Georgia (short version)

The repairs made to my car in Long Beach lasted without problems throughout my return trip from the west coast. Leaving after dinner Friday night, I drove all night through California and Arizona on I-10, taking a small detour on I-19 S in Tucson AZ just to hit another county (Santa Cruz) I wouldn't otherwise hit in my lifetime. I drove through dawn until I just couldn't keep my eyes open anymore. I rented a room at a Motel 6 (Deming NM 88031), but after a shower and a short nap, I was back on my way to the east coast. In El Paso, TX, I-10 comes within 500 feet of the Mexican Border (near exit 18B). It was strange to think that I was looking at another country out my passenger side window.

At the I-10 / I-20 split just past Kent, TX, I started traveling northeast on I-20 to Atlanta. It started getting dark again as I drove through Odessa TX. By the time I got to Fort Worth TX, I was miserable and getting delirious. I got lost in a huge interstate detour and was convinced I entered Arkansas, since I somehow got onto I-30 on the east side of Dallas (but apparently still in TX). Running on fumes, I finally found fuel back on I-20 around 4:15 am, and had an interesting discussion with the attendant about women from Pennsylvania as I tried to pay for my lousy coffee. Looking forward to all the signs advertising a rest stop across the border in Louisianna, I was really upset to find the stop was shut down, and drove blind exhausted to a 24-hour Flying J truck stop (Greenwood, LA 71033), where I parked between two rigs and dozed off for a few hours.


Unfortunately, when I tried to move my car on the 2nd day here in the suburbs of Atlanta (Lawrenceville GA 30043) the car was back to misbehaving. Part of me wants to sell the car, but then again even if it costs me $2000 to fix, where am i going to get a fully-loaded, fuel-efficient car for that price?

Anyway, we stayed around the house here on Tuesday, resting up from my coast-to-coast in 2 days marathon. That night, we visited little Five Points in Atlanta and a cool bar called the Vortex. On Wednesday, we went with Colleen's mom to Athens GA. On Thursday, Colleen and I drove to Savannah GA (in her car, since mine is basically out of commission), stopped at the Waffle House for some hashbrowns "All the Way" (aka scattered, smothered, covered, chunked, diced, toped, peppered and capped -- or, for you not schooled in the ways of WH: onions, cheese, ham, tomatoes, chili, jalapenos and mushrooms), and we took a stroll along the river walk, where we found a dive bar (The Warehouse) - Home of the Cheapest and Coldest Beers in Savannah - and listened to an entertaining (and funny) local act called the Electric Cheezeballs. Friday, we walked through the the first dozen or so public squares nearest to the river, saw a bunch of antiques and ate some good food and drank some good beer, including our visit to Moon River Brew Pub. We drove home last night, and now are spending time with the family and getting ourselves ready for the 13 hour ride home.

LA and Long Beach (short version)

I got to Long Beach in Los Angeles County on Tuesday, taking I-15 from Vegas since my car had serious problems. VW in Long Beach corrected my problems for another $700 and I have way too much to tell you all about at this time. I had a blast and looking forward to going back really soon.

I left on Saturday evening and made it to the suburbs of Atlanta in less than 44 hours with only 8 hours of sleep. I am sitting on the couch with my honey at her parents house. I am very happy.

The APA Conference in Vegas

OK, to put it plainly - this sucks! After being on the road with no firm schedule the past 12 days, I had trouble getting up for my 9 am session this morning. I left my room about 9:15, but it took me OVER AN HOUR to find the registration (which was actually even further than Paris at Ballys, but of course at the far north end of Ballys. Then I find out that the session I signed up for (Preparing and Delivering Geo-Enabled Content for Citizen Participation) was the ONLY session that started at 8:30 this morning, not 9 am, so I was almost 2 hours late for my 3.5 hour session. On a positive note, this session was not exactly how it was advertised, but a thinly veiled marketing demo for Limehouse Software's Content Management System. Upon first seeing a free 10 minute demo at last year's conference in Philadelphia, I was impressed and urged my organization to invest in this product for our citizen outreach component of our Long Range Plan. Now, after paying $35 for the full-blown demo, I am glad that we did not invest in their product. For organizations that do not have a capable, technical staff and has lots of money to flush down the toilet, this is a great product. But my organization does not have money to burn, and we have a number of great technical people on staff who are able to replicate (or dare I say improve upon) the features available in this non-customizable application (See Barry, I just saved the Commission thousands of dollars!).

