Well today was the first day of not wearing jeans as the weather had turned to rain and although it was light enough when I started out there was enough surface water to convince me that the all-weather gear was the way to go......and boy 2 minutes into my first (of many) thunderstorms was enough for me to be happy with that call!
no problems in this town....!
I took the 98 along the Gulf Coast from Tallahassee to Panama City today.....and am sure if I could have seen more than about 10 feet in front of me at any time I could tell you that the Gulf Coast was very scenic and worth a visit but the weather was miserable so what is a guy to do. The bits I did see where lovely.......honest!
....a self-portrait
I keep hitting 'cities' and thinking they have been a little generous in their interpretations....some of them are little more than a crossroads, a school and some churches (lots of churches...everywhere......can't move for religion down here) but it turns out that a city is governed (and budgets allocated) differently than 'towns' and so the classification is based upon the means of local government rather than the size, population or whether you have a cathedral!
I only saw 1 other bike all day....2 people on a Goldwing and they looked miserable in their little leather jackets.....(matching but miserable!)....all wet and bedraggled. It was pretty heavy going and I did pull in to a gas station to wait one heavy shower out but in the end just had to get going and get to my hotel.
...hiding from the rain
It isn't pleasant when you can feel your feet squelching in your boots every time you put your feet down at lights......and of course the locals all drive great big pick-up trucks so nobody cares about a little flooding at junctions........well almost nobody! I quite enjoyed it really......have ridden through much worse and it never really got too cold so a little wet is tolerable......my hotel room just looks like some really dodgy laundry as I try to get my stuff dry.......hairdryer in a boot seems to be working ok!
Did you guys hear the news story in the last couple of days about the guy who called 911 and asked for the police? He was in a Burger King (drive-in I think) and they didn't have the drink he wanted and he wasn't happy with the burger they wanted to give him so he called the cops.....needless to say he got done for wasting police time but the police operator gave him a piece of her mind while he was on to her!
So I get to the hotel at 1420 and go to check-in. Guy tells me that check-in is at 3 and my room isn't ready.....now I am a bit damp......a bit chilly.....and just want a shower but am ok about waiting 30-40 minutes for my room......so with nowhere for me to go I simply ask well can we get the paperwork out of the way so that once the room is ready I can go straight to it. I think this was regarded by him as me not being happy......he starts calling housekeeping about my room.......room isn't ready......ok here is an upgrade to a bigger room which is ready so there you are.....who knows?
Oh and I forgot to mention a racoon ran out in front of me yesterday morning just after I left Steinhatchee......not another vehicle in any direction for at least 5 miles and this rodent wants to play 'pin the honda on the racoon'........certainly woke me up though as I weaved my way towards him under heavy braking......
....and a guy I was talking to in a bar the other night in St. Augustine said to me (and you have to do this in your finest southern drawl now y'hear) "boy, when you taste that Bar-B-Q in Texas you ain't never gonna wanna leave!!"
I seem to be visiting Subway quite often for lunch....mainly as there are plenty of gas stations with a Subway attached.......means I avoid the ever-present burger which can't be bad......a little bit of salad and some turkey (to ease the guilt of dinner)......they just don't get it though when I say no cheese.....and no I don't want one twice as big for just 79 cents more.......
Other than that I tried Catfish the other night....although it was deep fried (they served me 3 fish), the fries were (obviously) deep fried and they also gave me some sort of deep-fried potato cake.......it was all good but there is only so much frying a boy can take...... Had corn-beef hash topped with 2 poached eggs and some home fries on the side the other morning which was ok and have had a short-stack of pancakes a few mornings to set me up for the day. You ask for tea down here though and you get ice-tea so you have to make sure to ask for a hot tea........
That reminds me....I need to google 'grits'......see what I might be ordering with my eggs for breakfast some day!
.....time for dinner I think.....Happy Valentines Day to y'all!
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