Flagstaff to the AZ/CA border (Monday, June 17, 2024)

The very long Penske took about five regular parking spots at the Flagstaff hotel. We stayed at a Holiday Inn Express every night. They all were amenable to Penske parking; some had designated truck parking areas.

The I-40 followed the old Route 66 from Flagstaff to the California border, maybe further. In western Arizona, we crossed the Hualapai mountain range. Wind turbines crown the far-off mountain top.

Our 359 miles through Arizona on the I-40 ended at the California state line. Uh-oh. Outside plants, fruits, and vegetables are confiscated at the border, lest they carry insects that could be harmful to California agriculture.

The six outdoor plants in the backseat of the pickup ended their journey at the border.

 We were approved to enter the great state of California, along the southern edge of the Mojave desert for about 100 miles.

On the road to Flagstaff, AZ (Sunday, June 16, 2024)

Interesting art at Speedy's Truck Stop in Lupton, AZ, at the New Mexico border and in the Navajo Nation. The good news for our 795-mile drive from Weatherford, OK, to Flagstaff was that Arizona is on Pacific time. We gained two hours but still arrived after dark.

Except for the standing motorcyclist, this was my view across most of the country. On the upgrades to Flag, the Penske only got about 5 miles per gallon!
 

Back in Texas for 177.14 miles on the I-40 (Sunday, June 16, 2024: Father's Day too)

Sharing the sky with all the 215-275 foot high wind turbines in the Panhandle is the 19-story tall cross in Groom, Texas. Surprised that the photo clicked over my shoulder going 80 mph isn't blurry. 

Every 250 miles or so, we stopped for coffee or soft drinks, snacks, and sometimes gas. Nice to stretch the legs after being behind the wheel for 4 or 5 hours.

We had to stop at the Big Texan in Amarillo for a Father's Day photo op. Didn't attempt the 72 ounce steak challenge. If you complete the steak, a shrimp cocktail, baked potato, salad, and buttered roll in an hour, the meal is free. Maybe next time? P.S. Why isn't Ryder in the photo? Because he took ours!  Thanks, Ryder.

 My favorite big Texan next to a big grizzly inside the Big Texan.

Weatherford, Oklahoma (Saturday, June 15, 2024)

There wasn't much to photograph through the bug-splatted windshield on the way to Weatherford. And no, sunset wasn't at 12:55 p.m. I tried to change the clock in Mya's car to Central Daylight Time but the clock had ideas of its own. We arrived at the Weatherford Holiday Inn Express around 9 p.m. Luckily Qdoba Mexican Eats, a lot like Chipotle, was nearby and open until 10 p.m. 
 

Nashville (June 14, 2024)

We were determined to try Hattie B's hot chicken even after a wrong turn took us into the traffic nightmare that is Broadway, Nashville's main drag.  Luckily the restaurant was open until midnight; we didn't arrive until after 10 p.m. Never mind that we should have been sleeping for the next day's 738-mile drive to Weatherford, Oklahoma.

Hot chicken! Bacon cheddar grits! Black-eyed pea salad! Pimento mac and cheese! Baked beans! Happy to discover there's a Hattie B's in Austin. We'll be there!

The "forty" reminds me of mine and Donna's trip to pick Micah up from the Savannah College of Art and Design back in 2001, I think. But that's another story. Tennessee whiskey and Coke. Where else but Nashville?
 

The 2600 mile trip begins! (June 14, 2024)

We arrived at ABIA at 3:30 a.m. for our 5:35 a.m. flight to Greenville/Spartanburg, South Carolina, where Ryder, Brandy, Piper, and Willoughby picked us up.

Our Day #1 goal was to drive 300 miles from Asheville to Nashville. Luckily for us, all but about 10 miles of our trip would be on the I-40 and the I-5 from Bakersfield to Moraga in California. Except that we skirted Bakersfield on US 58 for I'm not sure how many miles. We hit all eight states that I-40 runs through: North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas (right past Atkins, where Tom's father grew up), Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California.

Our convoy. Ryder will lead in the Penske. I'll follow in Mya's Subaru. Tom will be behind me in Ryder's Ram pickup. So helpful for Tom to be behind me as Mya's car was packed to the ceiling and I couldn't use the rearview mirror to change lanes.

Brandy, kids, Willoughby, and Mylo stayed behind. Ryder, Willoughby, and maybe Mya will take Brandy's car cross country from July 5-8. The rest of the family will fly to San Francisco on July 5.
 

