Ah, Kinko's, how we've missed it! The sonorous hum of the copy machines, the clean bathrooms, free coffee, trusting employees...all of it. Those reassuring confines, how they comfort us -- just knowing that we can walk into a fluorescently-lit office building at any hour of the day and make some copies, check out some wedding invitation ideas, and scam some dial-up Internet access is enough to keep us going through the long hours of the Odyssey. Our long East Coast swing through the homes of friends and strangers alike has kept us away from Kinko's for too long. We shall not stray again!
| We woke up in Iowa. This had never happened to either of us before, so we
stopped to remark on it. "Iowa," I said. "How about that." "Yes," said Kristanne. "It is Iowa." Our location confirmed, we set our minds to changing it. South Dakota seemed like a logical place. After all, it featured both the Badlands and the Black Hills, two places we very much wanted to see. However, we were a long way from South Dakota. Minnesota was in our way, for one thing, and maybe even parts of Wisconsin. We decided to take care of first things first -- leave Iowa's amber waves of grain in our dust. |
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Getting out of Iowa, it turns out, would have to wait until we got out of our hotel room. As tired as we were the night before, we managed to sleep right on up 'til about 20 minutes before check out time. Time ticked on unnoticed as we slowly gathered the necessary momentum to leave our hotel. Showers needed to be taken, coffee made, and Saturday morning cartoons watched. By the time we got to packing Otto, it was 12:01 -- one ominous minute past check-out time. Our first load of gear was packed in Otto, no problem. However, when we went to get our second load, it turned out that our little card-key for the hotel room door no longer worked. We walked the not-insignificant walk to the front desk to inquire why this might be so. "Ah-hah!" says he. "You're supposed to be checked out! That's why." It turns out that these Pinheads of Punctuality had programmed their locks to automatically reject card-keys at one minute after check-out time. "Bastards," I muttered to Kristanne. "They'll get theirs, you can count on it. First against the wall when the revolution comes, I'll make darn sure of that." After making a mental note to check my sedative level, Kristanne patted me gently on the back and led me back down the hall to see if our newly-enabled card-key might get us into the hotel room. Naturally, it didn't, so we took it back to the lobby to be reprogrammed once again. Boy Genius at the counter didn't seem to quite have his act together, though, because the card didn't work this time either. At this point, I was ticked off enough that Kristanne wouldn't let me come back to the lobby to have the card-key reprogrammed for the third time, which, coincidentally enough, turned out to be the charm. That's not the end of it, though, no way, no how! I've got half a mind to write a letter to the President of Residence Inns about the whole thing, tell you that much. They'll feel my venom then, you betchya! We'll see if we don't get some heads rolling up there with the top brass now, hee-hee, hah-ho! Don't they know who I am? Do they even suspect my station? I'm a man of power, influence, of capital-A Authority, boyo! Yessirree. Does anyone else smell benzene? I really think I smell benzene. Not that I mind it...I don't. Smells like home to me, like the way it used to when mom would bake cookies and then we'd listen to Pink Floyd together, and then those clocks would start tick-tick tocking, and WHEW! Happy happy happy place of mine, is a happy happy happy happy place of mineeeeeee... |
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Kristanne just gave me another shot, and I have no idea why. I do feel nice, though -- kinda like everything's gonna be just swell. Say, can I just tell you that I love you? Thanks, friend. Now, where were we? Oh, yes. Leaving Iowa. I like Iowa, and I think you would, too. There is corn there. And nice corn-fed people, too. Corn is good. Sometimes, I like to eat it with a little butter and salt. Mmmmm. That's good. |
If Iowa was good, then Wisconsin was just great. And, let me tell ya, Minnesota topped 'em all. That's where we got Today's Scenic Shot, of a gen-yoo-ine Mississippi riverboat paddling its way along the no-fooling Mississippi River. That was the end of the fun, though, cuz then we had some driving to do. We pounded all the way across Minnesota, right on in to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Along the way, we gradually got hepped to the fact that we had stumbled on to what is known colloquially as, "Freakin'-A Sturgis, man!" Technically, that's the Black Hills Classic, an immense motorcycle rally, freak-show, and party that takes place the first week of August every year in Sturgis, South Dakota. Conservatively, it draws about 200,000 Harley-Davidson-riding folks to this tiny little town in the Black Hills of South Dakota...right where we're going, right when we'll arrive. Tune in tomorrow for action shots of Otto duking it out for right-of-way with Harley panheads, knuckleheads, and Big Twin Evos. Those are Harley engine types, by the way, not descriptions of their riders. For now, we leave you with a slightly nostalgic Extreme Shot of the Day, back at Kinko's once again. See you tomorrow!
Total Miles for 8/2 = 557