We slept so late we missed the hotel breakfast. Not that there would have been much complaint for us anyway, but that didn’t stop me from walking down in my PJs and slippers to see! I had to double-take a dry-erase board in the lobby. My name was written loud and proud solo at the top under Ambassador, denoting my rewards status level. I couldn’t help but laugh and take a picture as I backed up to look at it! I hadn’t even noticed it at check-in. I’m telling you I’ve got big plans for that status and all my reward points!
Amanda was feeling better after some sleep with no alarm set. We got ready and headed out with a local coffee shop as our first stop. They had a house latte with brown sugar called the Honey Bader Amanda picked. I had an oatmilk latte with a local honey and Mexican vanilla syrup. They were good but needed another shot to meet our coffee likings. I cheated and got a sausage kolache, too. It was great. The dough reminded me of my mother’s roll recipe. The cup sleeves matched Amanda’s vibe as well as her shirt.
We almost forgot about the local ski shop, yes, an Amarillo ski shop! We didn’t remember the name, and we thought, how will we find it? But thinking out loud, I said there can’t be more than one ski shop in Amarillo! We’d stopped in on our way to Wyoming last year and picked up matching Patagonia pullovers. It may become a tradition since we did the same this year. We picked a couple off the women’s sale rack this time. Don’t worry, I’m comfortable enough in my masculinity to sport a colorful pullover!
From there, it was on to a market not too far away. This was how we found the ski shop last time, driving by it to pick up some groceries. This time, we got veggie sushi and an avocado summer roll. Then, Chick-fil-A for a couple of diet Sunjoys, their version of an Arnold Palmer, and french fries. Holding the salt helps us with sodium retention and ensures freshly cooked fries.
This combination activated the hungie button, as we say. It wasn’t an hour before we tore into the snack bag! We had time to munch, sitting at a standstill for 45 minutes while on the outskirts of town. By this time, it was almost 2 in the afternoon. I’d miscalculated the time to drive home. I thought it was a little over 5 hours, but it would be closer to 7.
I guess all the snacking activated the pee button as well! We had to stop several times before our dinner stop in San Angelo. The most essential one being Starbucks. None were right off the interstate. The one we chose wasn’t too far off and right next to the Tech stadium in Lubbock.
As the terrain turned from flat farmland to slightly hilly mesquite-dotted brushland, it felt more like home. Along with that came a rise in the temperature to around 100. And the most dreaded of all, the chip seal road. I’m not too fond of these loud, repaved roads that are common in our area.
As we passed through the ugly oil patch town of Big Spring, I thanked God for not moving there. When I hired out with the railroad, I almost applied for a job based out of Big Spring. I apologize to anyone fond of that place, but it is terribly ugly!
We’d already planned on Olive Garden for dinner, knowing there was one in San Angelo. It would be a nice break in the drive, and I wouldn’t have to eat out of my lap again. We do the soup and salad and breadsticks. It’s quick, and we’d be in and out in no time. The waiter came up, I ordered everything all at once, and we were out in less than 45 minutes. After three big bowls of salad of course, I had two bowls soups as well!
We made it to Sonora before dark, but the worst was from the Val Verde county line to the loop around Del Rio. It was a nice improvement on the Edwards county side, with newer paved roads and passing lanes a plenty. Home arrival was just after 10 p.m. We unloaded the van and crashed soon after.
The dogs were very happy to have us back. That or just happy that their chances of getting human food just went up drastically!
As we drove to church this morning, I noticed the official trip mileage was 2,894 miles, about half of our last road trip. It was a good service, we didn’t hang around long afterward today. It was to the house to make a quick lunch. A meal we were going to make on the trip but skipped to have dinner with friends. Mushroom tacos, most of the ingredients being from local farmer’s markets in New Mexico and Colorado. They were good with the dairy-free avocado crema and salsa from Albuquerque, but the Olathe corn was subpar. Maybe I’m just spoilt from Iowa corn! I told Amanda she’d be lucky to get dinner out of me tonight, too!
