Archives for 2017

On a recent van camping trip where we racked up over 5000 miles seeing the beautiful west coast of the USA we passed several runaway truck ramps.   Most of these were on steep downhill grades where heavy machinery could suffer from overheated brakes or loss of power.   They are engineered to slow a fast moving heavy vehicle by diverting them onto an uphill grade with several inches of gravel and often a berm at the end.   There was one however, that seemed to counter all laws of physics and safety in this arena.   We were at first a little shocked and then helplessly laughing at the absurdity of this ramp’s design.  Not only was it slanted downhill, but it had a mere 3 barrels at the end of it after which it dropped off over a precipitous cliff.   Jim said it had to be a ramp designed by the roadrunner for Wiley Coyote!

My feet have been gathering no moss for several months now.  A little frost, some sand between my toes but very little hometown dirt has stuck to my shoes since last fall.   Teaching, family and wanderlust have kept me on the move since well before the fall elections and only now do I have the time and desire to settle in and reflect on what appear to be major shifts in the national landscape.