Day 2

What should have been an average day of driving turned into a very long one. The few days before the trip had been quite hectic for many reasons and Amy and I were quite exhausted. We didn't get the early start we normally get. The kids got up and played on the playground while I drained tanks and got the trailer ready for the next stop. We will be "dry" camping for 4 days. This means there are no RV hookups and you must pack in your own water and run from battery power etc. It is important to drain all holding tanks and bring plenty of fresh water before such a trip. We got on the road and toughed out the four boring hours to Albuquerque. We were going into the wind and our fuel mileage suffered as a result. We made the kids do old school things like crossword puzzles etc. For lunch we stopped at a community park Northwest of Albuquerque that had a swimming pool. Amy took the kids swimming while I cooked up a lunch and made breakfast tacos for the next morning. The kids had a good time and were worn out afterwards. We continued on our afternoon trend of listening to NPR podcasts. Story Corps in particular. Everyone in the vehicle was captivated. I realized why I am enjoying the series so much. It is basically small slices of humanity in oral format. Stories of life and living that would otherwise never get told. For example, the bank robber who meets up with his victim 15 years later and asks for forgiveness or the piece on the children who survived the Oklahoma City Bombing and how it has effected their lives. These small pieces of humanity and stories of the human condition have a way of energizing the soul. The journalist that founded Story Corps basically had the idea that ordinary people could conduct interviews with each other on some aspect of their lives. There was a traveling interview booth and now an app where you can record interviews and submit them electronically. The result are these interesting stories that would have otherwise never been told. After listening while walking into the campground I couldn't help but wonder what sort of stories could be buried deep in those we walk amongst that will eventually die with them. Tomorrow will be a good day, everything gets better up here. http://www.npr.org/series/4516989/storycorps