Notes from the Road

I took a 400 mile trip to the Panhandle Sunday and Monday. Western Oklahoma is just different! Once you leave trees (about Stillwater) all you see is red dirt, oil wells and terrain. I'm not saying its ugly. Its just different. You also learn fast why they are building Wind farms out here. At Fort Supply a wind farm runs parallel to the highway. By my odometer I drove by it for 8 miles and then the road curved but it was still going. Here are my Notes:

1. In the Panhandle the most frequent road sign is "Cemetery" with an arrow pointing down the section line. I counted 8 signs in about 40 miles.

2. When I started back Monday afternoon, I was still 350 miles from home and met a "Muskogee Police" car heading west.

3. On the two lane highway traffic actually got backed up about 8 deep because of road construction. A silver car a head of me decided he had enough and pulled out and started passing the cars and semi trucks. A car was coming and I kept expecting him to pull back in, but he went straight ahead and forced the coming car off the road as he kept passing. No brake light, no slowing down.

4. There is one area along the highway that felt like Arizona. I seemed I had gone to far.

5. The school project that drew me to this area is in Texoma. Half the town is in Texas and half is in Oklahoma. All the kids go to Texas for elementary and Oklahoma for middle school and high school.

6. There must be an oil well and white tanks about every 2,000 feet- everywhere. This is truly the oil patch. About every other business is petro related.

7. I like my convenience stores to be convenient! Out there you have to plan your trips.

For that length of trip I am grateful for Books on CD, podcasts, and Satellite radio. Just like the people in the wagon trains.