Where Custer Got His Comeuppance

The first two days of our trip were all drive, drive, drive--from Green Bay, WI to Fargo, ND to Dickinson, ND (North Dakota is one big state!).  We had an excellent lunch in CJ's Kitchen in Fargo; a cup of knoephla (German potato & dumpling with ham [evidently purists leave out the ham]) soup with half a Cuban sandwich (in NORTH Dakota? yeah, so it wasn't a real Cuban sandwich but it had pork and ham and cheese and was toasted, so they called it Cuban, plus it was really tasty, get over it) for me and half a meatball sub for Durwood (which had very little sauce and tasted like mostly filler and very little meat in the balls, sorry, honey) with his cup of soup.  The soup was awesome-ly delicious.

Couldn't get online in our motel even though it was available, they said.  Too far from the office, I guess. Grr.

In Dickinson, ND we stayed at the NoDak Motel again (just barely on the right side of the tracks but you can see, and hear, them from there).  About 10 miles east of town we crossed into the Mountain Time Zone and were, as the NoDak's owner says, an hour younger than we were that morning.  *shrugs*  Dork. 

Still unable to connect.  Not even sitting in the office next to the router.  Withdrawl mounting.

I knitted on my Oriole Wings Wrap as we went.

From Dickinson we boogied down I-94 (at 75 mph you can really boogie), through the badlands of Theodore Roosevelt National Park in ND, into Montana and down I-90 to the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, where Lt. Col. (not General) Custer fulfilled his destiny of being very last in his West Point graduating class, by getting himself and all his men and most of their horses killed by a force of between 900 and 2500 Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapahos.  This time our next motel was only 15 miles away so we could spend as much time as we wished on the 5 mile drive through the battlefield.  Looking at the land it's easy to see how the Americans got slaughtered, there's lots of hiding places even if there aren't many trees, etc.  I love the sculpture dedicated to the Native Americans in the battle, I could look at it all day watching the sky and clouds and beautiful spare landscape behind it.

In Hardin, Montana we stayed at the Lariat Motel, a cement block building inside and out (and inside only the mortar joints were painted so it looked like a cell) whose owner Charlotte is a rabid Packers fan.  Unfortunately she wasn't there that night but I left her a pair of GB Packers gloves I took along for the purpose and got a nice email back the other day.  That night we dined elegantly (what?  we used plates, paper ones but they're plates) on McDonalds take-out in our cell.

Still no 'net.  I had a headache and my hands trembled.
~~~~~

Just got a call from the car insurance company claims adjustor so we're cleared to take it to the dealer to get an estimate and pictures.  I'm just afraid they're going to total it (it's a 2007 with 170,000 miles on it) and Durwood loves that thing.  We shall see.  Time to go start laundry and unpack more and put more away.  See ya!
--Barbara