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Last weekend El D finally managed to get me out of the house for a roadtrip.
Since giving up my interstate life and moving to Peace.Love.Home. last June, I have become a serious homebody. (On a side note, it feels like we packed multiple years into the last one. It went by in dog years – at least seven.) Though it was difficult to pry myself away for even a day, it was fun. Summer doesn’t seem like summer without a roadtrip.
Our destination was the Tennessee Safari Park in Alamo, just a short drive north from Jackson, TN. We took the backroads because that’s how we roll (i.e., amongst the villagers, cornfields, cows, and goats).
It was a gorgeous day. The sky was filled with marshmellow clouds. On the drive I was struck by how short the Tennessee sky seems. We have plenty of sky, it’s just kinda squat. I never noticed this until I went to Tulsa where the sky is really tall. It’s weird. Maybe the sky here just seems short because it’s usually hemmed in by a canopy of trees. Or maybe the clouds here are just lower and poofier. At any rate, I prefer the short one. It seems safer. The tall Tulsa sky always made me feel like I could fly right off the Earth at any moment without warning.
short sky and deer through broken glass
I liked the safari park. I had planned on coming home with a peacock and a goat, but El D and Moon Pie were not being at all cooperative, which is fine because I saw something I might need more than a peacock. Check it out:
I think he’s great. And his hairdo is just like the Angry Russian’s.
Hey, remember that time last summer when I saw the neighbor’s horse and called it over like it was a puppy and El D made fun of me? Well, same scenario, except this horse was a little punk rocker who tried to get in the car with us…
I’m beginning to think that a roadtrip isn’t a roadtrip unless there’s a zebra involved.
More Posts on Roadtrips:
The Angry Russian, SeniorCitizenChurchLady, and The Devil on a Road Trip
You never know what fascinating sights you’ll see when roadtrippin’ through Arkansas. Both the backroads and interstate hold an array of surprises. From I-40 you’ll spy roadkill, rice paddies, and religious signs reminding you to beat the children with a stick.
I wasn’t kidding….
In Central Arkansas you can hop off the interstate, do a little wine tasting and stock up on your favorite vintage at the wineries.
Chateau Aux Arc (in the Ozarks…get it?)
Wiederkehr Village (population of 42) has more grapes than residents.
At one point in our journey, an emergency coffee attack required a pitstop to a Love’s Travel Shop. As The Devil was pulling in to a parking spot right beside a fella fiddling with stuff under the hood of his SUV, a 96% naked lady jumped out of the backseat of the fella’s vehicle. I was so astounded by the scene that lay before me that I forgot the camera entirely. You’ll have to settle for the picture I paint in words. The 96% naked lady was wearing a little bitty bikini with a tiny see-through crocheted skirt. Her backside was emblazoned with a tattoo of a bull’s head. Its horns rose menacingly out the top of her bikini bottoms. And, she looked ANGRY! She said a buncha words I didn’t understand partly due to the southern twang that shaped them, partly due to the shock of seeing an angry 96% naked lady unexpectedly jump out of a vehicle, and partly due to the music that was blaring from the speakers of their opened door: “We’re from the country and we like it that way.”
It was all so very much to process.
The man under the hood looked up long enough to glance at her, register us and our agape expressions, and chuckle to himself before returning back to his tinkering. The 96% naked lady walked this way and then that, continuing to make a fuss over something before finally settling back into the backseat and closing the door.
By that time, The Devil had returned and we were on our way.
The backroads and small towns of Arkansas are also great fun. There are interesting places to eat. For example, in Springdale there’s a giant waffle sign in the sky that announces a Waffle Hut. If that doesn’t suit your taste you can try the Mexican-Middle Eastern Restaurant.
Around one bend in the road we spied a natural swimming hole.
Several fireworks stands were set up along the road. One stand had a sign that read “Fireworks. Help Christians Serve.” Another sign said, well, see for yourself…
…because nothing says ‘Christianity’ like blowing stuff up?
Good times. I will really miss this state when it’s time to dismantle this particular life.
For more sights and scenes from my Arkansas travels, see:
My Little Spacebook 