With only an hour for lunch (and not wanting to be late for my 4 hour afternoon session, I decided to forgo the long lines and overpriced restaurants in Paris, and ventured out onto Las Vegas BLVD. I almost went to the Harley-Davidson Cafe, but then I thought if they found out I drove a Vespa scooter, they'd probably kick me out. So I ended up grabbing a quick bite at the 7-11 which I ate sitting next to this huge trash can outside of the place (there are no places to sit outside in Vegas -- probably because they want you to sit down inside at one of their slots). This is NOT the 2.5 day stress-free rest from traveling that I was expecting! The afternoon session was good (on Management for Planners) even though part of it was review for me. Ballys provided free coffee in all their sessions, but Paris did not, so at the first break, I went out to buy a $3.75 cup of coffee from JJ's Boulangerie (I thought I deserved a free refill @ that price so i went back and grabbed one which I am now enjoying cold since MGM cannot afford to include microwaves in their luxurious rooms).

It's 8pm local time, but my body is still on EST, so it fells like bedtime for me. I need to bring stuff to the car, since I need to check out tomorrow around 7:30 am then drive over to Paris and be at the keynote reception which starts at 8:30. Jack Dangermond is one of the keynote speakers, and I'm curious on what he has to say about Google Maps, Google Earth and all of the competition his company now has (and please clarify for me if your online mapping solution is still a viable product). Then, perhaps off to find a quick bite to eat and if there is any energy left in me, to check out an anti-Vegas bar not too far from my hotel (recommended by Colleen, of course). Here's hoping that tomorrow is less stressful than today. Oh yeah, $14/day for internet, so I will not be on for a few days. I'll try to update again sometime in Los Angeles later this week.

Things I Should Have Left @ Home

I brought 2 jackets (didn't need either until today, and I wore my new knit 'hoodie' that I bought at a rest stop on an Indian reservation). I brought a fresh pair of socks for every day, and only wore about 4 pairs so far since most of the days have been quite comfortable being barefoot wearing my Crocks. I brought 2 rain jackets, which I haven't needed yet. And most importantly, I brought a soft, collapsible ice cooler which takes up the whole passenger footwell and was really not needed until today, where 16.9 oz bottles of water are running $3.

Saturday, April 26th

Did I mention that for about $50 I got a hotel room with a fridge, microwave, in-room coffee maker, and free wireless internet (Even the nicest rooms in Vegas do not offer this for some reason). My car enjoyed the break last night and he was all back to his normal self today. No yellow warning lights on the dash the entire time. Perhaps he likes the weather in AZ and NV? Anyway, grabbed some coffee and what could best be described as a hot dog on a stick, but it was a breakfast sausage wrapped in a pancake. Not many non-chain choices along my route on AZ 66 West and I don't want to disappoint John Madera by stopping at a McDriveThru. The gas pumps were all being used, so I headed down the road to fill up at the next station, where I gracefully spilled half of my coffee all over my drivers door (inside and out and all over the window). Would this be a sign that this was going to be a bad day? It got down to almost freezing last night, but now at 10:30 am it is already back to 62 degrees. Since US 66 was basically obliterated by I-40, there was a lot of freeway driving in the first leg of today's trip. I got off to drive through Williams AZ where the famous Grand Canyon Railway is located. AZ 66 takes a long departure from I-40 near Selingman AZ, so I naturally decided to take the scenic route. I stopped for some photos and a few knick-nacks, then drove on. I saw a few recreated Burma Shave slogan ads from the 50's. My favorite one went like this: "If daisies are...Your favorite flower...Keep pushing up...Those miles per hour". I should have heeded warning, because in the next small town the speed limit went from 65 to 55 to 45 (I was doing like 49) and then, to 35 (which I missed). The friendly neighborhood police officer decided to stop me and let me know that I was speeding, but after running my information and seeing that I had a spit clean driving record, he let me off with just a warning. Close call! I was basically paranoid for the rest of the trip that I might miss another one of these small town speed traps, but luckily most of the remaining miles were on US and Interstate routes with faster speed limits anyway. Kingman AZ was my last town on old 66 before turning north for Las Vegas. I wanted to go further and drive through Laughlin, NV but this weekend was the 26th Annual River Run and as much as I wanted to see all of the great choppers and custom bikes, I really wanted to get to my room in Vegas and get ready for the APA National Planning Conference tomorrow (thank God I did - read further). I hit 3,000 miles traveled from my humble rowhome in Center City going north on US 93 at 2:45 pm (about 40 miles from the Hoover Dam). It got up to 86 degrees before crossing the dam, which took over 40 minutes since the engineering feat of a bypass of the dam is still not complete (they were working on it the first time I was here in 2005).

I got to the Paris Hotel/Casino at 4:45 pm and it was now 92 degrees. To my dismay, they overbooked and sent me down the road to the MGM Grand instead (which is great, but the conference is AT PARIS NOT MGM! Now, I got to get up extra early, find some coffee (Motel 6 offers free coffee @ $35/night but the MGM Grand cannot at more than 5x the cost/night), walk over to Paris (which is only 2 buildings over, but probably like 2 miles from my room to the conference center), register, and be sitting down in a session by 9 am on either Management Skills or Negotiation Skills (in Planning of course). Well, it's only shortly after 9 pm here, but my body is still on EST and I got to talk to my girl before I go to bed. Here's to 2 days of NOT driving for a change.

