Of Wind, Birds, Snacks and Books

Last Saturday we somewhat reluctantly headed home. We really, sort of, kind of wanted to watch the weekend races. Each one was sure to be more intense, sort of like the Gladiators of Cyclocross. However, Old Man Winter was stomping across the country and the next stop on his dance card was Kansas. As much as we would have liked to watch the races, it was not as much as I wanted to miss the storm. The wind across Kansas is wicked enough without adding snow, sleet, rain and ice into the mixture.

After a quick bite to eat we were off. The kids continued to play musical cars. I started out with the young ones. They wanted to watch a movie and I have seats that are next to each other as well as the ability to play the soundtrack through my speakers. The kids and I enjoyed "Cars." It was funny to drive and listen to a movie at the same time. It did make the time pass by quickly. That was followed by a few mad games of "Speed" and other card games whose names I forget. From time to time we would stop for gas or to use the bathroom. One kid would try and guard the van so the older boys would not take their place. Later the older ones got their turn in my van. That section of the trip was complete with a lot of rowdy bathroom humor (I thought they were supposed to grow out of that - looks like they did not get that memo!) and loud music. They seemed to eat the entire time. Eventually we had to make an emergency stop since we could not make it to a bathroom quickly enough. It turns out that the boys learned that you should not drink four energy drinks in one day.


The actual driving was sort of mixed. I loved the country side. One of my favorite things was seeing the hawks and falcons that seemed to act like sentries, sitting on the fence posts every mile or so for much drive. A few of them also seemed to enjoy playing in the wind. We also enjoyed the wind farm that we past about half way through the state. The kids tried to count them all but could not complete the task since we were driving so fast. The hard part of the drive was the wicked wind. It seemed to want to blow everything off of the road. Just ahead of me there had been a semitruck. He struggled to drive as the wind kept pushing the back end of the trailer off into the side of the road. I scurried around that rig as quickly as I could. Poor driver, what a day he must have been having. My car was punished as well. We noticed at one of the stops that the Thule box on top of the car had been pushed over, stopped only by the bracket that holds the whole rack onto the roof of the van.We were happy when we pulled into Denver just as dusk was settling into nighttime.

Here's what I am reading now:
This nonfiction book will be a wonderful read.


I always love a good Neil Gaiman novel. This one is a collection of short stories. I think Neil would be such and interesting neighbor, friend or dinner guest.