Wrong Side Of the Tracks

LA/XC-5 DAYS TWENTY AND TWENTY-ONE: POSTING FROM FORT STOCKTON, TX

Two-day mileage from Blythe, CA to Fort Stockton, TX:  809.2

Total LA/XC-5 mileage: 5,030.2

Road Music:  Wednesday: Politics on Sirius (“No way I vote for Trump,” says a lady from Ohio.  “I’d vote for a clown first.  A clown with a red nose.”  Well said!); rest of Sirius Cycle; “Duets” playlist (samples: “Highway Don’t Care,” Taylor Swift + Tim McGraw; “Lonely Tonight,” Blake Shelton + Ashley Monroe; “Mockingbird,” Carly Simon + James Taylor; “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,” Stevie Nicks + Tom Petty; “Wrong Side of Town,” Pat Green + Trish Murphy); “New Singles” playlist (“I Will Wait,” Mumford & Sons; “We Are Young,” Fun.); older “Singles” playlist (“What Does the Fox Say?” Ylvis, one of the most entertaining songs ever; “Born To Add,” a brilliantly funny Sesame

Street send-up of Bruce’s “Born To Run” — go listen, now!; Thursday: Sirius Cycle, “Singles” playlist, cont.

Weather leaving Blythe on Wednesday: 86 degrees and sunny

Weather arriving Fort Stockton on Thursday: 65 degrees and partly cloudy

Two-day state tally: 4 (California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas)

Gas money to date: $539.83

Well, now this was a first!  Front desk guy at the Comfort Suites in Lordsburg, NM

Wednesday night tells me there’s only one restaurant in town he’d risk sending me to, El Charro, a Mexican place on Southern Pacific Blvd.  Looking back, the “Southern Pacific” part should have been the tip-off.  I followed his directions, and could actually see the neon lights of the cantina beckoning from across the railroad tracks.  But the gate was

down, the red lights were flashing, and a train was blocking my path.  So I waited for the train to pass and for the gate to go back up.  And then I noticed the train wasn’t moving.  I waited some more.  And then I realized it was parked for the night — and there was no way I could make it across the tracks.  Or if there was, I sure as hell couldn’t figure it out.  So I had to stay on the wrong side of the tracks . . . and go to McDonald’s!  Again.  I know, second time this trip.  Not good.  I’m actually surprised Kemba didn’t spill the beans about this misadventure in his whiney “I Want To Go Home” post yesterday.

No, seriously, I get it.  For the K-Dawg, the best parts of this road trip — Huntington Beach, the Pacific Street Dog Park, his friends in Santa Monica, the pampering at the Loews — are all in the rear view mirror.  And I have to admit, these first few days of driving east through basically — let’s face it — the desert, have been on the scruffy side.  (Though I do get a kick out of seeing cacti all along the interstate in Arizona.)

But from my point of view (clearly, not his), there’s still a lot of good stuff just around the bend.  As a result of Matt’s defection to the Gaga tour, I’ve had to rejigger the itinerary for the final few days, and it now includes New Orleans, where, in spite of several visits, there are a few things I’ve been wanting to see (jazz shrine Preservation Hall, to name one).  I’m also planning to make a nice long pit stop in Lynchburg, TN, home of my very good friend Jack Daniels.  And a pilgrimage to Port Arthur, birthplace of

the late, great Janis Joplin (whose rendition of “Summertime” my mom once told me sounded to her like a cat being strangled).  And, of course, the true highlight:  My first-ever visit to San Antonio, later today.  There’s the Riverwalk to stroll.  Market Square and the Governor’s Palace to see.  Davey Crockett (my boyhood hero) coonskin caps to buy.  And . . . something else.  Oh, I remember — the Alamo! 🙂  All of which leads up to the real point of my visit: to hear my favorite singer/songwriter in the world, Trish Murphy, and her band Skyrocket, blasting off at Sam’s Burger Joint tonight!

So while we’ve got three weeks down and just one to go, this trip ain’t quite over yet.

RANDOM ROAD NOTES:

•  What GPS lady told me yesterday morning leaving Lordsburg for Fort Stockton:  “Follow the interstate for 328 miles (molls) . . .”

•  When you start seeing signs for no-name towns like Las Cruces, Deming, and Needles — and realize you’ve actually stayed overnight in them before — then you know you’ve been on the road a good bit.

•  80 mph speed limit in these parts . . . not much to run into, I guess

•  Most enchanting roadside signs: HASSAYAMPA RIVER; FORT HUACHUCA; CHIRICAHUA NATIONAL MONUMENT

•  Road signs mis-read from afar:  TRASH JERKY (it was actually “Fresh Jerky”); 700+ SLUTS! (700+ Slots)

I PLAN TO POST AS CLOSE TO DAILY AS POSSIBLE WHILE KEMBA AND I ARE ON THE ROAD. BUT YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY: MAN PLANS, GOD LAUGHS. OH, AND BTW, YOU CAN ALSO FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK, TWITTER, AND INSTAGRAM.