They would arrest me if I lived anywhere else ! This was my introduction to the conversation at Kathy's yesterday , one of the local "characters" holding forth on why he lives here . After a bit I had to agree with him , I had bumped into him on various occasions in my travels here and never without his trusty beer in hand , an old constuction hand , he's worked all over the place and has been in Terlingua for some time . The evidence of living a hard life very visible on his weathered face and snow white hair and beard , he continued on to explain about why the flies were so bad this year and that they were only looking for salt , he also told of his many experiments adding a little beer to their diet and watching them try to fly when they were drunk . I believe it's an ongoing study for him . He also felt put upon that so many bartenders were refusing to serve him , "used to be a man could go in any bar and get drunk! Now they have all these rules about drinking and driving and being responsible for getting me drunk . I get drunk not them ! They're just mean ! ". The meaness extended to the fact none of the ladies sitting at the table wouldn't get up and go get him a beer from his truck about ten steps away from where we were , after a short period Kathy came out of her kitchen and got him a beer just to try and keep him quiet , he was miffed she didn't open it for him ! Before you get the idea that this is some sloppy old drunk , he's not . His appearance is neat and clean as anyone else and he lives by himself in a small place and lives off the grid with solar power and water catch system . Other than the periodic blackouts and lost memories of the night before he seems to be functioning pretty well , and the ladies all look after him ! While condeming one of the ladies at the table for being mean and not serving him at some point in time she did inform him she knew when he was over served , he indignatly asked how she could know and she replied "that when he came in speaking in tounges it was a pretty good indication !" he replied"why , because I'm just speaking intelligently ? " , " no because no one on this planet can understand what the hell you are saying " was the reply . "You're just being mean " , you can see where this conversation was going ? While I wouldn't ride five feet in his truck with him , he really is a good sort of guy and does no harm other than transforming his truck into a deadly missle after about 10:30 in the morning . Just another day at the Kafe .
The park has started to clear out and the bikers and wannabes have headed up the road to whatever they go to besides trying to be something else for the weekend . It occured to me last night that they are really desparate group , what they try so hard to achieve and show their indivduality becomes just the opposite and they really are just another victim of corporate America using a cookie cutter to turn out the same old thing ! I can't stay to pissed at them for long , I've driven almost two thousand miles this trip and everywhere you look the interstate blight is spreading . We have come to accept bland , sameness as consistency , the day of striving to be noticed as being a cut above in service , quality and value has been replaced with , this'll do , it ain't great but it will get me by . Bikers aren't the only ones to fall prey to this either , I see the RV's and cars on the road and they all look the same , [exceot for the "A" which loks like a leper colony with bits and pieces dangling off it ! ] I can say West Texas has got a tight grip on me . The terrain is always changing , the people are extraordinary , and the weather is so nice it's hard to think about the humid smothering days of last summer
This week I think I'll be back on the road again , head up to Van Horn and maybe over to Deming . This last weekend proves to me I need to avoid the crowds , much as I'd like to report on the Chili cook off , I can't subject myself to that kind of crushing insanity and the crowds that accompany it . You will have to make do with tales of West Texas and New Mexico and the people I meet on the road less traveled . Fear not , I think a return to Terlingua is in the mix ! The desert and the people here are conducive to living well ....
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