Friday, April 25th

OK, it is 10:45 am (12:45 pm EST) and I'm getting ready to leave the motel and move on westward to Flagstaff AZ. Other than that, no concrete plans for today. I'm sure I'll figure it all out in the car with my way too many guidebooks and maps. Speaking of which, this trip COULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED without the combination of a few good guidebooks, my turn-by-turn guide, the Harley-Davidson Route 66 Ride Guide, and my sister's Garmin Nuvi GPS. Oh yeah, and a girlfriend on the phone giving me turn-by-turn directions when it is too dark to read a map and I'm too tired to think (Thanks sweetie!). Not one source was 100% correct in getting me from place to place. I'm tired.

I made it to Arizona (Pacific Coast Time) and ultimately Flagstaff AZ. But first, Colleen convinced me that I needed to take my picture at Standing on a Corner Park in Winslow AZ. That was fun, even though it was dark. Motel 6 in Flagstaff did not have any rooms left w/WiFi, so I'm at some other hotel on Route 66. I crossed the continental divide today - easy to miss if not for the signs. I was expecting it to be all breathtaking, like feeling you are on top of the world. Nah. Let's see, what else happened today. Oh yeah, I checked out of my great hotel around noon, parked on old Route 66 (now Central Av) and ate at a really good coffee house/diner. Then I drove around Albuquerque, trying to get a tour of a brewery and see the skateboarding museum, but both of those were a bust. Instead, I got a good lay of the land and ended up driving almost all of the 18 miles that is the longest Main Street in America (so I am told). The temperature read 70 degrees, but is was almost chilly with the wind and lack of humidity. It was only hot in my black car after I get back after it's been sitting in the sun for a while. I also got to stop in a few places along the way. The car started misbehaving again just as I was getting out of the city and onto the interstate (I'm seeing a pattern here) and it was off again/on again the rest of the day. I finally made it here to my motel room just shy of midnight EST or 9 pm pacific time. Going to bed now (midnight pacific time) and got to check out in 11 hours, then it's 4 hours of driving to Las Vegas, where I get a small break from the road for a few days. Right now, it is in the lower 40's and dry (unlike the thundershowers you guys were having).

Thursday, April 24th

OK, it is early in the morning and I am making final plans to tomorrow (or rather, later today). I hope to get up early (or at least out of here earlier than I did today) and see the Cadillac Ranch here in Amarillo before heading west to Albuquerque NM.

OK, NOW it is Friday morning, so here is a list of things I saw yesterday (Thursday) which I will elaborate on later: Cadillac Ranch (Amarillo TX), Magnolia Gas Station (Vega TX), Dot's Mini Museum (Vega TX), MidPoint Cafe(Adrian TX), New Mexico State Line (also Mountain Time Zone), Tee Pee Curios (NM), 86 octane gas (90 was the highest!), double-stacked freight line, Silver Moon Cafe - Since 1959 (Santa Rosa, NM), Rt 66 Auto Museum (Santa Rosa, NM), Las Vegas NM (NOT NV), snow-covered peaks in the desert (Pecos National Historical Park), Santa Fe Trail (America's Byways - National Scenic Byway), Glorieta Battlefield, Oldest Church in the USA (Sante Fe NM), Oldest House in the USA - 1646 (Sante Fe NM), Old Town Albuquerque, The Hotel Blue, and finally, The Blackbird Buvette on the main drag of old Route 66 in Old Town Albuquerque, where I listened to some local jazz music, ate some chicken skewers (the chicken, not the actual skewers), and had a chance to sample 3 local beers: Santa Fe Brewing Company's Nut Brown, Rio Grande Brewing Company's Pancho Verde Chile Cerveza, Tractor Brewing Company's Farmer's Daughter Rasberry Wheat, which I could not finish.

Wednesday, April 23rd

And on the 8th night away from home, he rested. I haven't slept in my own bed since Monday, April 14th and I'm really starting to feel it. Last night before I went to sleep, I went back to the office and paid for a 2nd night. Not that there is so much to see and do in Amarillo, I just need a day to rest up and catch up on a few things. I skyped my girlfriend this morning - which by the way, is a great way for keeping in touch on the road. My brother-in-law often skypes from the road so he can say goodnight to the kids before they go to bed. I experienced it for the first time last year when my sister joined him on a business trip and I got to play Mr. Mom for a few days. It is not the same as being there with someone, but it is still nice to see and hear your loved one on the other end. [Hey Taghi, we should get at least one laptop w/a built in web camera for people who go to multiple-day conferences outside the region].

