I've just pulled off the road after driving more than 400 miles today. And it really feels good to be able to relax after such a busy day. It's been a good day in all respects, but it's definitely been busy. Hopefully part of today's busyness means I won't have to "work" so hard the next couple of days. In the meantime, Wautoma, Wisconsin is the place I call home tonight.
I rose around 7 this morning to finish packing for the trip and so I could meet Dad for breakfast. We haven't gone to Cook's Kitchen in some weeks, so it was good to have breakfast there for a change. Both of us were surprised to see the restaurant wasn't very busy. There were plenty of vehicles parked out front. We've never minded before when the place has been busy, but it was nice that there weren't so many people dining there this morning.
Dad and I parted ways for a bit and I headed into the Office for Diversity Enhancement. I had hoped to send the Festival of Cultures flyer out for printing today, but I was unable to do so because I wasn't told how many copies need to be made. It's possible that that's something I can take care of from the road. It's also possible that I'll have to wait until I return to take care of that business. Everything will work out fine in either case.
After I finished with work, I visited with Dad for a bit again and headed to Sioux Falls. The fog was rather thick around the noon hour, but the roads were reasonably clean. I first stopped and filled up the 3's tank and then headed for the Argus Leader for the interview.
When I arrived at the newspaper, a photographer took me into the building's basement to shoot some photos of me and of the book. From there, Jill Callison, one of the Argus columnists took me to a nearby Applebee's for lunch. We ordered and then got down to business.
I first thought Jill was interviewing me for a feature story. But she told me she actually plans to write a column on me and on the book and that the column should run next Thursday. I'm not sure what angle she'll take with the column, but I'm looking forward to seeing it in any case. We covered more topics than I expected. I originally thought that we would discuss my book more than we did. We spent most of our time talking about my travels, my experiences in going through the leukemia, and the meanings I've drawn from my experiences. Jill and I wrapped things up a little after 2, and we then went back to the newspaper for a few moments so I could visit my friend Nestor Ramos for a few minutes. After the brief visit, I jumped in the car and road I-90 for about 330 miles.
Traffic moved quickly, and I've been able to average around 75 mph during my travels today. And thankfully the roads have been bare the whole time. Weather is always a concern when traveling, especially during the winter. It's been smooth sailing so far, though.
I'm actually kind of surprised I drove as far today as I did considering I started as late in the day as I did and as tired as I've felt this afternoon. My initial goal was to make it to La Crosse, Wisconsin, which is about 300 miles east of Sioux Falls. But I've made it almost 100 miles beyond that, and I'm now only about 350 miles away from the Soo. So driving to the Soo tomorrow will be like driving from Brookings to Rapid City. Drive time should be between five and six hours so long as the good weather continues.
It's been a good trip so far, and I'm really psyched to be on the road again. Driving is something I don't mind, but it can be a lot of work, especially when it involves driving for stretches of several hours. But the end result, the destination, makes it all worth it. And I always do what I can do enjoy the ride. The ride's been good so far.
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