Notes from the Road...

Dateline: Somewhere in east Texas. Dad and I are on the highway, just south of Mt. Pleasant, TX headed to the sleepy little town of Jefferson. It is a city that has been around over 150 years, but had the misfortune of hacking off one Jay Gould back in the late 1800's... Mr. Gould was one of the most powerful railroad barons of his time, and because of his anger at the town of Jefferson, decided to bypass the city and instead build the railroad in Tyler. Mr. Gould vowed that "weeds would soon grow in the deserted streets of Jefferson."
Well, the city DID suffer, but never withered away like Gould had hoped... And to add further insult to Jay Gould after his death, the citizens of Jefferson bought his private railroad car that served as his home and office and moved it to a location in town where all who passed by could see it. (and not trip over any weeds in the street!) Jay Gould's railroad car is still there today... Tours are cheap. Jefferson now has a lot of little "bed and breakfast" places, and lots of antiques, if you're into that... The old cobblestone streets are pretty cool, and there are still century-old iron rings along the sidewalks for you to use to tie your horse up while you are in town...
Dad grew up just outside of Jefferson, in a little spot on the map called Lodi. We still visit the old homestead every year, and every year dad points out the spots where debris from the space shuttle Columbia was found on our land (what was left of one seat, a 2ft square section of thermal tiles, and a small foot-long tank) . His childhood home is long gone, but every year, on the 2nd Sunday in June, the Stuarts (and some related Lemmon and Henley family members too) all gather together on the grounds of a little one-room Baptist church that pre-dates the Civil War and have a family reunion and picnic.
A lot of our family won't make the trip this year, due to illness, death, and the high cost of GAS... But it'll be great seeing all those who make it.. It's good to see family other than at funerals.
Dad is doing ok... Getting really thin, but otherwise doing ok for an old bird about to turn 80. I have noticed that the left blinker has been on for about the last 60 miles, but I will let him slide this time.
(11:38am) We just crossed over the actual "BOGGY CREEK!" I remember getting the crap scared out of me when "The Legend of Boggy Creek" came out in the early 70's...
Another update will be coming when I have something relevant to say... Its good to see sunshine, after all of the violent storms back in Oklahoma...