9/7/2015
Four days of sleeping, lounging, and eating should have been sufficient to iron out the kinks in the body. I did nothing but take light and ginger steps any time I got on my feet. My movement was so slow, a snail could have outrun me. I let my body repair itself with little interruption. Over the course of the break, I organized a shipment of books we received from Capstone and dusted some parts of the trailer. I tried on each of my new shoes but didn’t take the time to break them in. The only footwear that hit the ground on my days or rest were sandals. But of course, I couldn’t lounge around forever. With the impending winter weather making cameo appearances I knew we had to rush along.
Was it possible to receive too much rest? The knees creaked at the outset of the morning. I slipped on my new HOKA one one shoes. The bright neon yellow and green colors of the Clifton screamed at drivers, “Hey I’m right in front of you.” My conflict with the elements was a love/hate relationship. Upon my return, the skies were blue but the breeze was fast. The gusts pushed against me the entire day at twenty to thirty five miles per hour. My entire day was filled with whistling in my ear. I was lucky I had ample padding beneath my feet to keep my forward motion pain free. My new shoes were like riding in a Cadillac Escalade after a lifetime of riding in cars. They sat high and absorbed the bumps in the road. I was surprised my feet weren’t weighed down. The midsole looked very thick but the actual weight of the shoes was nine ounces.
The day’s road curved like a bent wire. I caught up with Crystal every five miles. In the town of Richardton, I found the truck and trailer doors unlocked with the keys laying inside. Our vehicle was parked in front of a shop called Hamburger Meats. I scanned the area to see where she could be. After watching the BBC cop program, Luther, on my mini-holiday, my mind was susceptible to pessimistic thoughts. Moments later, Crystal popped up. She was with the family that owned the shop where she had parked. I was greeted by Tim Hamburger, his wife Kim, and their precocious son Truman. How about that? Tim’s last name was Hamburger and owned a meat shop. They were fascinated with our tales of adventure. They filled a couple bags with huge veggies from their garden and made sure we had things to eat. We even had an opportunity to toast our hands by their bonfire and roast some marshmallows. The trailer had found a home for the night in the lot of the butchery and we even had access to electricity and the internet. I would have never expected to find such a memorable experience in such a tiny town.
The following day was the last day of a three day weekend. I prepared myself for motorists returning home from holiday. We were headed to the town of Dickinson; the last stop for supplies before crossing into Montana. As I ran out of Richardton, I noticed a weather wheel created with old tricycles. The state had provided several pieces of art created from old scrap parts.
I reached the town of Taylor in a short time. It was only six miles away. The residents had not yet returned from their holiday. The empty streets reminded me of an impending shoot out in the old western movies. The empty streets continued until I reached the town of Dickinson. Crystal found me wandering the streets. All the businesses looked as if they had taken the day off. Crystal had passed a game and comic book store on the main road and asked me if I’d like to look inside. I loved comic books and didn’t pass up the chance to browse. After chatting with the owner for a moment, Crystal ran off to grab some of our books. Moments later I received a desperate call. Crystal had been in a rush to grab our books and she slammed her finger into the car door. She said there was blood everywhere. I sprinted out of the shop to help her out. I looked like the caught the cuticle of her nail. Blood seeped to the ground and nail changed color before my eyes. We cleaned and bandaged her finger. I had to use some sports tape which left her finger a bit bulkier than normal. But she still managed to get ahold of Applebee’s and arrange a meal donation.
The manager, Shannon, came and greeted us when we walked in. I aHe knew who we were and he even had a gift for us. He didn’t just donate the meal of the day, he also wanted us to continue enjoying the Applebee’s cuisine at future destinations. It was a surprise when he presented us with two gift cards worth fifty dollars each. We enjoyed our meal and tried to keep our order simple because we felt so grateful for his generosity.
The best part of the day was when we arrived at the La Quinta Inn. The girl at the front desk had a big smile and prompt service. She got us into our room in the blink of an eye. We grabbed a few treats that had been laid out and headed to our room. I immediately ran a hot bath. I could tell it was going to be a peaceful evening. The large bed with an assortment of pillows assured me of it.
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