I saw as many animals this morning driving back to the main road as I did all last week. I slalomed through squirrels, cats, dogs, chickens, and a horse over one two-mile stretch of road. They disappeared once I was on the highway, and I passed through about twenty Hawkins, Indianas as I skirted around the east side of Indianapolis. I’ve been listening to all sorts of podcasts and music as I travel, and for some reason I felt like Woody Guthrie today. The original anti-fascist, according to his guitar. I learned the first two verses of “This Land Is Your Land” in first grade, and certainly did not learn the fourth verse (which has been mostly scrubbed from the Internet too) or any of his more pointed songs. I’ll link the original version here:
I drove through Alexandria, home of the Gaither Vocal Band, and stopped for lunch in Huntington, home of Dan Quayle. Mom and Dad bought me a book on the best small, cheap restaurants in America, and Nick’s Kitchen was highly recommended. I ordered the house special, a pork tenderloin sandwich, and was presented with a fried slab of meat roughly the size of my hat. Add in a slice of pecan pie, and it was the best meal I’ve had so far.
I left town before Quayle rubbed off on me and began the long trip north to Manistee National Forest in Michigan, dodging an absolute shellacking of horse poop from horses and buggies along the way. I’m parked in Paw Paw, MI right now, about to make the last leg of my trip. See you tomorrow.
Ironically enough, it was Dan Quayle — who still has trouble spelling the word “potato” — who advised Mike Pence that under the Constitution, he (Pence) had no authority other than to open the Electoral College votes from each state and count them. None of this “fake electors” shit.
So, in an odd way, we owe the preservation of our democracy to Dan Quayle as much as anyone… At least for now…
Somewhere out there, there’s a CD of the Woody Guthrie Memorial Concert by various artists (including Richie Havens, Judy Collins, Tom Paxton, Arlo Guthrie and Bob Dylan. It was Dylan’s first public appearance since he broke his neck in his motorcycle accident. What Dylan and the Band did with “Grand Coulee Dam” is really amazing. What they did with “I Ain’t Got No Home” is head-spinning.
Woodieguthrie.org has the lyrics for all the verses. The last two are not politically correct. Your pork sandwich and fries looks awesome! And pecan pie for dessert! I would have a bellyache after that but then again my innards are much older than yours. Your dad told me last evening that you are heading out to Denver. That will be a trip. Wait until you see those mountains! Happy traveling! Love, Grandma