The Thin Blue Ride - Part 3 Day 26 - Greenfield, IN to Glen Carbon, IL

Friday, October 4th, 2019

Drive Report:  246 Miles / 3:45

There were several official "final times" to The Thin Blue Ride as of last night: final time sleeping in The Rig, final shower in a box just big enough to stand in, final stay in an RV park, etc.  All this because by close of business today we'll be in Glen Carbon, IL visiting friends from BK (Before Kids) and staying at their house for two nights before heading out on our final trek in The Rig - the trek to MHK.

Today started a little slow, but turned out to be an adventure from which I am still recovering.  But the reader hadn't ought to feel bad for me, I knew what I was getting when I signed up...

OK - admittedly, this pic would be a lot better if there wasn't a high voltage power line in the background, but it's pretty good all the same.  This is a small Methodist Church we passed shortly after leaving the RV Park this morning.  The medium blue sky as a backdrop is pretty slick.

We decided to take the long road to Glen Carbon, IL (a St. Louis suburb) today so we went via Brazil.  In the recent past we've been to all sorts of exciting places; Paris, Russia, Macedonia, etc - but I didn't want to be seen as bragging.

We also passed back into Illinois again today.  We haven't seen Illinois since crossing the Mississippi River while headed East during the ride portion of the trip.  I thought I'd include this shot so the reader could appreciate the...simplicity...of Illinois' sign compared to, say, Indiana's from yesterday.  Additionally, the only other Illinois sign the reader saw was the one just outside Chester, IL when I was riding.  You may recall that it was plastered with stickers from passing T/Aers.  Ya can actually see this one.

Buckle up - this is where things went south.

I took this one as Susan was driving down the Interstate.  (Note:  Professional Driver on an open course, do not attempt this at home.)  She wanted something from the back.  I can't recall what it was - wait, it was lip balm - so I went to get it.  As I made my way back to the front, I heard her mumbling under her breath, something about "...shoot the gap."  I'd no idea what she was talking about until I got back up front and saw...

...this.  Aaaaaaaggggghhhhhhhh!  As we went thru, Susan pulled out the lip balm I had just given her, rolled down her window, and tagged the FedEx guy's lead trailer with the Teamster's Logo.  Apparently there is still some animosity between Teamsters and the Fed Ex guys stemming from FedEx drivers in Charlotte voting to de-certify the Union in 2017.  I'm caught up in an internecine war...

Shortly after Susan's road rage incident there was this.  I didn't say anything - just hoped that she'd note that it was 100 feet tall and reflect on her recent behaviour.

As we got closer to Glen Carbon, scenes like this became more common.  The reader should note how far they can see in this pic.  We certainly did.  There's something about being in the East with your sight obstructed for so long by all those trees.  It leaves one feeling almost claustrophobic.  We both prefer our spaces a little more wide open.

We're close to home now.  Our intent at this point is to be back in Manhattan by Sunday evening.

Till next time.