Beginning A New Year

Happy 2012!

I thought that this trip post was already on line! 

In bringing 2011 to a close, I visited friends and family. I doing so I touched on the following states: Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and just a bit of Tennessee. It included my first look at Saint Louis in a long time.

It has been good to travel in the US again. It is a bit insulating to travel on our great interstates, and it is amazing to see great cargo trucks traveling 80 mph and more on them!

I left the Clute/Lake Jackson area on Texas highway 35 going southwest along the Gulf coast to Corpus Christi(body of Christ). I had just had a great visit with my long time friend Dr. D. From Corpus I traveled north westish up interstate 37 to state 72 near Three Rivers, Texas. I passed through Fowlerton and Los Angeles on the way to Cotulla on interstate 35.

Many Texans are learning differences between frac-water and fresh water. Frac-water is sometimes called brine there. Still I haven't been able to find one one Texan who can tell me the recipe for Frac-water. I also have not found out why used frac-water is hidden away beneath the earth and not reused.

From Cotulla I somehow jogged over to federal highway 83 and drove north on it to interstate 10. Found the drive up 83 particularly as, by the way, I did the drive down state 35.

I took interstate 10 to Fort Stockton on U.S. federal highway 285. Fort Stockton was, I believe, one of those places from which Civil War veterans shot Indians for the good of the Republic. For Lancaster, a bit farther east, was another of those places. I believe that both of those forts were built along what had been majore Indian trade routes. We may have once called that route The Old Chihuahua Trail, a name that that probably came to us from the Spanish.

Took 285 to Roswell New Mexico. The only possible aliens I saw around Roswell were some Middle East looking guys in skull caps. The had run out of gas and some good Samaritans were helping them. Tourists might be a better name than aliens.

Drove federal highway from Roswell to Las Cruces and found it a very pleasant drive. Among other pleasant sights, it took me through my first pines with snow of this winter.

Las Cruces has grown enormously; not all that growth has been for the better. From Las Cruces I took interstate through Tucson, Arizona to the junction with interstate 8. Took 8 to Yuma and into California to 86, 62 and home. I passed through some parts of Yuma I had not seen in a long time. I detected an amount of drug and gang activity that, for some reason, surprised me.  Still, I found the people kind and helpful, which surprised some people there.

It's good to be home. Joshua Tree and my little house here seem to have fared well in my absence.

Thank you to the people of each of the States I touched. Thank you too to Rex, Dennis, Gerry, Ron, Gloria, and Debra. A great 2012 to all, including the Maya.