They're Magically Delicious

My trek across Oklahoma continues. I made it as far as Oklahoma City over the weekend, and am not 20 miles beyond, with 224 more miles to go to Amarillo, TX. My progress is temporarily (I hope) slowed down right now. On St. Patrick's Day, I was demonstrating the Lucky Charms Leprechaun's janty little dance for my third graders, and just at the part that goes"They're Magically Delicious" I attempted a side kick, and, took nasty spill in the hallway of my school. My right knee is now messed up a bit, and I have had to be happy with 6 miles of progress at each gym visit, most of it on the recumbant bike and the elliptical machine. But, I'm chugging along.

I'm dedicating this leg of the journey to the Indians. The Okies who were forced to head west during the dustbowl era of the 1930s are also on my mind. But, the Indians were f'd over well before this. Not that anyone cares, but the pain I am having as I continue to travel through Oklahoma, is my small and insignificant homage to the unspeakable things the Indians endured, and continue to endure, at our hands.

Chasing Corvettes

That's me in that line of Corvettes on Route 66 in Oklahoma, somewhere between Tulsa and Oklahoma city. As of right now, I'm still 50 miles from Oklahoma City. I had hoped to be there today, but I've continued to be under the weather - 6 weeks now. This last round actually prompted me to go to the doctor for help. The antibiotics and inhaler seem to be working. I don't sound like a 4-pack-a-day smoker when I cough anymore. In the meantime, I've made another alphabetized list, this time of things I really like/want to have/wish I had more of/think are nifty, etc.:
A - Alphabetizing things,The Adirondacks
B - Black Cats, Butter
C - Corvettes, Cheese
D - Dahlia's, Daniel Day Lewis
E - Ebay
F - Firemen in full regalia (drool!)
G - Gemstones, Gold
H - Hair Twisting (my own - it's an OCD thing)
I - Ipods, Italian Food
J - Juicing with my Jack LaLanne machine
K - Keillor (Garrison)
L - Latin Music
M - Marbles, Mardi Gras
N - Nursery Rhumes
O - The Ocean, Orgasms
P - Pencils (colored), Playing Piano
Q - Quiet children
R - Route 66
S - Swearing
T - Thrift Stores, Tasy Kakes
U - Underdogs
V - Variety
W - Wine, Whopper Jrs
X - Xanax
Y - Yogurt(Greek)
Z - Zapps Potato Chips

On to Oklahoma City.

600 Miles down the Mother Road 1140 to go

As of today, I've made it 604 miles on Route 66, after starting in Waukegan, IL, over two months ago. I have 1136 miles to go to the end. I reached Tulsa, OK, today, after a 19 mile ride. Oklahoma always seemed to be a fictional place to me, but, as it turns out, it really exists. This week, I've tried to finish up with my solving of the world's problems. This post is a little bit lengthy, but I need to wrap this project up:
1. Gayness: I don't see this as a problem. I think "Don't Ask Don't Tell" is positively unconstitutional. My firm belief is that our character is ultimately shaped by who we hate rather than who we love.
2. Aids: Condom drops over parts of Africa, and any other part of the world which still suffer from the idiotic practices which continue to spread aids, Castration of any aids-infected man who continues to have unprotected sex., and, for God's sake, don't shag anyone without a condom if you don't know for sure they are not squirting HIV virus.
3. Cancer: Don't smoke, don't eat, don't drink tapwater, don't breathe, don't stand next to the microwave while it is on, get screened,
4. Unemployment: Sell your stuff on ebay, Go to the library and fine how-to books and learn how to do something people will pay you to do, Get some decent interview clothes at the thrift shop, If you are a senior you can take lots of classes for free at your local community college, If you have a bachelor's degree you can substitute teach, Are you devoting 8 hours a day to you job search? Move to someplace where there are jobs.
5. The War: We need to accept the fact that most of the world hates us here in the United States, for various reasons. Some hate us so much that they want us all dead. These are just some of the reasons why we are loathed: We are energy hogs, we consume much of the world's everything, we're wasteful, we're fat, we're greedy, we're spoiled, we don't respect other cultures, we're decadent, we're pleasure mongers, we're hypocrites, we're loud, we're infidels (heathens, aethiests, Christians, Jews, pagans, etc.), we're thieves, we're liars, we're sex-maniancs, we're libertines, we worship false idols, we're murderers, we're vain, we desecrate, we're satan's spawn, we've sold our souls, we're vice-ridden, we're arrogant, we're racists, and, in general, we are the enemy and everything is our fault. How do you fix this image? I really don't know, and I don't have any answers.

From Rust Belt to Dust Belt

I have crossed over, from Missouri to Oklahoma. The Oklahoma stretch of Route 66 is the beginning of the Mother Road, so named by John Steinbeck in The Grapes of Wrath. It is with humility and apology that I dare to pretend to follow the path taken by those who had no choice but to head West, out of the dust, headed for a land which promised to keep them alive.

I should be able to make it to Tulsa this week, by Sunday.

A few current event Notes:
1. More who need to go to the moon: John Edwards, his chicky-poo, and their kiddo,
2. I'm glad the Canadians won Olympic hockey gold, but I'm also glad it was not a slaughter. The Canadians put on a lovely Olympic games, don't you think?
3. I need to say more about health care. I really didn't solve the problem, did I? Here are some more ideas:
a. Every child (up to 21) and every senior (65+ years) should be completely covered, medically. Our taxes are paying for prisoners (felons, child molestors, rapiest, murderes,) why not our children and elders?
b. Groups of 100 uninsured adults should all pitch in $1,000 per year and hire a doctor (go to India, Pakistan, Poland, countries where $100 grand looks like a million bucks). A grand sounds like a lot, but, many uninsured adults are spending more than that on their pets!
c. Some enterprising pilots should organize medical flights for the uninsured to take them to countries where hospital care/surgery is affordable.
d. Ditto for trips to Canada for medication.
e. If you do have to go the the hospital, bring your own Tylenol, and have someone bring you your meals. Say no to all of the things you can provide for yourself.