I slept in today, recharging my batteries, then got up, took a shower and began sorting out all that has happened, and began developing a plan of action for the next leg of the trip, which is from here to Vegas. For those of you who didn't realize, I'm attending the National American Planning Association (APA) Conference in Las Vegas this Sunday/Monday to maintain my AICP certification and to keep one foot firmly in the planning profession. So today, I decided to go back about 20 miles to Conway TX to see the Bug Ranch, where 5 classic VW Beetles are buried nose down in a sort of spoof/homage to the Cadillac Ranch (aka "Carhenge") here in Amarillo. My Beetle Bug didn't know whether the Bug Ranch was a vision into his possible future or a threat that if he doesn't behave, this is where I am going to leave him. Perhaps he just needed the rest as well, because all of the yellow warning lights are now cleared from the dashboard and the car ran particularly well today.

So Colleen convinced me that I MUST go to the Big Texan tonight for dinner and that I WASN'T allowed to order a chicken caesar salad (my usual) since I WAS on vacation. I naturally listened (plus a few of my guidebooks also suggested the place) and really enjoyed it. I sat at the bar and wouldn't you know it, I got a shiner! No, I wasn't in a Texan bar fight. I had one of their local beers which happened to be on tap.
Shiner Bock is a local dark lager brewed by Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, TX. I also had a chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes and some really good fried ocra. I only tried fried ocra for the first time last October in Georgia, and haven't been able to get it ever since. My girlfriend took me to a place on Liberties Walk that had it on their menu, but they didn't make it the right way and I couldn't eat it. Anyway, the meal was great (too much for me to eat) and I got to have an interesting conversation with a long-haul trucker from Pittsburgh. Of course, I talked about Ted's Goods Movement Task Force, the Philadelphia Traffic Club and how trucks now account for 80% of all freight movement in this country, but it seemed that he was more interested in talking about sports and what I should see in Vegas. Of course, I didn't even dare try their famous free 72 oz steak (Free if you can finish it in 1 hour), but my trucker friend said he knows 2 people who have done it, and the new record is in just under 9 minutes. That's a lot of beef!

Tuesday, April 22nd

[1736 miles | Oklahoma City, OK 73131] OK, so the Motel 6 didn't have internet access (which is why I'm a day behind on this blog), but the room was comfortable and a real bargin. I didn't get started til very late morning, so I stopped next door for a large coffee and a grilled chicken sandwich and headed back east to see one of the landmarks I had missed the night before, the Round Barn in Arcadia OK, which was built in 1898. There, I got to talking with the curator, who also happens to live next door. I bought one of his pieces of art for my Collen, if you really stretch the definition of outsider folk art. The weather was great - overcast and now 65 degrees. There was an interesting modern gas station just a few miles down the road with a milk bottle, which didn't mean much to me the first time I passed it. But after visiting the Round Barn, I realized this was probably paying homage to a milk bottle that used to sit outside of a dairy farm across the street from the round barn, which was torn down when they decided to straighten out a sharp curve on Route 66.

Now, I'm driving into Oklahoma City, OK and for the first time I see an interesting pavement marking consisting of squiggly lines, which apparently means that the speed limit is being reduced and you should slow down (usually near schools). At 1:30 pm I get my first look at the state capitol building, which is quite massive and impressive. Getting a late start and spending quite a while at the Round Barn, I didn't stop, but still managed to get lost and spend more time than I wanted to in the city. I did see an interesting bank with a Buckminster Fuller inspired geodesic dome (in a not so great part of town). Also in getting lost, I did get to see the Saint Louis Arch, although this was a scale model in the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds. 2:30 pm on the way out of town, I glimpsed the famous sign of the 66 Bowl. I cross a great old bridge along the old 2-lane alignment and make it to Yukon, OK where there is this great railroad-siding factory for Yukon's Best Flour and a mile further, an old Standard Oil Station sign in great shape. [1800 miles | 3:20pm] I'm driving past Fort Reno, but the long driveway to the historic site tells me this is gonna take too much time, so I move onward. Shortly afterwards, I am rewarded with the best, almost forgotten 2-lane stretch of 12-foot concrete right-of-way from the old highway. This goes on for about 15 miles, and I'm worrying since there are many signs posted saying "Local Traffic Only". I don't want to have to drive back these 15 miles to regain access to the modern OK 66 highway. Luckily, it reconnects with the modern highway.

[Bridgeport OK | 3:50pm] I'm crossing a 2-lane, 3/4 mile long, 38 arch Pony Bridge built in 1933 to cross the South Canadian River. Definitely a site to see in person. I stop yet again in the next town of Hydro, where I get a great pic of an old Philips 66 gas station (Lucille's est. 1941) and a roadside marker of the Will Rogers Highway. I drive by a wind farm with some of the largest turbines I have ever seen. Got some interesting video of that.

