DAY ONE OF THE WAY WEST

The first day was somewhat uneventful considering that we drove 693 miles. We did get stopped by a Highway Patrolman and the genius was able to get out of it. I can't tell you how until we get back, however. Right now it is a secret that will be revealed whenever we return next week.

We left early this morning -- well, early for the genius and me. He went out and took a ride on his bike, came back, showered, and finished packing. We were still able to get on the road by 7:20. (Brenda and I have been known to leave before 6:00 on our trips together.) About an hour out we were stopped by our friendly cop.

And speaking of them, they were patrolling the highway in great numbers from Nashville to Jackson. I don't know why or what was going on. After that town, we hardly saw any all the way to our final destination.

The genius heartily dislikes Arkansas and driving through it. He began complaining as soon as we crossed the river about the construction that started and made a bet with me that there would be at least seven more construction areas to go through before we reached the OK border. So I took him up on it. There were only two very minor places that we didn't even slow down for, so I won. Then when we hit OK, a state he likes, there were miles of one lane traffic in one place and several other spots as well. He actually tried to cheat on the bet by saying that this construction counted as Arkansas, but of course, he didn't get away with it.

Rufus has been a little nervous about the whole travel thing, beginning when we were packing the car. He was very afraid he was going to be left behind -- so much so that he got between me and the back door and wouldn't move. We finally made it and he has traveled pretty well. Every now and then he would get restless and move around the car, but eventually he became used to the moving and settled down. He is now on my bed happily gnawing on a bone.

Tomorrow we are hoping to reach Socorro, NM. The distance is also over 600 miles so it will be another long day of driving.

But then we will spend a day exploring that interesting little town!