4/19/2011
I thought I had made my peace with the truckers a while back. Well, I don’t think the guy I encountered today knew about the agreement. I don’t think I’ve really had a near death experience on this entire trip. Today things changed. Despite my precautionary efforts of running facing traffic, I still came close to getting run down. The narrow stretch of country road was fine and most people were super nice and aware. Unfortunately, a dump truck in a hurry wanted to overtake a car in the lane my back faced. He honked his horn seconds before whipping past me. This was around mile sixteen which was close to the little town of Davenport OK. It was time to calm my nerves and chill out.
I headed into a great little joint called the Early Bird Cafe. Sure there must be plenty of Early Bird Cafe’s across the country but this one was quaint. Sometimes I sit and wonder how some of the places I’ve seen stay open. I mean the place was nice but there wasn’t a single customer inside. It’s owned by a charming Equadorian couple. They had recently upgraded to their current location. I saw their little son Gabriel having a meal and of course I had to make a new friend. This kid had a backpack full of books and he spoke perfect English. It seems unfair to me to blame the school systems for the troubles with today’s youth. Clearly America’s promise still holds true for many immigrants. I decided I would add a book to his collection. He decided to return the gesture by bringing a little butterfly inside for me. The creature was half dead but how do you reject a present from a little kid. Come on now, we’ve all recieved something mangled and gooey and a little bit obscure. I couldn’t very well reject Gabriel’s offering. I did however convince him the best plan was to let the little butterfly enjoy the great outdoors. Freedom is one of those things I hold dear to my heart. I don’t think any animal is meant to be caged.
Speaking of caged animals, the farming industry seems to have changed quite a bit. Big business seems to have taken hold of the food we consume around the world. I don’t know about you but it seems like everyone is trying to lose weight these days. The answer comes down to two things. Diet and exercise. First we’ve got to stop shoving all the animals together and injecting them with steroids. The food on the shelves is filled with toxins and artificial junk. And, has anyone ever noticed that corn is an ingredient in almost every food product on the market. I’m serious. Read the labels. I’ve been lucky to run past some pretty nice looking farms. But, there have also been some factories of death. Everything seems to be falling the way of genetic modification. Does anyone else think that tampering with our food is weird? I think all this tampering is why I am coming across so many vegetarians. I wish the old school farmers the best of luck but they seem to be fighting a losing battle against the big guys.
Well, Between the hot meal and my near death experience, I needed a nap. I fell asleep in the cramped passengers seat for like an hour. Getting back on the road was not a pleasant experience for my body which was still trying to wake from the contorted position. Not having much more road to cover for the day, I drank some powerade and started running. (Unfortunately powerade also contains high fructose corn syrup) From that point, there were no hitches. A state trooper stopped to ask me if I was alright. Sure enough when I told him what I was doing he gave me the thumbs up and slowly drove off. two minutes later he had turned around and zoomed past me to give someone a ticket.
I ended up at the Sooner Motel where I met Captain Lance Ferell. He’s a ship’s captain and a rider. You might not know this, but runners and riders share a lot in common. Both have a real respect for the open road. Both activities are very Zen and both activities bring you closer to the universe. Well the good Captain understands what I am doing and he asked me to contact him for the great reading run part two. He figures the Gold Wing Road Riders would be a good sponsor for me. It seems they love this kind of charity activity as well. Like I said before, I just need to put one foot in front of the other. Things will happen. Just believe!!
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