[1850 miles | 4:40 pm | Weatherford, OK 73096 | 78 degrees] I stopped at a Carl Jr.'s on Main Street (Rt 66) for my first truly not-good-for-you meal. I had an order of their Chilli Cheese Fries (no, Collen - there were no beans). Also realized today that I've been donating to charities or nonprofits every day of this trip. Not much, but justa buck or two. I guess this offsets my guilt for being a SOV (single occupant vehicle) this entire trip.

[1863 miles | 5:10 pm | Clinton, OK] It's hot, my EPC light is now glowing again on my dash (along with the triange exclamation point thingy too), and I get to the Route 66 Museum - which just closed 10 minutes ago. If I didn't have so many good things going for me in life, it's things like this that would have made me just give up. I call ahead and find a Motel 6 in Amarillo that has Wi-Fi internet, then jump on the freeway (can't drive local route with both dash lights on - there is no power). A few miles out on the interstate and the EPC light goes out, which means I can switch back to using cruise control (don't ask - I have no idea why one controls the other). About 30 miles on the interstate and I decide to get off at Elk City for the National Route 66 Museum. This one was much more expansive than the last, with some outdoor displays, but yet again, the museum was closed. After a brief walk around, I got back in the car and magically, all the warning lights went away. Good for me, right? NOT. Just 16 miles down the road in Sayre OK, I hit a small bump in the road and both lights came back on and the car will hardly get out of its own way. I cancel my plans to visit the National Historic Site and make my way to the Elk City Railroad Museum I've seen so many signs for. This was clearly a joke that the locals have for unsuspecting tourists like myself, since the "museum" was nothing more than some guy's backyard where he proudly displayed old RR signals and signs that he probably stole when the RR went out of business. Oh well. I stop the car on Main Street hoping the EPC light will go off, and after a 10 minute wait (and multiple starts) the light went off and my cruise control was back, so I'm heading back on the interstate and into Texas.

[1904 miles | 7:30pm | Texas State Line] Hoping this song is not prophetic, as I enter into the Lone Star State, "Crucify Me" by Moev is playing on my random mix of music. Yikes! I know they don't like open-minded liberals like me down here, but that is extreme. I'm hoping for the best. Dispite wishing to impress my Irish-American girlfriend, I forgo staying in Shamrock TX and press on to Amarillo. An interesting thing to note: just after passing the town of Shamrock, the interstate seems to pass in and out of Donley and Gray counties at lease half a dozen times. Perhaps the engineers laying out the road spent a little too much time at the bars in Shamrock ;). Also interesting to note, the landscape finally gets interesting as soon as you get into TX.

At 8:30 pm, in Groom TX, I am 2000 miles into my trip and I pull the car over to take a picture of the 2nd largest cross in the Northern Hemisphere. My trip odometer also apparently doesn't go any more, so it resets itself to 0.

Monday, April 21st (part 2)

After leaving the Starbucks [1484 miles | 12:50 pm | Joplin, MO 64801] I am heading west on Misouri Rt. 66, which is the 1st time I see "66" being officially used. Joplin was all newer strip malls - nothing special from where I was driving. I remember this afternoon that there is a reason I avoid bright lights when the sunlight starts giving me headaches (a condition I inherited from my father's mother's side of the family, who are Translylvanian). At about 1490 miles out, I think I reach the Kansas State line (because the Garmin Nuvi shows me a huge dotted line) but since I am on the old, and mostly forgotten Route 66, there are no signs of welcome from the governor, and no fanfare. What I do notice for the first time on the trip is the Route 66 shield painted on the roadway (IL and MO did not do this). I didn't expect to spend much time in Kansas, being that 66 only runs through the state for about 13 miles. However, I made three stops here and each time, I met some of the most friendly people I have encountered on the trip thus far. First stop is in Galena KS 66739 [1492 miles | 2:00 pm]. The gift shop on their little main street was closed (a recurring theme on this trip) but shortly down the road I spotted a restored old train shed, and being a big rail fan, I had to stop. Unfortunately, the museum had very little to do about railroading, as the building itself was transplanted to the current location on Route 66 just a few years back. The Galena Mining and Historical Museum instead gave me an interesting look at the reason for the town's existence (Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide, which was found in abundance here) and a window into the lives of the people that worked here. Well worth the 45 minutes. About 5 minutes out of Galena I see the Rainbow Bridge, built in 1923 and the only remaining Marsh Arch Bridge (reinforced concrete) on Route 66. It is listed in the National Registry of Historic Places.

At 3 pm I'm in Baxter Springs, KS at a Tudor Revival-style former Phillips 66 gas station, which was restored by the National Park Service, and recently opened as a visitors center. This building was listed on the National Register in 2003 (another 20 minutes well spent). Also got some great maps for future trips that Colleen and I will be taking together. Bonus!

