Images:
(1, 2) Hanging out by a river en route to Magnolia, AR
3: me en route to Little Rock, AR
4: Riders reaching a water stop, labeled "H2O" as we always do
4/28 – To Magnolia, AR with Jody – Empty-House Lecture – Presbyterian Dinner
Today I rode out late with Jody on support. We got into this hillarious half-real argument about trust and mistrust related to our secret Santa thing. It was really funny how she would get worked up, "riled up" as she put it, over my concern that she would spill the beans. I was playing the fool, a super fool, who misunderstood everything.
We gave a lecture to a couple people at the Senior Citizen Center in Texarkana. It was a mess standing up talking to absolutely nobody, three old ladies entranced in a game of cards paying us no attention. I pretended it was a full house. Jody cracked up at me and then I lost it in deep laughter, nearly falling onto a table just as our only two audience members trickled in. We then lectured to these two heros for fifteen minutes before getting out of dodge. We did it. We lectured.
We came to Magnolia and met up with the group at our home for the night, a Presbyterian church. They fed us very well, pork chops, gravy, mushrooms, rice, and abundant deserts. Afterwards, I went out for my first long walk since injuring my shoulder (it has hurt too much until now).
4/29 – to Arkadelphia, AR – Spud-Nuts – A River
Post-Breakfast from Magnolia Arkansas, in a Presbyterian Church:
I feel a little sicky with a sensation in my head of fogginess, like there is too much fluid in there. My head feels a little heavy. Yeah, my right shoulder is a mess, but it is getting better. My belly feels bloggy, boggy maybe, full or emptying of three great donuts and a bowl of cheerios. The donuts were the best I have ever had, spud-nuts made of potato flour. Word is there are only three spud-nut shops left in the country, said the minister. He said there is one here, one some place, and one in Washington state, to which Tim replied, "yeah, there is one in Richland, WA... opens every day at 5am."
I love food. I have figured this out if nothing else on this trip. If there is something homemade or some local restaurant offering local fare, I'm a sucker hungry or not. Just charge it to my card. I had chicken-fried steak w/ texas toast the other day. Spud-nuts today, pounds of brisket a week ago before my bike wreck. Funny thing is, I like not eating too. I like being hungry, skipping big meals, going days in caloric deficit.
My head is still boggy. My pillow last night wasn't high enough, but I guess that happens sometimes when your pillow is three stacked sweatshirts. Today I'm on support with Tango, riding out with Hepker. I 'spose I hope this day is slow and grindy, gritty, a bit uncozy, hazy, memorable. I hope that in a week or ten days or twenty, I look back and remember the feeling of this day, one I might not even appreciate now.
Day mostly done
My day has ocurred and now it is nearly 8pm, with a little bit of day left. Stuff happened. For one, I sat by a river for nearly an hour soaking up sun rays, my feet chili in the water's edge. For two, I ate a plate of eggs with cheese inside an Arkansas convenient store that served meals. Other things went down and somewhere in there it all went sour, southward. I got grumpy and barked out frustrations I'm thankful others didn't hear. We had our R4WH olympics and my hurt arm didn't cooperate and my team lost. Afterwards my spirits lifted when dinner delivered big, bunless burgers w/ cheese, antipasta, veggies.
At one point, I stepped downward and landed a foot lower than I had hoped, my left foot missing the sidewalk and landing on the road below. A jolt of pain shot through my injured shoulder, but ever since that, I have been doing better. I have better ROM and less pain, I guess because it is all swollen tight.
4/30 – To Hot Springs, AR – Rain Country – Bath House – Great Dinner
My rear end smells of a gas that comes out every couple minutes. My hair is sticky like it likes to get after I shower, just sticky. I have these painful lymph nodes in my right inguinal region, draining faithfully the upper thigh edema that persists now 9 days after wrecking my bike, wrecking my shoulder. The shoulder moves more and twice in these past two days it has awoken me abruptly like a newborn infant screaming its head off, bitterly pissed and raging, pouting. Whatever, let it hurt, let it wine. This is life and it is has to get tougher, stronger for us.
Today I rode sweep van with Sarah, my friend. We made it to Hot Springs Arkansas, boyhood home of Bill Clinton. The whole group bathed in one of the various bath houses that line a main drag through town, forming jointly the Hot Springs National Park.
I had a couple beers today, new ones to me - Sam Smith Oatmeal Stout from England. I would rate it a 8.5 and it would have been a 9 if this day was a little better. But you know what, I can already sense this day is one that I will appreciated in a week or two. This is one I will look back at missing the bitter, a bitter that is only here in this life. I might miss my lonely jaunt back to the van or my moments alone on the bench. Maybe it was the water or the lush backdrop of high rising trees sitting on a big hill.
The riders rode in rain today for the first time. It was 35 miles from Texarkana to Hot Springs. Tonight we had the best free meal of the trip, a BBQ catered dinner rich in brisket and rotisserie chicken. The chicken particularly had a great flavor deep to the bone, but the brisket dominates my full belly. I didn't forget the sweet tea.
Now I'm just keeping up with my life, maybe update some blog stuff, maybe read a little bit of my book "The Shack." It was very nice this evening to ride the stationary bike for about 45 minutes. I hope I can do it in the morning as well. I need it.
I went to Cracker barrel for the first time today, in the am with Sarah. I wasn't hungry, but she nudged me because it was my first time, so I had a two egg sandwich on her suggestion. It was super solid good.
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