Sunday, April 6…Computer Age (Neil Young)

 Because of the stress of driving through the snow and wind yesterday, we stopped earlier than we normally would have; we both needed a break from the road. Today we were up at 7 a.m. and on the road by 7:30. Had thirty-five miles in the rearview mirror by 8 a.m. 

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   Last night, Kim went into the camper to get his coffee maker, so he could have a “good cup of coffee” in the hotel room.  It was stowed in the truck this morning.  When we stopped at a rest area, he grabbed the Jackery (electric power source) out of the camper and used the tailgate as a table to make a cup of coffee. Quick, efficient and he knows it’ll be good. Gas station and restaurant coffee is always a gamble in the taste department. 

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   Our route to Arizona typically takes us through Kansas; the exact route through the state may vary from year to year but we’ve discovered it’s always windy. Yesterday, from my perspective in the passenger seat, the wind was trying to knock us off the road. Today, it seemed much kinder. I was very thankful for that and I’m guessing Kim was also as he didn’t have to see my involuntary reactions to the movement of the truck/camper in his peripheral vision.  Less wind equals less stress for both of us.

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   Signs of spring were appearing by the time we left Arizona: cactuses were blooming, palo verde trees were greening up and the wildflowers had finally appeared. Subtle but noticeable. 

   Spring has also sprung in Kansas and Missouri, but the colors are much more vibrant. Leaves on the trees, flowering bushes of various types, and rich black soil in the fields. Dandelions and daffodils added a splash of yellow. I like the muted colors of the desert, but the colors of a Midwest Spring are the best!

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   Picacho to Charlevoix is a little over 2,000 miles; we typically figure it’ll take us four big days of driving.  Since we didn’t make our goal of 500 miles yesterday because of the weather, Kim was determined to make up for it today.  We were on the road today for 13 hours and he exceeded all expectations by putting 690 miles behind us. That’s right, 690 miles! That leaves roughly 420 miles for tomorrow, which Rapunzel says should take about 6 ½ hours.  Sounds doable. 

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   In Illinois, there are hundreds to thousands of acres of farmland along US 55. These fields extend to the horizon on both sides of the highway for miles.  Too soon to tell what the crops might be; but the expanse of tilled rows speaks of a lot of hours spent on a tractor. I was feeling sorry for the farmers but then I wondered about the possibility of self-driving tractors. I know computer technology is already being used in farming, but is an autonomous tractor really possible? I asked Google and, while I won’t pretend to understand all the technical jargon, the basic answer is yes, there are self-driven tractors. And I doubt George Jetson would be surprised by that.

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   We finished listening to The Concrete Blonde this morning. As usual we both had the guilty party figured wrong. Started listening to The Last Coyote, which is the fourth Harry Bosch book and we’ll finish that one tomorrow. Audio books have proven to be a good way to pass the hours spent driving, especially on a long day like today. I mean, I’m capable of keeping up a good stream of chatter but 13 hours’ worth would have been annoying to both of us.