Two Beers and a Pretzel

Well, the tow truck driver had no sense of direction, so I had to pay him $36 to cover the overage on his 250 mile tow (including 86 miles for him to get to where I was).

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But we made it to the dealership in Midland, TX and they replaces the tire and threw in a free wash – although the tire plus labor was $474.  Ouch.

On the way, I saw Guadalupe Mountain National Park… not the way I was planning, so I’ll have to go back sometime.

After hitting the road again, I saw a fairly decent sunset, but liked this pic of wind turbines and cows…

After sleeping in Shreveport, LA, I drove thru Louisana and hit the Natchez Trace in Mississippi for 100 miles or so on the way back to my Sister’s house in Tennessee.  I probably missed the peak fall foliage colors by 2 or 3 weeks, but the trace is a very sweet route to take.  You just see trees and farms with a thin, but well maintained road to drive.  Very few side streets, no driveways…  Even when you drive thru towns, they’ve made a great effort to isolate your view so you don’t see shopping strips or other highways – just trees and fields.  The lighting wasn’t so good for pics due to clouds, so I just stopped at a camping area for a snapshop.  However, I am totally planning to drive the 440+ mile trace for spring and fall foliage whenever I can.  Via bicycle would be even better since the speed limit is 50 mph anyway.

My sister is in her 41st week of pregnancy with my Nephew…

So I’m back to playing uncle with my twin nieces while waiting for the bouncing baby boy to pop out…  Then it’s back to Cincinnati to actually live in my house for a few weeks before going to Holland to hang out with Ingrid and a few others for a few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas.