Day 19 (9/24/11)

After a good nights sleep I packed up and headed back across the Mississippi River to Memphis and then headed south on I-55. Normally, on this trip I have tried to avoid Interstate Highways for the most part, but sometimes they are just the ones going where you want to go. One thing that struck me though is the lack of tolls. Once I left the Chicago area I have not paid a toll to cross a bridge or drive on any highway. I can't count the number of rivers I have crossed and scenic highways I have ridden and not a single toll. I would like to have someone explain to me why in the Northeast, the various entities are in our pockets all the time for simple river crossings, let alone the "privledge" to drive highways that on their best days are poor in comparison to what they have out west and in the south. These states can't possibly have the money that ours in the east have, yet their roads are beautifully maintained and free. Something is wrong with this picture. I think it costs us $26 in tolls between highways and bridges to go visit our son on Long Island, EACH WAY. Todays ride was kind of mindless, as the road was straight and beautiful and I did not see one single police car monitoring speeds. Everyone drove sensibly and moved along at a pace of about 70, which for the road was very moderate. As some of you know, I am a fan of the Blue Collar Comedy guys. I had to think of Jeff Foxworthy and his redneck jokes when I saw a couple of road signs. In Pennsylvania and most northern states there are caution signs before some bridges and overpasses that warn "Caution, bridges may freeze before road surfaces". Well down here in Mississippi they read "Bridge May Ice in Cold Weather". I can just picture Bubba and Billy-Bob driving down the road and the conversation going something like this: "Gee Bubba we are dang lucky today, these bridges don't freeze on hot days". :-) Was it really necessary to mention that they freeze on COLD days? I also saw a lot of signs prohibiting tractors on slopes so steep that a mountain goat would have trouble standing up. Do their state mowing workers really need to be reminded which slopes are too steep to mow! I have done a lot of mowing in my day and I THINK I could figure that one out.
What can I say..... I am definitely in the deep south. Two motorcycles passed me today with their riders wearing side arms on their belts in plain view and they definitely were not police moto's. I try to catch a picture of most unusual things, but decided not to try to take a picture in this instance. Sometimes it pays to think before you snap a picture. :-) I-55 deposited me right onto I-10 and it was a quick 20 miles or so into New Orleans. I passed the Superdome and did my obligatory pass down to Burbon Street. I once stayed at The Royal Sonesta Hotel here for an HR conference, so I had to snap a picture. I remember not getting a lot of sleep and trying my best to keep my eyes open as the presenters did their thing. Today it was early afternoon and people were all over the place walking the streets with drinks in their hands. The Hurricane is the drink of choice and they are killers with about 5 kinds of rum in them. I have been here and done that, but not today! I have a rule of never driving aything and drinking... even just one beer. Life is too much fun and I really don't need or enjoy it, so it has never been a hardship. Besides, I preached that rule to both of my sons and to do otherwise would make me a hypocrit. I was going to try to drive to the 9th ward and see some of the Katrina damage that has never been repaired, so I stopped and talked to a local Law Enforcement Officer on a scooter. He advised against it, saying it is not a nice part of town and really not a place to be especially on a BMW. I remembered the guys with the sidearms and heeded his warning and headed back to I-10 East to put some miles behind me and make tomorrow a shorter day. Besides, I wanted to drive along the beaches in Biloxi and see what they looked like after Katrina and the oil spill. I could see no evidence of any damage or oil at all. The sand is almost pure white and very fine. People were going about their business swimming and walking the beaches just like any shore town. I did notice that back from the beach every now and then, you would see a foundation and no house on it. Usually, a forsale sign was in the lawn. Some of these people just have decided not to rebuild and there are a large number of beachfront lots sitting vacant. Next to them you will often find a beautiful home worth severl million dollars back in New Jersey. I guess some had flood insurance and some did not. Many of the homes were having reconstruction work done. Well, tomorrow will be a short day. I hope to get to tour the Navy Flight Museum at Pensacola. It is supposedly one of the best museums in the country for aircraft, and I have been to just about all of them, so I am looking forward to it.