By 3:30 pm, I reach the Oklahoma state line. In 15 minutes, I'm in Commerce OK 74339, boyhood home of Mickey Mantle. Another 15 minutes later and I'm listening to another country music station (trying to get some local flavor), but this time it's 98.5 from Tulsa, where I hear a very funny Toby Keith song for the first time. By 5:30 pm, I'm in Catoosa OK, where I see their restored train station (closed) and a Frisco Caboose.

[1600 miles | 6:00 pm] and I arrive in Tulsa OK, where I spend a good 1.5 hours getting lost and trying to avoid closed streets in the downtown section. I didn't get to meet up with former co-worker Amanda, nor could I find their supposed railroad museum, but I did get to see a Frank Lloyd Wright designed home (from the outside at least) and many examples of art deco architecture.

I take the freeway out of Tulsa (since I can't seem to find the local way out) and eventually get back on to the parallel historic Route 66 (which is signed OK 66 at this point). I really wanted to get to the Rock Cafe in Stroud OK 74079 before I called it a night. My girlfriend recommended the place from a food network show that she saw. I finally got there just minutes after 9 pm, which is when they supposedly closed, but it looked to me like they haven't been open for a while. It's dark, late and I am exhausted and have no clue where I am going to sleep tonight. My back is a bit tight from sleeping in the car the night before, so I definitely want to get a room somewhere. My girlfriend is sweet enough to keep me company (on the phone) for the last hour of driving, and even navigates me to a Motel 6 at the crossroads of I-44 and I-35 (the NAFTA HWY) just outside of Oklahoma City. No internet access, but for $41, what can you expect. Tomorrow (Wednesday), I will tell you about yesterday (Tuesday). Confused? Yeah, me too!

Let's Catch Up

So Sunday morning, I left Litchfield IL and tried to go to one of the famous stops on 66. Ariston was not open and the 66 Cafe was really busy, so I opted for drive-thru at the local McDonalds. I saw the burial site and monument for Mother Jones. At 11 am, just as the sky began to open up and the sun began to shine, "Breathe" from The Cure began playing on my random mix of tunes from my laptop. Neat! At about 11:30 am I hit the MO state line and made a quick stop at the visitors center. Now I have to mention that I wanted to go through St. Louis, but due to poor signage and confusing roads in the Saint Louis area, I missed it to the north, taking the bypass route that 66 took in later years. At 12:30 pm driving through strip mall hell, it dawns on me that if people stopped building these multi-million dollar mega churches and donated all that money to people that really needed it, the world would be a better place. Also, without all those cushy pews to sit in every Sunday TALKING about doing good, maybe more people would actually be DOING good in their communities. Perhaps this is a resentment that goes back to primary school, where our monsignor at the Catholic school I attended drove a Mercedes and my parents had a 69 Chevy wagon and a 76 Chevy Malibu. Anyway, maybe I am different than most in that I don't need to be reminded to be a good person, it is just common sense and human nature to care for those less fortunate than yourself. I'm more proud than ever that the money I used to give to church now goes to deserving charities of my choosing, who aren't building these obscenely large Sunday mansions.

I took a 2.5 hour break from driving today to visit Meramec Caverns in St. Clair MO. It was longer than expected, and for the first time during this trip I felt very lonely being the only person without their significant other. I miss my girlfriend.

Cuba MO is a nice town to stop in next time I do this trip (ya know, this won't be the last time I do this). I saw Bison on a ranch. BISON! MoDOT variable message signs make the agency name look like "MOOOT". Perhaps, this is true seeing that Route 66 is not well marked in this state and that local residents do a better job at identifying the route than the DOT. Discovered a great college radio station in Rolla MO "KMST/KUMR 89.7 FM" and realized how much I missed discovering new music this way. Since I don't drive my car much in the city, I don't get much chance to listen to my old station WKDU 91.7 FM, where I DJ'd from 1990 to 1995.

I stopped in Rolla MO (pronounced "Rahhla" not "Roll-a") at the Totem Pole, a clasic Route 66 institution since the 1930s. At about 6 pm, I passed through the Hooker Cut, a major undertaking to provide a more level roadway through a rocky and hilly area. By 6:30 pm I'm in Waynesville MO and it is 78 degrees and sunny.

Stopped for fuel and dinner at the J's Family Restaurant and Truck Stop in Lebanon MO. Afterwords, I wanted to drive further, since I've been averaging 250 miles/day (which is good) but I was hoping for some more, to explore other interesting sites along the way. I drove for another 1.5 hours along old Route 66, then I-44 where I finally gave up and spent the night in my car at a Travel America Truck Stop off exit 88. I was a bit nervous at first, but saw others doing it, so I figured "what the heck". I was in and out of sleep for almost 9 hours and everything was fine. Nothing here in [Strafford MO 65757 | 1390 miles], so it was back to another McDonalds for breakfast (I hope i don't end up like Morgan Spurlock in "Supersize Me (2004)", but I'm only doing 1 light breakfast there each day.

