July 17, 2010

Ten Things I Learned On My Summer Vacation


After a whirlwind trip out West to visit some family friends, a college campus and the beautiful Yellowstone National Park, I'm happy to report my family made it home safely. We drove out in two days, explored three days, and returned the same way, not stopping along the way but driving straight through—from GA to ID and back again. It's been a few years since we've done the major road trip scenario, and the fast food was just as terrible, the country just as gorgeous, and the people just as friendly as they have always been. I can't say too much about the prices of certain hotels and some museum and restaurant prices, but all in all it was a beautiful reminder to me of how much I love this country. Even if I have to pay $3.18 for a microscopic bag of M&M's in the middle of the Wild West.

Such is life.


So, ten things I learned on my summer vacation:

1. Missouri doesn't get enough credit for being beautiful.
2. Bears and wolves are breathtaking creatures that belong in the wild, not in pens.
3. Swarms of moths thick enough for windshield wipers still roam wild across the
country.
4. Fellow Americans will screw you, the tourist, just as hard as vendors overseas.
5. Pancakes always taste better at a pancake house.
6. Places in Nebraska have clever names like "Sin-in-the-Bar Creek, Hershey and Happy Jack.
7. The petitions I signed repeatedly in the nineties to stop the bison slaughter in Yellowstone made no difference.
8. People still litter.
9. No bed on the planet will ever be as comfortable as my own.
10. Road rage is a serious epidemic in our cities. Put those fingers away people!

6 comments:

Amy DeTrempe said...

Great post. Glad you made it home safe.

Anne Patrick said...

Who doesn't love a road trip? Sounds like you had a great time, Danielle. Glad you're back.

As a kid, I remember this one gas station out in the middle of nowhere that had a bear caged up at the side of the building. Whenever we'd come through I always felt so sorry for the bear and was so tempted to let it out. I know bears are dangerous animals, but so is man.

DanielleThorne said...

Thanks, Amy. Oh, Anne--I remember seeing bears in small cages like that in Cherokee (NC) when I was a little girl. I hated it. I used to have a very hard time at zoos--depressing--but they are a lot better now...but still--I can't stand to see animals that naturally wander and explore in enclosures. It's just so cruel.

Miss Mae said...

So happy to know you're home safe, Danielle, and that the trip was wonderful. I love your 10 things, and I'm so sorry your petition never stopped the bison slaughter.

DanielleThorne said...

Thx for swinging by the blog, Miss Mae! {{}}

Stephanie Burkhart said...

Dani,
Great top ten list! Road Rage is a serious problem. Trust me. I hear it on the the phones everyday I work. Let me tell you what's freaky though - traveling ten hours and still being in the same state. (Castaic to Napa Valley in California) It almost feels like a non productive road trip. LOL!!

I love the pictures. Thanks for sharing. The wolf looks cool. But then I'm a sucker for wolves.

Smiles
Steph