Monday I left home for a very tentative rendezvous with a friend at Monument Valley – at least I have extended the invitation for him to meet me there but, to date, I’ve not heard from him. I think the prospect of camping out in a tent for several days does not appeal to him. Having decided that I'm no longer going to “rough” it when I go camping, I am now the proud owner of a new four season geodesic dome tent that in theory will sleep six people. Frankly, I grew tired of crawling in and out of my smallish backpacking tent. Moreover, I want a bit more distance between me and the ground; so, in addition to my tent with a center height of 75 inches I purchased a queen size inflatable camping mattress with a battery powered pump to inflate and deflate it. With such luxurious accommodations one would naturally think that these homey comforts might entice Linda to accompany me, but so far she has successfully resisted whatever nudging of the spirit she may have felt to join me. Now, it appears that my old camping buddy is traveling down the same path; namely, the pursuit of sumptuous Motel 6-like billeting when interacting with “nature.”
Anyway, as promised, while not faithfully chronicling my trip, I'm making the first of several planned postings. I haven't stopped along the way to shoot any pictures as I’ve been focused on driving; consequently, there are no current photos to go with this posting. As I was completing my first day’s drive of about 850 miles it became evident to me that there is some correlation between sitting behind the wheel of a car for 14 hours and sitting in a pew listening to a lengthy sermon. Namely, as the preacher drones on well past the bell to dismiss the class, if we had such a thing on Sunday morning, it becomes increasingly clear that the mind can only absorb what the seat can endure. So, too, as the miles accumulate and the numbness increases in the antipodal region of the anatomy, my mind tends to wander down strange paths. My grand plan for my long hours behind the wheel to mentally digest portions of David Bentley Hart’s treatise on the Beauty of the Infinite (an expansion on the perichoresis of the Trinity) or to process section by section John Frame’s excellent History of Western Philosophy and Theology while listening to Glenn Gould’s two separate renditions of Bach’s Goldberg Variations has devolved into repeatedly asking Virginia (the name I’ve given to the voice in my GPS): "How far is it to the next rest area?"
Well, today I crossed over into the great southwest, at least I think Oklahoma is officially classified thus. At least it is south of the Mason-Dixon line and it is west of the Mississippi. I expect to sleep well tonight as I have a suite consisting of several rooms at the Tinker AFB – RHIP (rank has its privileges). Tomorrow, is a short driving day as I'm planning to stay with friends in Amarillo TX. Texas is mostly flat so my mind should be fairly numb by the time I arrive at my friend’s home.
Anyway, as promised, while not faithfully chronicling my trip, I'm making the first of several planned postings. I haven't stopped along the way to shoot any pictures as I’ve been focused on driving; consequently, there are no current photos to go with this posting. As I was completing my first day’s drive of about 850 miles it became evident to me that there is some correlation between sitting behind the wheel of a car for 14 hours and sitting in a pew listening to a lengthy sermon. Namely, as the preacher drones on well past the bell to dismiss the class, if we had such a thing on Sunday morning, it becomes increasingly clear that the mind can only absorb what the seat can endure. So, too, as the miles accumulate and the numbness increases in the antipodal region of the anatomy, my mind tends to wander down strange paths. My grand plan for my long hours behind the wheel to mentally digest portions of David Bentley Hart’s treatise on the Beauty of the Infinite (an expansion on the perichoresis of the Trinity) or to process section by section John Frame’s excellent History of Western Philosophy and Theology while listening to Glenn Gould’s two separate renditions of Bach’s Goldberg Variations has devolved into repeatedly asking Virginia (the name I’ve given to the voice in my GPS): "How far is it to the next rest area?"
Well, today I crossed over into the great southwest, at least I think Oklahoma is officially classified thus. At least it is south of the Mason-Dixon line and it is west of the Mississippi. I expect to sleep well tonight as I have a suite consisting of several rooms at the Tinker AFB – RHIP (rank has its privileges). Tomorrow, is a short driving day as I'm planning to stay with friends in Amarillo TX. Texas is mostly flat so my mind should be fairly numb by the time I arrive at my friend’s home.
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