Made the drive back to Minnesota yesterday. 9 or so hours, not to bad.
We finished A Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy on the way back. Mrs S, in a not so subtle but somewhat passive agressive display of her displeasure dropped a couple headache tablets as the book restarted and gave me that “No it’s fine if it’s what YOU want to listen too”.
We, or I as it was, decieded that we should stop in Des Moines to check out my favorite pet shop, Aqualand Pets Plus at 6th and Euclid. I like that part of Des Moines for some reason. Blue coller area, older houses, diverse neighborhood. Mrs S was a little less enamoured. “When we get to a neighborhood that’s not all check cashing stores, pawn shops and smoke shops, I have to go to the bathroom.
That sort of demonstrated one of the two big divides between Mrs S and myself. Where we might want to live.
I like older, funky diverse neighborhoods with good resturants and places to walk. I like older a lot over new. and I’m not high on the suburbs. When we were in Missouri we visted her cousins place in St. Charles Missouri. To be polite it was very nice. To be cynical it was Yuppie City. To be rude.. it was a the most lily white place I’d ever been in my life. Acres and acres of huge custom houses with hardwood floors and vinal siding, Massive neighborhoods with tons of cul-de-sacs and winding roads. The real probelm, main arteries lined with miles and miles of strip malls and chain stores, the same names showing up every 2 miles like a skip in record.
After our stop in Des Moines we hit the last 3 hours of the trip, the ride back to Minnesota. Iowa is an impressive state to drive through this time of year when the corn is high. Iowa’s Oil Fields as the signs said stretching as far as the eye can see in every direciton. Very impressive
Now we’re back with one day left on the vaction. I did get the air let out my sails a bit when I overheard the plans being made for the next two vacations with the in-laws. Skiing in December, and another Hawai’i trip over the summer. My dream of a family vacation for just us.. another 2 years out.
Hi Sank, Happy (belated) Anniversary! I just read up all your vacation posts; looks like you had a good time there.
Re: Hitchhiker’s Galaxy…seems like you use audio-books (or was that the movie?). I have never ‘read’ books that way yet. Wonder if the experience is completely different from reading (the traditional way) and how much difference the reader makes…
Audio books- they’re good ways to catch up on “reading” and eat up miles on a long trip, and this was a long trip!