287

The most beautiful drive since we have had good rains, is the Highway 287 between Fort Worth and Wichita Falls, and up 44 to Lawton. Green fields, rolling hills, rocks, and orange dirt. Cows. calves. Flowers fighting for air beside tall green weeds. What are those purple flowers stacked up like little chinese lanterns? The medians and roadsides were full of them.

It is a three hour drive. Seventy miles an hour. Seventy-five in Oklahoma.

Fighter jets buzz around Shepherd Air Force Base. Trucks jockey for position. Maintenance crews need more signage. And I wish Walmart could advertise on the signs like the gas stations and eating establishments can. Most Walmarts have clean bathrooms, and plenty to eat. Many have Subways and McDonalds.

The McDonalds inside the tollway in Oklahoma is sorta sad. Huge space, as if they are ready for a bus or two, but two workers? Clean bathrooms. They bragged about a few flavors of blue bell ice cream, but none of the fancy coffees most McDonalds are pushing.

I drove up without the back seats in the minivan, and picked up the extra long twin mattress and box springs, as James was getting delivered a queen size set. He wanted me to take the used queen mattress someone had given him. He stuffed it in the back with all his might, and we shut the doors. And the delivery men were right on time. They set it up, took away the plastic, and everything. It was great. I volunteered to wash James' queen size sheets, and dry them and put them in his storage unit before I left, as he needed to get back to work. They don't aircondition laundry rooms to save money. If only they had opened some doors, there was a nice breeze outside. I got so sweaty. Next time, I am bringing my swim suit if I do laundry for James there. Nice apartment pool. It would feel good to get the kinks out before driving home.

Home before rush hour got bad. Bob pulled the queen mattress out of the back, and we set it up on the old guest bed, sandwiched in between so now its like the Princess and the Pea bed. I tried it out, and was blessed with a coating of cat hair. Note to self---soon as the repairman comes tomorrow and fixes the washer, I need to wash that bedspread! Maybe that is what has clogged up the drain to the washer---cat hair!

What an adventure, as Bob usually does ALL the driving on trips. To take a trip. A three hour cruise. Singing at the top of my lungs.

I wonder if James got the clean sheets put back on the bed, and the new quilt from Grandmother, and I wonder if he took a picture and emailed it to Grandmother???

Fun. Fun. I am thankful to be back home. I am thankful for airconditioning. I am thankful James' fiancee' is going to have a beautiful, brand new bed. James bought it through a guy at his church in Lawton that gave him a great deal! Thank you, Billy Yoast.

And I am thankful to get a little cruise control practice. Almost thirty thousand on the van now, and I still don't know how to work stuff.