Amarillo by morning. . . (And our Change of Plans)

We made it to Amarillo last night at about 6 p.m. After 11 hours on the road, we decided that travelling that much in one day is not fun. Originally we had selected a shorter route because we didn't know how much travelling the cats could take. Turns out, they can take a lot and well. No accidents in the car or hotel room. Just get them in their carriers, then show them their food and litter boxes when we get out and they're good to go.

Yesterday's driving experience was pretty boring. The landscape of Oklahoma was not all that exciting. It seems like they even know that. Each exit that featured a town also featured a big blue sign that read "See NAME OF CITY HERE!" and then had 2-3 facts about the town listed below it like "Home of Astronaut Mike Jones" or "Historic Route 66 sites". The really boring cities read things like "Historic Downtown District" or "Indian Arts and Crafts Shops". It was nice that even the more mundane looking towns still got an exclamation point to help spice them up.

The other thing about Oklahoma that really sucked was the wind. Wind is tough in a Sentra, but driving a much taller Penske truck made it a little more difficult. Maybe that was a way to keep me focused, I don't know, but it seemed to work.

Anyway, after all that driving, Chef and I got into Amarillo, dropped the cats off and went out in search of a good steak. I mean, when in Texas, right? We went to a place called Hoffbrau-- I thought it was going to be much nicer than it was. It ended up being kind of like a Logan's. But either way, it was pretty good. It definitely hit the spot after two days of crappy fast food eaten in hard plastic booths as quickly as possible. Plus they had fried green tomatoes that were well done, so that made me happy.

After dinner, we went to Wal-Mart because Chef was out of socks. The others were packed in a box in the Penske so far in the back, that there was no way we were going to dig them out. So, Wal-Mart it was. We got the socks, plus some snacks including a miniature single serve pumpkin pie that I'm saving for today. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

So, after the long day yesterday, Chef and I made a decision over dinner that yesterday wasn't fun enough. We were so pressed to get to our destination, that we didn't get to see any sites or even have a nice meal until we were so worn out after check in. We are changing our plans for the rest of the trip. How many times do we really expect to be driving across country? I know I haven't explored a whole lot west of the Mississippi. So, we are going to delay our arrival into LA until Sunday. Today we're driving 5 hours only and getting into Albuquerque by early afternoon to find a suitable Turkey dinner.

From Albuquerque we are going to the Grand Canyon. Neither of us has seen it and it's only a little off the beaten path, so it's a must see. From the Grand Canyon, it's on to Vegas. I've been to Vegas, but Chef hasn't, so we're going to hit it up. Neither of us really gambles, but Chef is super excited about the possibilities for great restaurants. Since we're booking hotels 24 hours before we hit a destination, we're getting great deals on kitty-friendly places. Besides, we both know that once we hit LA the work begins. We've hired some help to unload the truck at less than $100 for two hours (hell yeah). Then it's get a job!

We're off to Albuquerque (every time i say that I think of my Aunt Mio). Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!