Across the Great Divide


"The finest hour that I have seen
Is the one that comes between
The edge of night and the break of day
When the darkness rolls away"

My trip blogging fell off. It isn't that there wasn't content generated every day, but I was exhausted at the end of each day--not unusual but more acute than the last two cross country road trips I have done. I haven't driven across the country since 2000, which I did alone, driving from NYC to Seattle in 2 days and 17 hours--it's a long story and not worth retelling. One exception, my driver side windshield wiper died during severe weather in the Chicago area. I pulled over and took some string and hooked it to the wiper and ran it through the driver side window. I then drove for an hour or so with the window down in a relentless Midwest downpour, dragging the wiper as quickly as I could as the rain came down in torrents. And while it is true that I am not mechanical and may have played a role in my jenky-fix and soaking arm, I stand by the genius that is me in problem solving that issue away. 

We had no such excitement on this trip. Abby insisted upon and got new wipers and a replacement passenger side mirror, both of which she installed on her own before we left. When we did get crazy rainstorms, which happen regularly in the middle of the country in the summer, the wipers worked fine.

I think spending time in the hinterlands is incredibly important for all Americans, however fleeting those visits may be. We spent no more than one night in any place, but learned so much about our fellow Americans in "flyover" states. If you get your news from MSNBC, you may be surprised to read that I am far more pessimistic about the election, much more skeptical that Trump will learn. From about two or three hours out, until Western NY, the only presidential signs I saw were for Trump. Moreover, as I mentioned on FB, the number of insane "Fuck Biden" signs, while not innumerable, were a lot. That they still stand even now, 6-7 weeks after he dropped out, I don't know what that indicates other than hatred of Ds and devotion to the weak-strong man that Trump is.  


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