Overall, it was fun. Maybe someday I'll try it again (when I forget what it feels like to sit in a car for 15 hours) |
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| The Geo Metro did well. We set the cruse control at 65 mph, and got between 41 and 52 mpg (depending on the wind direction and velocity). Given that gasoline prices ranged between $3.08 and $3.28 per gallon, economy was a relatively important consideration. Surprisingly, we passed at least as many vehicles as passed us. At this point, my little car is about 400 miles short of reaching the 300,000-mile mark. Not bad for a vehicle that Wyatt termed a "throw-away" (use once and discard). |
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THE END
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