Thursday, Nov 5th – Brazil, IN to Oklahoma City, OK

…and I was… on the road at 603am. However, I did need (yes NEED) to take a detour to Terre Haute to get the world’s largest latte before hitting the road for what would be a god-awful long time in Missouri. Terre Haute is right on the IL boarder… so, even though it took me an hour to get my ass from Brazil to Terre Haute (which is only 15 miles away) and get my coffee and get my gas and put air in my tires… it then only took a few minutes on the highway to get into IL. IL wasn’t that bad… I went across the bottom of it.. which isn’t too wide. Heading into St Louis was great. The arch! I’d never seen it before… it’s taller than the statue of liberty! I learned that on who wants to be a millionaire. I was a bit disappointed though…. I thought the arch went over the highway… it doesn’t. I did take pics while I was driving by though… I also too pics of the cardinals stadium (I don’t recall the name right now) but it was right at the exit I had to get off… (btw, I am writing this after the Phillies disappointed not only their fans, but all of the Red Sox fans too. Boohiss on the Yankees!) once through St Louis though… MO is wide! I felt like it was taking me days to get through… part of that is because I get distracted easily. I stopped at a state park for route 66 and had to talk to the old guy working there forever. Then I stopped at a giant tourist store (that was just ok) but right next door was an equally giant antiques store! I never thought I was much of an antiquer, to be honest… but I found some really swell cast iron stuff in there for my apt! a couple of hooks with decorative thingy (that’s a technical term), a couple of shelf brackets (because one shelf bracket would be pointless) and a cross (because I’m addicted to religious iconography)! Oh, and a cheesy pink magnet of Florida, because everyone needs a cheesy pink magnet of Florida. I may have spent too much time here… and if I had more room in the jeep I would have bought some big metal thing that I didn’t really need… there were lots of big metal things there. I’m diggin the whole antiquing thing. I shall be doing that again. So… still on the road… in MO. It really never ends… but then when it does… you’re in Oklahoma, which also never ends. Besides, so far, the only tolls I’d paid were in NY state ($15 you bastards!) but OK is right behind them on the rape of the road… 8 bucks to get from the border through Tulsa to Oklahoma City. And they have the nerve to post signs at their rest areas that they offer FREE restrooms! FREE!?!?! I paid $8 to use those restrooms!!! No other state has charged me yet to use their restrooms! Oklahoma… you disappoint me a little. I was silly tired by the time I got to the other side of OKC (where the airport and cheaper hotels and the highway I was getting on are all located.) I had already taken a 5-hour energy shot after Tulsa to get me there. It was already 9pm and I was draggin ass. Even though I had 3 of those nifty little booklets with all the coupons for hotels in my possession I chose to stop at the first hotel off the exit and grab a room. Sum total of $56. Not terrible. I did laundry, but the dryer was lacking drying skills so I had to spread all my laundry on the backs of everything in my room to dry over night. Most of the stuff did. I again attempted to blog but the wireless was so overcrowded that I passed out cold at 11pm without writing a word.