It is 9 AM in Santa Rosa, New Mexico. I have been up since 7:15, and I just came back from breakfast. Sitting next to me was a couple from Arizona - on their way back from Missouri, and the Mrs.'s home town. Her daughter had planned a secret birthday party for her, even though her birthday isn't until November, because this woman's many friends back home. She turns 90! Her husband is most probably the same age or better, as he fought in WWII and was in the Battle of Bulge in Europe. Anyway, they were on their way back, when close to here, they had a flat tire, and were trying to get over, when the car went out of control, rolled over, and landed on its tires. They were not hurt. EMT's did take them to the hospital to be checked, but all was okay. Amazing! So they were waiting for a rental car to pick them up and take them to Albuquerque, which is 100 miles away.

Leaving from Van Buren, Arkansas, and driving through Oklahoma, I was reminded of the documentary I watched about the Dust Bowl in the 1930's. I had known about the dust bowl, but really didn't know much about it. I couldn't believe the pictures shown of enormous black, black clouds of dust coming from the west and moving east, covering everything, and getting into homes. Many people died, children and adults, inhaling the fine particles, developed any number of lung diseases. Nobody escaped it, and shockingly, the dust blew clear to the east coast.

Looking at Oklahoma now, I saw big farms, fields planted and also tilled. Dry cornstalks not yet plowed under, and perhaps, not yet harvested. I could see where the farmers were using irrigation systems, and different ways of planting fields, from the lesson learned in the '30's.

Entering into Oklahoma on I40, I drove in and out of reservations, Cherokee, Seminole, etc. There are quite of few of them, and hopefully they are reaping the benefits of having been put on land where natural gas and oil lay underneath! Some of the place names were very interesting, as well as names of rivers - Did you know that there are bayous in Oklahoma? The first one was called Little Skin Bayou, just after coming into the state. Further on was Big Skin Bayou. There was Tenkiller Lake, and Roman Nose State Park. Henryetta is a town - I wondered who Henryetta was.

Further along I passed Oklahoma City, which Ann Yager and I visited on our way out west several years ago. When I passed the Oklahoma City Memorial sign, I thought of the awesome sight of all the chairs sitting beside the reflecting pool, each with the name of one of those lost. They light up at night.

On this section of I40, I was actually on the old Route 66, much of which was covered over by I40. But there are still parts of it to be seen. In fact the motel I am in right now is on the original Route 66. As I drove out of Oklahoma and into Texas, I thought of all those people who left their homes because of the dust bowl, and took this route to California seeking a better life. I wonder if they found it.

In Texas were plenty of ranch and cattle, and even a herd of horses at one point. The most disgusting sight was that of a cattle yard, with thousands of heads of cattle, confined in what can only be described as mud and excrement, awaiting their fate. I truly hate those places, and wonder why anyone would eat beef from cattle treated in this manner.

I was entering the high plains in Texas, which run right across New Mexico and Arizona also. You don't really feel like you are climbing because it is so gradual. And the plant life changes from trees to lots of bushes dotting the ground - probably mesquite, sagebrush, and evergreen. Actual trees are bent into the wind and present all kinds of neat shapes. Old buildings and equipment lay abandoned, rusting. But then every once in a while, large clumps of bright cheery small sunflowers dance in the wind, greeting me as I pass by. The landscape begins to "rupture" with little breaks in the earth, some small canyons, and such. The last county in Texas was Dear Smith County, 2 miles from the New Mexico line. Who was Deaf Smith?

New Mexico continues with the same landscape, but rapidly plateaus and mesas come into view. The plateaus flat and wind eroded, one after another, like dominoes on their sides. The mesas also are flat, and are wind eroded standing alone, but covered with the bushes I mentioned above. The land is dotted with these green round fat bushes, which at a distance look like they might be cattle. In fact I saw a bunch of them except they were moving, and coming closer, were cattle!!

I am now going to pack up and head out to Datil, NM and to Annie's ranch. Peace be with you all.

Adieu, Adios, and Mahalo,
I love you,
Sally