Summer Vacation

Mount Rushmore was our vacation destination this year. It's located in the Black Hills of South Dakota, near Deadwood. Wouldn't ya know while we were up north, they were having record heat, so it felt more like Louisiana or East Texas than anything. I didn't believe it when they told me, but they have us beat in mosquitoes and biting flies.

Some other things I noticed abut the north on this trip:

• There is hay to die for, and the bar ditches are full of bales
• There are fences for snow drifts
• Everyone has a basement
  
• The roadways are cleaner
• The bathrooms are cleaner
• The people are very friendly
• There are not wind turbines

All that is good, but to tell the truth, it was just too dang far away. It was the first time in my life I was glad to see Aspermont, when we were driving in. We racked up nearly 3,000 miles round trip, averaging 22-25 miles to the gallon. The most we paid for gas was $3.58. Premium was cheaper than unleaded regular. Diesel was right around $2.90, generally. Nebraska is beautiful. I'm glad to be home.