Today we woke up in our motel room at the Belmont Inn, showered, got ready, and left to go visit Denise's nephew Jake at Butler University. Jake's a football player, and today was the day the new freshmen were moving in, so the school's mascot was hard to miss.

He's living in his fraternity house now, and that brought back memories for both Denise and I. Mostly of dirt, beer, and loud noises, but hey.

He showed us around campus, and then we took him to lunch at O'Charleys. We were all famished by the time we sat down, and wolfed down our food. Jake took half of it with him when we left for later, including several dinner rools and chips. Good college student!

We said our goodbyes, and left to drive the four hours from Indianapolis to St. Louis. It's hard to believe we're almost home. The van has been great: thank you, van! My laptop has been reliable and invaluable: thank you Compaq! Thank you, Linux! When I wanted to get on the Internet, I could always count on EarthLink: thank you, EarthLink! Our tent kept us cozy: thank you, tent! And, of course, the biggest thank you of all to Sharilyn Saks for letting us use her cottage: thank you, Sharilyn!

Hours pass …

It's 6:52 pm, and I just saw the Arch.

We're almost home. I remember coming home after my long east coast trip with my Mom and Gus in 1984. That last 200 miles, I was so excited to be getting home that my heart was beating furiously. This time, I'm glad to be getting home, especially to see our dog Libby, but I'm not quaking with excitement. It's more a happy anticipation to see the people I care about and be back on my stomping grounds. It's been a great journey, with a great companion. If a trip is measured by the sights you've seen and the food you've eaten and the experiences you've experienced, then this has been a great trip. If, however, the measure of a trip can be widened to include growing closer to your wife and traveling companion, then this has been an even greater trip, one that I'll look back on with pleasure and delight in the years to come.

We're back.

OVER AND OUT.

R. Scott Granneman, 25 August 2002, 7:04 pm
Total trip mileage: 3124