Mother's Day penta (June 2024)

 The penta is loving its spot on the back deck. Thanks, Amon and Fox!

Celebrating our 29th anniversary (June 10, 2024)

Our friend recommended Peace Bakery and Deli for Mediterranean food. So we decided to give Peace a chance (Sorry! That begged to be said). So many delicious choices!

 I rarely post food photos, especially with my right foot and Tom's left foot in them.

Too full for dessert so took home a piece of coconut baklava as well as an assortment of walnut, pistachio, and almond baklava. 

TC aka Big Boy in boxes (June 2024)

Tight fit, but he's in!

 Sweet dreams, TC!

Reformed rabies cat (June 8, 2024)

Sassenach impersonating a pirate after enjoying an entire can of wet cat food

Sweetly rolling at our feet. No more biting.

 

Okra! (June 8, 2024)

A friend shared her dwarf okra plant seeds with us. I planted about a dozen, but only this one came up. Unfortunately we didn't pick the okra when it was tender because we didn't know how to tell when it was ready. We ended up microwaving a very woody okra pod. Tasted like okra, but was a bit chewy.
 

How many workers does it take to change a traffic signal light bulb? (June 6, 2024)

 What kind of super duper light bulbs last 24/7? I rarely see the traffic signal light bulbs being changed. Does this guy have any other job duties?

Mani/pedi day (June 1, 2024)

Fox and I had a girls' day at the organic nail salon. Best part: was it the sugar scrub with orange slices? Or the paraffin hot waxing? 

Fox rocked some acrylic nails. Cue the Stones' "Paint It Black."  I went with a neutral shade. Maybe need to live more dangerously.
 

Sassenach, the hangry cat that might have given Papa rabies (May 27, 2024)

 Sassenach showed up in May. We named him after the Outlander character because our three cats treated him like an outcast at first. Maybe wisely so! When Papa didn't feed him fast enough, Sassenach bit Papa's leg. Papa had to have a series of rabies shots!

Watching Papa mow the yard (May 27, 2024)

TC aka Big Boy and Colette, fascinated by Papa's work

 

Two Tons of Steel at the Devil's Backbone Tavern (May 26, 2024)

The oldest dive bar in Texas sits atop a hill between San Marcos and Wimberly, in Fischer. Jukebox heaven and honky tonk dance hall.

Two Tons of Steel: some originals, some Buddy Holly, basically good ole rock 'n roll.

Why does this lady look so happy? We bought Tejas Tonic sparkling water. We wondered why it was $7 a can until we read the ingredients. Infused with real "high quality" top shelf THC and CBD. 

The graffiti bug outside the tavern

Papa with the high class caddie at the tavern

You can't go home from the Hill Country without some sweet and juicy Fredericksburg peaches. 
 

Deep Eddy Pool and Casey's New Orleans snoballs (May 30, 2024)

Nothing like shaved ice on a hot Austin afternoon!

 Papa and Fox awaiting their snoballs after a swim at Deep Eddy Pool. They both exclaimed them to be the best treat ever! When I was in high school, I used to walk a couple of blocks to the snoball stand on Maple Street for lunch every day. I tried every flavor before the year was done. 

More bees and mystery caterpillars (May 2024)

Plenty of horsemint at Cornerstone for the honeyflow. We'll harvest at the end of June and share with family and friends. Might even make some mead.

Hives among the cacti

Beautiful wildflower at Cornerstone. But I think I've seen them in the neighborhood too? Don't know what they are.

Bees napping (?) on sunflowers in our front yard.

We'll never know what butterflies or moths might have come from these caterpillars on the sunflowers. Papa "dispatched" them....

 

First tomato harvest! (May 9, 2024)

 Papa started the plants in the greenhouse in February. Hence, harvesting began in May.

The mean girl bees got me! (May 4, 2024)

We ordinarily don't open our two "mean girl" hives, because those bees have chased us at least one-half mile down the dirt road before turning back to their hive. I foolishly thought they should get sugar water like the other six hives. Big mistake! Hundreds, maybe thousands, of bees swarmed around me. Twenty or so managed to sting my upper arm through the bee suit! P.S. The bicep is courtesy of Caroline Girvan's YouTube workouts. I highly recommend her!

Luckily, you become more immune to bee stings as time goes on. By day two, they felt like itchy mosquito bites. 

See all the stingers stuck around my face mask? We carry an epi pen to the apiary with us, just in case.

They stung all over my suit, which did its job--mostly. Here are stingers in the lower arm portion of one of my gloves.