Mostly uneventful driving this morning. Springfield MO was the largest city. I saw a classic Sinclair Filling Station, but it was on private property and the guy was standing there in his underwear, so I didn't stop to take a picture. In the next hour, I'm gonna be in Kansas, where Route 66 only runs for about 14 miles, then it is onto Oklahoma. Having fun!

Things I Forgot

The road to (California) is paved with good intentions. Here is a list of things I forgot, that I will update as the trip moves onward. 1) MP3 Player. I brought all the chargers and adapters, but not the player. Duh! Fortunately, I've got my entire music collection on my laptop, so I can still rock out to some great tunes along the Mother Road. 2) Sunscreen. I've been fortunate thus far, but I know it is going to be hot and sunny for most of this trip. The VW Beetle has an unusually large windshield for a car of its size. I have a custom foam/foil deflector that I bought online that works great at keeping the inside temperatures more moderate when parked in direct sunlight. Oh well. 3) Favorite Toiletries Bag. Luckily, I packed an extra one, but I brought my favorite one in to my sister's house and left it there. 4) Kansas Map. For some reason, I thought I was going to completely miss Kansas, so I left all my maps and brochures at home, even though all of my Route 66 guides have a section on Kansas. Duh #2!

UPDATE! I did pack my mp3 player in the glove box just so I wouldn't forget it. I did forget Tylenol and those little tiny shots of liquor that mix easily with your drink at the end of a stressful day.

Illinois - Bigger than you'd think

[Litchfield, IL 62056 | 1,100 miles]

OK, so we had a light breakfast at Cafe Jumping Bean around the corner from Bob & Katy's this morning, then I headed back to the center of town to start my journey off right at the very start of Historic Route 66, which is on Adams Avenue at Michigan Avenue. This was about noon. 40 minutes and 12 miles later, I saw Henry's in Cicero, IL which is a famous stop along 66, so I stopped for a hot dog loaded with everything, which means relish, mustard, skinny hot peppers, a pickle spear and french fries. Not bad for $2.40. As the sign says, this truly was "a meal in itself!" I snacked on this treat for the next 100 miles.

At 1:30 pm [35 miles out] I stopped for more coffee and ice to keep my water cold. South of Joliet, IL, I finally started making good time get up to 60 mph for long stretches between small towns. Scattered drizzle made the weather less than ideal, but much better than driving all day in the rain, which is what the news lead me to believe was going to be the case. About 60 miles out today, I saw the 2nd famous landmark, the Gemini Giant at the Launching Pad in Wilmington, IL. I stopped to take a picture, then grabbed a banana milkshake inside.

In Odell, IL, a 1932 Standard Oil Station was spotted, now a visitor's center (but unfortunately closed at the time I was passing through). I got turned around a few times in Bloomington (thank you Erica for letting me borrow your Garmin Nuvi GPS). Most of the route is marked really well where you don't even need your maps, but a few times, either a sign went missing or never got placed, and you end up in the middle of a soybean field (BTW, most soy is now grown for biofuel NOT for consumption, at least here in IL).

I made it to Atlanta sooner than I expected (Atlanta, IL that is). Population: about 650. Here, Paul Bunyan holds a giant hot dog (reason unknown, perhaps it was his favorite food?).

Greetings from Chicagoland!

I got my car fixed by 5:30 pm (local time) which set me back over $1000, but the car seems to be running fine now. I meandered my way through the city streets (avoiding I-90 during Friday rush hour) and made it to my friends Bob & Katy's place about 4 miles southwest of the VW dealer in the Pilsen neighborhood (which is the old Polish neighborhood).

[Chicago, IL 60608 | 842 miles]

We went to the Bite Cafe (which is a BYOB on N Western Av for a bite to eat, then next door to The Empty Bottle, a dive bar in the Ukrainian Village section of town (so of course being 1/4 Ukrainian, I felt right at home). At the bar, I tried Goose Island Beer Company's Honker's Ale (www.gooseisland.com/beers/pop-ups/1_honkers.html), then switched to some cheaper, Chicagoland old style beer (www.oldstylebeer.com). We saw 2 bands then ditched the place midway through the 3rd band around midnight.

Now, It's Saturday morning and I'm logging on through a neighbor's unsecured wireless router. Katy just got up and we might hit a local coffee house for a quick breakfast before I head out. The first hour or so leaving Chicago is going to be boring, but I want to set out on the right foot, doing Route 66 the way that I should. I hope to be in southern IL tonight.

