My Mother approached me about taking a month long trip to visit family and seeing the sites in the western and southwestern united States with her and my daughter (then 4 1/2) in June. She wanted to see Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse, (which really wasn't much back in 1979) I wanted to see Zion and the Grand Canyon. And I had not seen some of my relatives, my godmother in Colorado in ages After a couple of months of planning and with my Mother's promise to help drive, the naive thought that she would be able to navigate the map, we set off early one morning east. We had a CB radio installed so we could get help if needed. Boy, did we ever need help!
We made it to a small town in Nevada the first night where I should have known what the tone of the trip was going to be when my mother unloaded bottles in the windowsill in the bathroom that overlooked a small casino alley. There were flashing signs and noise but we were all too tired to worry but Mom didn't want someone to come in through the window ads the latch was broken, then promptly took a sleeping pill. I laid awake guarding over us most of the night.
Next stop was Saturday night at Little America in Salt Lake City,Utah becuase my Mother wanted to hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sing in the morning. I just wanted to have dinner, put Shannon down for the night and go to the bar for a drink. I ran into a girlfriend who was a singer in a band and found out that in Utah after midnight on Saturday there was no alcohol served anywhere. We still had a good time catching up. My Mom got to see the choir and I got to sleep in thank you Jesus!!!!
Then we got to cross the Rocky Mountains. I say this with great respect. Because I had seen them before but in June they still had snow. As we began our ascent, I was in shorts a tank top and sandals. It was warm and clear with clouds in the distance. When we stopped for gas, I noticed it was beginning to rain, no, no, not rain, what? snow? in June? The attendant at the station said we would need chains to get through the Eisenhower tunnel within the hour as a snowstorm was coming. My Mother hadn't driven in snow in 30 years, she was beginning to panic. I remained calm and drove through although I had never been in snow but once. I just remembered from driver's ed class to slow down, don't break fast and never try to turn out of the way you are skidding, or was it the other way around? Anyway, we made it to Denver. The drive took us right next to the mighty Colorado river as it wound around the mountains. Some places it was right next to us. it was so fiercely wild and beautiful. It is a drive that I highly recommend for everyone. If you have time to follow it as goes down through Colorado to Arizona you should at least take part of it before they dam up the whole thing. We were lucky to see it before it became a small stream.
As we had dinner that night in a related restaurant to the one I worked in, the server brought me a drink. She said some people from the bar sent it to me. I said there must be a mistake, I was not from Denver. She said they knew me from California. I went in and was delighted to run into some customers from the restaurant where I worked. They had family in Denver. What are the odds!
We got lost in Wyoming and had a great sing along with a trucker who got us out of a potentially dangerous situation as there were flash flood warnings all around where we were. (We zigged where we should have zagged on the map, or so my Mom said) We never did see Mt. Rushmore as they were fogged in the day we got there, so I bought Mom and Shannon lots of pictures of it. And in the fog we couldn't find the building of Crazy Horse..
Then right outside Salina, Kansas I saw my first and preferably my last twister. I was on a major hiway heading for Oklahoma, the place of my birth. Where most of my mother's family is still residing.
Up to this point, my Mother had only driven about an hour of the trip. She didn't like the sun on her side of the car, she couldn't drive in an unfamiliar city traffic and she was out of state and unfamiliar with the traffic laws so she was gun shy and almost put us through the windshield more than once. So, I got the hint that I was going to drive. To say that after just over a week of being in the car with my Mother who is a worry wart, nervous nelly, and gasps at everything, you would think I would be ready for anything. But it was the tone of voice that got me.
"DON'T look over here!" She gasped. So, I ask you, what would you do?
I looked. And saw in the distance a very dark, taller than anything I had ever seen twister and it looked to be coming at us.
By then I was very good at talking on the CB radio with the truckers. So I got on there told my location, and got the trucker just in front of me about two cars up.
"Ladies, see that black cloud up ahead, that's hail. I want you on my mudflaps and stay there. When you see my brakes, brake slow and sure and hold on, we are gonna get out of the way!"
"10-4 broken saddle!"
And that's what we did. I got in behind him and that hail hit, we kept going about 70 mph and I was so intent on his taillights that Ididn't realize it had changed to just rain until he was talking to my Mom. Shannon blissfully slept through it.
We had dinner with him and his partner that evening and drove into my Grandmother's house late that night. That's when I found out about sleeping in the storm cellar and why I don't want to live in the south. I hate the humidity.
It was strange to wake up not knowing if the house was still going to be there. I kinda know how Dorothy felt.I woke up my Grandmother bossing my Momma around, I was already picking up the accent. My daughter was already feeding chickens. I was told to get up and start helping with breakfast. My vacation was over as far as my Grandmother was concerned. It was time to marry me off to a local boy.. But that's for part two of this trip.
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