Liquid Planet, MT

I'm sitting in The Book Exchange in Missoula, MT this morning - an ample, interesting looking bookstore and Wifi cafe called The Liquid Planet . . . facing east with the warm sun (45 degrees outside) trying to sneak in. A question-of-the-day posted on the coffee counter: "Who was Alexander the Great's teacher?" I guessed and got it correctly - can you?

Things are going well. I stopped at a Wal*Mart yesterday and bought a 6-pack. That puts me into underpants (and not having to search for a washing machine) for another week. I scored and wondered how many more weeks I can keep doing that.

I've have 2 awesome days driving through Idaho and Montana - I'm not making much mileage but I'm sure finding the photos. When I first drove into Montana, a state sign by the side of the road announced 'white crosses will be placed where people have died on the roadway'. Each time I drove by a single cross I found myself thinking of death, dying and driving - it's an effective message . . . and then I drove by a triple. Do you suppose that was 3 in a car, or 3 separate accidents in this one spot?




Whoa then . . . what does this mean? (I had visions of a school bus or something).



Hours after I wondered about other traveller's fate ( like 4PM) I noticed I left our locking gas cap far behind in a gas station (at dawn) in Libby, MT. Fortunately near Ronan, MT (where I discovered it), I also found a Chrysler/Jeep dealer - but unfortunately he had no Rubicon gas caps (locking or otherwise) and sliding a greasy finger down his computer screen, he announced 2 existed 'nearby?' - one in Seattle and one in Billings, MT (nearly 300 miles east)! He used a greasy finger to dial the local NAPA auto parts and they struck out too. (That's about when I started eyeing the new Jeep Unlimiteds on the lot and wondered how hard it would be to unhook the little leash on their caps - you know, after everyone left for the day?). Geez I felt awful - park the car all night with an open gas tank?



With a helpful smile, sliding that greasy finger again on his monitor for a phone number while announcing "Your Last Chance" - he scored! at an auto parts place called Auto Quest . . . just down the highway, still open but totally the type of place you'd fly right by . . . the store located in the back of a strange old building with an even more strange covering out front hiding everything . . . 3 very bored teens behind the parts counter - amused and interested a grandmother type would get so excited about finding a gas cap . . .

One salesboy though turned out to be a wealth of info about driving through the Dakotas into Minnesota. Men love their roads and I do too. I took lots of mental notes.

Aristotle was Alexander the Great's teacher BTW . . .