Thursday morning I bid adieu to my adobe abode in Las Cruces and hit the I-10 east. I was headed to Austin, Texas for December.

I went from the peaks of the Texas Mountain Trail to a land of plateaus and windmills, which gradually changed to a land of hills that became increasingly greener as the miles passed. I learned from my close calls of the past and took ample opportunities to fill up my gas tank and to use the ladies' room. Most of the trek was very sparsely inhabited.

The sun began to set when I exited I-10 for Highway 290, so after that, the landscape is somewhat of a mystery to me. There seemed to be a whole lot of nothing until I arrived in Fredericksburg, which looked like a fun spot to revisit in the near future. Johnson City came shortly after that, and the incredible Christmas lights adjacent to the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park prompted me to turn my car around, surround myself in a magical glow, and snap a few photos.

The rest of the route was mostly steeped in darkness until I began to approach Austin. The city's skyline contained the first tall buildings I've seen since I drove through Tulsa after my time in Tahlequah. After a month in Las Cruces, Austin just has so much stuff.

My Central Austin neighborhood loft apartment is significantly smaller than the 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom house I called home in Las Cruces, but it's all I really need. And yes, it cost more. I guess that's part of what comes with so much stuff.

Unfortunately, the city was dreary and rainy yesterday and today, and is projected to be that way through Monday morning. After a day of resting up from 10 hours on the road yesterday, I attempted to explore today. My first reaction was major sticker shock when I discovered that a public parking lot I almost used was going to cost $10 PER HOUR. I may have to increase the price of my artwork with those rates! Thankfully, I finally found a spot on the street for a more reasonable cost of around $4 total for 3 hours.

I visited the Mexic-Arte Museum, the Contemporary Austin, Voodoo Doughnuts Austin, and the Driskill Hotel. I finally had enough of traipsing around in the chilly rain and took refuge in the Austin Ale House, where I enjoyed a $4 beer special with a plate of fries. A budget-friendly indulgence.

I think I'll hunker down at my place for a while and get some work done (yes, I do actually work) and paint. Come on Tuesday, I need some sunshine!

After staying the night at the inn at Indian Creek Village Winery in Ringwood, Oklahoma, I spent an hour or so back in Enid seeing the town. I visited St. Mary's hospital where I came into this world and snapped some photos of it and the downtown area. It seemed like a nice little city, very quiet on a Sunday morning. I enjoyed the touches of cowboy culture and the art deco architecture prevalent through downtown.

After filling up my tank, I headed off toward Amarillo, Texas, around a 4-hour drive. This drive was pretty mind numbing, with little to be seen of interest to me. The main themes of my day were roadkill (and oh, what a variety of roadkill!), cows, cotton fields, oil wells, and windmills. The landscape was mostly flat. It occasionally teased me and began to get interesting, only to flatten out into the doldrums again.

I drove into Amarillo and cruised around town a little bit and decided to find my hotel. I hate to be negative, but when I did, I was not very happy. Let's just say that the neighborhood was less than desirable. It was one of the sketchier hotels I would have ever stayed at if I hadn't decided to pack up my things and flee for my life after 15 minutes.

My perspective might have been colored by my hotel experience, but I didn't have such a great impression of the rest of Amarillo, either, so after I got up in the morning I immediately set off again. I did make a short stop at the Cadillac Ranch and really enjoyed the bright colors and juxtaposition of the vehicles in the landscape. Definitely a fun photo op!

After that, it was much of the same as the day before for another 3 1/2 hours. I arrived in Roswell, New Mexico early in the afternoon and rode down the main (only?) strip, amused at the many alien-themed touches the town had put into place. They obviously have both a sense of humor and a sense of identity.

I paid my five dollars and visited the International UFO Museum and Research Center, which was interesting, but a little low budget. It was still fun to have been there, and I learned a few things about the "incident" in 1947, including that they had taken whatever landed to Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio, which was very close to my paternal grandmother's house. I also walked around downtown and snapped some photos of the many shops, restaurants, and businesses that proudly displayed alien decor.

The next morning I was eager to hop in the car. I could see just the tiniest silhouette of mountains in the distance, and they were calling my name...

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