LouTex Days 1, 2 and 3

February 23, 2014

FINALLY, after a long, cold and very snowy winter, we’re on the road.

In this trip, we’re combining the “best of” our two former trips to Louisiana and Texas. AND we’re travelling for the first time with our new kitty, Mandy. Fingers crossed.

We got away early on a sunny, cold day. Mandy started in my lap then abandoned me an hour later and kind of hid for most of the day. But she was quiet!

We booted it to Detroit and got through Customs easily, though he did board and checked the fridge and cupboards for the first time. We pulled in to the Super 8 in Vandalia, Ohio and had KFC.

Interestingly, I lost the cat in the room after two minutes. She’d gotten under one of the beds, and the whole lining of the box springs had been ripped down (likely by a former dog or cat). Mandy got tucked up in the springs and we had to entice her down with food. It was disgusting poking around under there (they’d obviously not cleaned under the bed for a long time). A letter is coming!

No view from my chair today.

February 24, 2014

Another sunny but cold start.

I am amazed by David’s retention of trivia. He knew that the “Overland” silos we saw were for Willy’s Overland Jeeps. Among other things. Amazing mind.

It was an uneventful day with the cat sleeping on the dinette seat all day long. But some signs and interesting sights included these:

• “CyberKnife for Prostate Cancer: New Weapons; New Cures” (ouch)
• “Big Bone Lick” (hmmmm…a body of water we THINK)
• A “Matt Bevin for Senate” sign on a tractor trailer parked in a big and stinky dump
• Snow on the ground, even in Kentucky
• Not a Daffodil to be seen
• Golfers on Kenny Perry’s Golf Course (but not a blade of green grass)
• Lots of dead Coyotes
• “Nervous Charlie’s Fireworks” (not a great vote of confidence)
• First motorcycle on the highway in Nashville
• 866 miles travelled without a traffic jam until outside of Nashville, and only 10 minutes
• “Boobies Bungalow Gentleman’s Club” across from a Truck Centre
• First Robins at the Alabama Welcome Centre (but no welcome for us to stay for the night)
• a Paula Deen billboard for something

We had a noisy night tucked amongst the tractor trailers at a Pilot Travel Centre, so no view from my chair. The cat much preferred the MoHo to a stinky hotel room!

February 25, 2014

It rained most of the very noisy night and was overcast for much of the long drive. We found a great future overnight spot at an Alabama Rest Area at Exit 304 (Route 65). It’s tucked away and very quiet (but “No Weapons Allowed”).

Today’s observations included these things:

• billboards for “the GOLFchurch.com” and “weremoveyourfat.com”
• First Mockingbirds
• Redbud and Dogwood trees in bloom (not very many, but buds on lots of trees)
• bus for the “University of the Incarnate Word”
• Mississippi town called “Eutaw” (say it out loud)
• Highway 59 lined with Magnolia trees, just a week or so before blooming; it will be beautiful
• Daffodils FINALLY in Ellisville, MS (about 120 miles from The Gulf)
• We put the air conditioning on!
• Snowy and Great Egrets in overflow water along the highway in Louisiana (great welcome)

We pulled in to the Fairview-River State Park for a night (Site 60). It’s across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans. We’re not planning to visit NOLA this year. I took a walk on the boardwalk and through a small swamp (scary but no gators).

Here’s the view of the MoHo (no time for chairs):

And a new feature, the Mandy Shot (this one is of her place to ride during the drive; this is on top of the dinette slide. We didn’t see her climbing up there until after. She climbs on the dinette, on to David’s headrest, onto a ledge above his head and onto the top of slide; amazing):