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"I dwell in possibility" ~Emily Dickinson

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Road-Trip! (Apple Valley -- Odessa, TX)

Posted on: 8.13.2009

I am currently sitting on a nice clean hotel bed in Odessa, Texas. The road-trip has been a delightful experience so far! It’s my first road-trip with people other than my immediate family or grandparents, and also the first trip in which I have been an active participant in the decisions and responsibilities that go along with traveling. Yesterday was full of talking, laughter, singing, and music. We traveled from home to Albuquerque, New Mexico which took about 12 hours total. That’s including stops for gas, restrooms, driver swapping, and a few wrong turns thanks to Maggie the GPS who decided to take a vacation from functionality.

Along the way we have collected quite a variety of splattered insect intestines and have created a thorough video commentary to be published at a later time. We’ve also tried to document the every changing terrain. Some plants have been quite astonishing: a certain shrub that can be found thickly along the highway just south of Albuquerque is quite unique. When I was finally able to focus on these shrubs (during a lull in the usually excessive speed of a certain cousin of mine) I was able to discern that these plants are not shrubs at all! Instead, they are black cactus! Quite an astounding thing to realize! Perhaps this discovery means more to me because I was, at the time, quite trapped in the back of a Ford Focus.

Another discovery that was made by Autumn and I is this: breakdowns in communication are likely to occur after excessive amounts of time spent in such close quarters! A quick anecdote to prove my point: While discussing the stupidity of drug use I jokingly admitted to secretly doing meth in my “underground laboratory.” Unfortunately this phrase was taken as my “Undergrad Lavatory!” After we deciphered our communication error, we had a great cramp-inducing belly laugh. These communication flubs, among other things have been the source of many laughing spells which include snorting, eye-watering, and muscle spasms.

I am full of other comments but must refrain from writing more as it is now about 1am Texas time and my slave-driver cousin insists we leave by 8am. I have been taking many pictures and videos of the trip and hope to have a video posted shortly after I return home.

Much love to all my friends who are moving back to college this weekend!

2 comments:

  1. Sounds like you are having fun! I enjoyed your lavatory story. Be safe!

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  2. Oh Natalie. OH Natalie!
    I am in the library using the computer lab, due to the very depressing fact that my quite delinquent computer cord might just be in your runaway car--and as I was reading this, I was almost coubling over with silent laughter.
    Yep, about like a Starbucks re-run. Except, i COULDN'T burst OUT laughing, for I am in the all-suppressive libnrary. SO, I was clamping my hand to my mouth in order to supress the laughter which was gurgling inside of me.
    JUST to let you know of my fabulously, exquisitely well-undercover experience while reading your blog post. I love you, and miss you ooberly, and sure am sad to ahve had to be dropped off: aka, at our 'destination'.

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