The Trip That Almost Didn't Happen

[Hilltown, PA 18944 | 59 miles]

I was seconds away from canceling this whole trip today. I got a good start, leaving earlier than originally planned from my sister's. The 'Check Engine" light was still on from the day before, an on-again off-again problem I've been having for about as long as I've had the car. Just one of those 'ghosts in the machine' i guess and an annoyance more than anything else. But last week, the problem got worse, then just disappeared. It resurfaced Wednesday evening on the way to my sisters, causing uncontrolled bucking at really slow speeds, and a major loss of power. This morning, the problem disappeared again, so I figured it was ok to move onward. I was fine until I got onto the Northeast Extension and I tried accelerating to merge into traffic when the car lost all power. I pulled to the shoulder, narrowly missing getting hit by a truck. Two more attempts until I was able to safely get up to speed to merge with traffic and be on my way. I discovered that my cruise control was also not working, which would alone be grounds for canceling the trip, but I figured a few miles on the freeway to let my city car 'stretch its legs' would clear everything up. I got to the Hickory Run rest area and parked the car for a while. It started right up with only the check engine light on, and some minor bucking at low speeds. I had all the power back, so I continued north also pleasantly surprised that the cruise control was also working. This was going to be just fine. Of course, worring about the car, I missed the I-80 exit only to discover my mistake in Wilkes Barre. Going back south on I-81, I was about to just go back to my mechanic in Philly and cancel this whole thing. But then I put on the "mix tape" CD that my girlfriend made for me and by the 3rd song, I remembered just why I was doing this trip and knew that I could always get the car checked out by a dealer somewhere along the journey. So I pressed on.


So my 2nd stop (and first fill-up) was in Lock Haven. I almost visited back in August, then after learning that my girlfriend went to school there, I had to take the few mile sidetrip to see her old campus and the historic town. The town was really nice with lots of interesting architecture while the school didn't visually impress me. I filled up the tank and made my way back to I-80. My next stop was supposed to be Cleveland OH, but realizing that I really needed to get to a VW dealer, I decided I would drive as far as possible so I could get to a Chicago VW dealer Friday morning. I almost made a run for Gary Indiana (just outside of Chicago) until I was informed that Gary was the Camden of Indiana, so I decided to just stop whenever convenient instead. I drove over 600 miles today and ended in Fremont, Indiana (at the crossroads of I-80 and I-69) and just a few miles from the Ohio and Michigan state lines. Now, for some sleep and a very early start to get to a VW Dealer in downtown Chicago (3 hours away) by 6:30 am. Yikes!

All my bags are packed, Im ready to go

[Merchantville, NJ 08109 | 10.6 miles]

So remarkably, my car is more organized than when I go on a regular weekend camping trip. My back seat is my closet for the next 4 weeks, and all the valuables are in the trunk. Some people questioned why I was taking my small VW Beetle and not renting a larger car, but with gas prices nearing $4 a gallon, I'm glad to be taking my 25.5 mpg average bug.

So I didn't drive to the Atlantic Ocean to be all "official" in my cross-country goal, but I am starting off today from NJ in the tidally-influenced Delaware River watershed (close enough). Soon, I'm off to say goodbye to my parents and sister in central Bucks County, then I head west tomorrow morning.

Preliminary Numbers

OK, so my total count of counties visited prior to last October's trip to SC & GA was 171. On that trip, I added 46 counties, giving me a current total of 217 (7%). At a minimum, I am going to hit 76 new counties on the way out to LA, 63 counties on the way back to ATL, and another 5 counties on I-81 coming back to Philly. That gives me a grand total of 361/3077 counties, or 11.7% of all US counties. That of course, does not include the optional side trips that I may take (about 4 more counties) or the trip to Savannah and Charleston that Colleen and I are planning (about 35 more counties). All told, if I go everywhere that I hope to, I'll have visited 400 counties in the United States (or seen approximately 13% of the country).

The Countdown Begins

Hi. My name is Joe and I'm from Philly. I spent most of my life within a 40 mile radius of this great city and I've been itching to see more. I used to count how many states I've been to until I went to the Hoover Dam in 2006 and went just a few feet into Arizona looking for parking. That's when I realized it is not fair to say I've visited Arizona and there had to be a better way to measure where I've been. Last year, I discovered a really great wall sized map of the USA that shows all of the counties and decided to start counting. There are 3,077 counties in the US and I've been to less than 8% of them.

In 2007, this new obsession influenced where I went camping. In August, my buddies and I drove to central PA to camp just north of Williamsport (which secured me 7 new counties) then in October, we drove down to Anderson, SC for a four day weekend (which secured 3 new states and over 40 new counties).

Now, I am about to embark on a cross-country road trip inspired by my father who drove to California on parts of Route 66 back in the early 60s shortly escaping communist Hungary and moving to America. I never got to do this after high school or college, since I was always working full-time and could not afford to do this. Now, I have almost a month of vacation time saved up at work and credit card that is saying "go experience America", so I'm driving to Chicago to follow whats left of the historic Mother Road Route 66 to California.