Stay USA

Gayle and I got up at the crack of dawn.  We had already packed much of the car last night.  We got our coffee fix; made BLT sandwiches for lunch and were on the road for 11 hours of driving.  We had a goal -- to arrive to our destination in time to watch the January 6th hearing in our hotel room.  

What a pleasure it is to share the driving with someone.  We talked, told stories, sang the songs we sang when we were children on a family road trip, and laughed.  I love my sister.  Our relationship is easy.  I heard a Ted Talk that named that our longest shared history is with our siblings -- longer than a partner, our parents or our children.  It also seems too often be deeply fraught with conflict or challenges.  I am so grateful to have this beautiful woman in my life. 

When we crossed the state line into South Dakota I put on the playlist I had created for this state.  Creating this playlist has actually made me aware of just how many bad songs there are.  Neil Young's Misfits wins the trophy so far for worst song on my States playlists.  I couldn't stop laughing as we pulled into our destination of Hot Springs, South Dakota.  We are staying at a hotel called Stay USA.  There is an American flag on every hotel room door.

We made it to our room in time to watch the hearing.  This will be our longest day of driving and we are glad we won't have another day with so much driving. Tomorrow we will drive through the Black Hills.  Our destination is Bozeman, MT.