Butt-Ugly-Early O’clock, Part II

Another thing about Butt-Ugly-Early O’clock, besides not knowing what time it is, is never being quite sure what is going to occur to you are that time of the morning, whatever time that may turn-out to be.

For instance, say you went to the office the previous day, suppose that you took your cell phone with you, suppose also that when you did you left it in the pocket of the jacket you wore. How long, do you suppose, that it would be until you realized that the cell phone was still in the pocket of that jacket, currently hanging in the closet back at home? For me, that moment of revelation came about two hours down the road.

The moment came on the road as I was approaching Ft. Morgan, Colorado. Not really wanting to drive half-way across the country without the ability to call home and give them updates, or call for help should anything get stranded, I hit the GPS looking for a cell phone store. Luckily, it was about time for me to renew my contract which means that my carrier was about to give me a free phone anyway.

An hour later, I was on my way and it was a lovely day for driving! All the way across Colorado and Nebraska, the weather could not have been nicer! I had clean, dry roads. The winds were light and breezy, and the cloud cover was broken and scattered. The traffic was fairly light and most of the way I had the road to myself.

How wonderful are all the modern conveniences!? I could call my parents any time I wanted (except for a few fairly major dead spots off the interstate), the GPS told me where to turn and what to look for. The iPod kept me entertained. The day (and the miles) flew by.



When the road starts getting dark, and the time to stop draws near, you know that it is time to end your day. (I have driven this trip in one sitting plenty of times, but today, there was no reason to push it!) So shortly after sunset, it was time to stop. Day one of my trip ended at Murdo, South Dakota.

This morning, I have less than half the trip ahead of me and a very early start of it. So I guess Saga and I will hop into the car and get rolling as early as possible. It is just now three-thirty and the road beckons.

Wherever you are, I wish you clear skies and open roads!

Don Bergquist – October 04, 2009 – Murdo, South Dakota, USA