Crossing Over

The sky as we left Minneapolis yesterday. Pretty, no?

Ten pointed out when we passed over the Mississippi. Ya know...it was water, it was big, I thought I'd be more impressed. Mebbe if it had tap danced like Multnomah Falls?

We're now in the thick of the hard part of our trans continental crossing. We’ve left behind the evocative, intriguing and sometimes terribly amusing place names e.g.: Crazy Woman, Dead Horse and Wild Horse creeks, Devil's Tower, Reliance, SD and Keister, MN – I gotta wonder what the high school football team is nicknamed – The Fighting Butts? Are the cheerleaders and baton twirlers referred to as the Sparkling Assettes? We're now in the relatively colorless and dull land of Elgin, Lake Station, Chesterton, South Bend, Howe (more like Why?) zzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Along with the cool names of the more westward states, there’s a glut of rah rah, go team "patriotism" going on. You see it in how half of every biz, it seems, is named:

• America's Truck Box
• America's Campground
• America’s Inn
• America’s Land Agency—appropriate that it’s in South Dakota, the Black Hills thieving motherfucker of a state.
• America’s Finest Hotel—Really. That’s the name. We stayed there one night entirely because it was the cheapest option. Wasn’t bad/wasn’t great. It was full to the brim with meh.

All these companies must use the same grifting biz advisers. Name your company this, put a flag image behind the text and the rubes will come pouring in!

I don’t miss the teepee sculptures at all rest stops in South Dakota. They proclaim big and bold, we love you as long as you’re no more than ornamental and lend us some exoticism.

Wisconsin was pretty – they have actual trees there and rolling hills. They have Devil’s Lake State Park too. HOW did such a goody goody state end up naming a park after the devil?

We also saw a place offering Ghost Boat Tours. If our adventure was more open-ended, maybe we woulda stopped. Or not. Frankly, Minnesota’s Spam Museum had more appeal. Prolly that’s just me?

Otter OR, possibly, Nessie?

On hitting the Milwaukee and Chicago areas we entered a world of endless, nasty ass, backed up traffic and it wasn’t even rush hour. Boston traffic’s bad – this was every bit as heinous. We pushed on through (I had reached extreme crankification – NOT pretty) and found this wholly unexpected and astoundingly lovely, inexpensive hotel. All rooms at The Waterbird Lakeside Inn have very private balconies which look out on a large, sweet pond. In fact, if temps were above freezing, we could dangle our feets or even dive off the balcony for a swim. The place is basic but beautiful, comfortable and calming – three things that were TOTALLY needed last night.

Just now, Ten spied an otter hunting up some brekkie. How cool is this!? (Hint: very. Especially since we’re in the otherwise dull state of Indiana)

We’ll head out in a few. Today’s goal? Western Pennsylvania. We’ll likely reach there by nightfall and visit Daddy tomorrow.

Home is within reach now!