America's Coffee Culture

I know many of you would claim this to be a contradiction in terms, that America has no such culture, but fortunately for me, there is indeed good, strong coffee to be found in this country – and I don’t mean the overpriced, gussied-up, frothy, calorie-laden Starbucks products that taste more like a milkshake.  (By the way, the chain is not to be found in any of the small towns I’ve visited over the past month.)  Granted, there is often only a pot of stale drip coffee available in which case I choose my caffeine in a different form – or go without.  But just when I’m really jonesin’ for a proper cup of joe, a little java joint appears seemingly out of nowhere to answer my jittery prayers. 

Hooray!

 

And what I love best about them is their tongue-in-cheek attitude toward their wares as witnessed in these signs and posters: 

 

 

And sometimes you don’t even have to get out of your car to get your fix; leave it to the Amis to come up with the concept of a coffee drive-thru: 

However, I am still missing my Nespresso machine….

Road Trip, Part 2: The Soundtrack

One of the great things about driving solo is there’s nobody in the car to protest your choice of radio channel – not that there’s a whole lot to choose from out here in the wild West, but I do prefer the local playlists over my own pop-centric iPod. 

The airwaves are, not unexpectedly, full of country music, and I find that their melancholy lyrics of regret and remorse often fit my mood perfectly: when the heartache of missing my children has me bawling so hard I can’t see the road… when it’s time to say goodbye to new friends and depart from what was home for a while…when my current state of rootlessness feels really scary rather than liberating…. 

There’s also a lot of classic rock being played, and this is especially great tuneage to some of the more dramatic landscapes.  The screaming vocals of Mick, Steve Tyler, Angus, Joan Jett, Bruce, Debbie Harry, Robert Plant, and the attendant electric guitar riffs are the ideal accompaniment to those mind-blowing rock formations (see “Eyegasms” entry).  It feels so right to howl along at the top of my lungs as a response to the OMG geology in these parts. 

And then recently I discovered a station playing Sounds of the Seventies -- what a bop down memory lane!  This was the music I listened to in high school and, oddly enough, has not been remixed to suit the ears of my kids (let me know if it has).  There are some bands we may still hear now and then, such as the Bee Gees, the Eagles, Supertramp, Foreigner, maybe Chicago, but do you remember these?

ELO (“Don’t Bring Me Down”)
Doobie Brothers (“Takin’ it to the Streeets”)
Three Dog Night (“Joy to the World”)
Bread (“Baby I’m-a Want You”)
Yes (“Owner of a Lonely Heart”)
Peaches and Herb (“Reunited”)
Carpenters (“Close to You”)
Captain and Tenille (“Love Will Keep Us Together”)
Gerry Rafferty (“Baker Street”)
Isley Bros (“Fight the Power”)
Grand Funk Railroad (“Some Kinda Wonderful”)
Todd Rundgren ("Hello It's Me")

If you’re my generation, I bet you do now, and I’ll bet the words would come back to you, too, just as they do to me (amazing what the mind retains, isn’t it), and I’d also bet you’d dig the groovy nostalgia as well.  Do ya copy that?  Right on! 

Where the heck are the friggin' bison?!

Greetings from Yellowstone! 

This national park – the country’s very first -- is so huge that it’s hard to grasp the scale of its 2.2 million square acres (for comparison, it covers an area about one-quarter the size of Switzerland).  Despite the expansiveness of the ranges, grasslands, and forests, I still expected to have herds of bison crossing in front of my car and black bears pressing their noses against my windows like we’ve all seen in photos and newsreels.    

 

I should be so lucky

 

But there's nary a large cloven-hoofed or clawed furry mammal near or far.  Of course, that’s the thing about creatures in the wild, isn’t it?  Granted, I got here in the heat of the day when most animals of this sort are slumbering in the shade, or at least staying out of the sun.  I consider striking out on one of the many trails to improve my chances of spotting something in the woods, but I have neither bear bells nor bear spray and both items are highly recommended by the park service, which also advises against hiking alone.  So I’m confined impatiently to the vehicle…wait, what’s happening up ahead? A traffic jam…dozens of camera-laden people lined up on the roadside…they must see something impressive…I inch forward, pull over in the turnout, get out in eager anticipation…peer through the trees…and spy one single solitary elk.  Sheesh. 

Day 2: I go to check out the geothermal features -- at least I know where to find them.  And what luck: Steamboat Geyser, the “World’s Tallest Active Geyser”, erupted last night and is still gurgling and belching huge amounts of steam. 

The day is promising…on to Old Faithful and a series of other geysers, hot springs, mud pots, and fumaroles.  The landscapes are eerie and desolate where the scalding soil has killed the trees; the ground bubbles, oozes, hisses, sprays; and the repugnant smell of sulfur fills the air.

 

Really very impressive and at the same time pretty freaky when you realize you’re standing on top of one of Earth’s largest active, unstable volcanoes.   

Day 3: I get up well before dawn to join a “Wake Up With Wildlife” safari in hopes of finally seeing significant numbers of animals.  It is below freezing here at almost 8,000 feet (2400 meters) and I have to scrape the windshield with a credit card, but it’s a glorious day, warms up quickly, and by sundown I can check off herds / flocks of all these:

• bison
• pronghorn antelope  
• elk
• sandhill cranes
• bighorn sheep
• Canadian geese  

No bears or wolves or big cats but all in all, in the end, Yellowstone does not disappoint. 

Road Trip

I have a one-word excuse for not having written in a while: Netflix.  I know that many of you in Switzerland are eagerly awaiting the day when you can avail yourself of its offerings, but be forewarned: it’s a serious timesuck.  

Also, being on the road is tiring…I’ve driven over 1500 miles / 2400 kms in the last 2 weeks, and of course I have nobody to share the chore with.  While driving is really very easy in this part of the world, I do have to be vigilant – or at least, that’s what these road signs led me to believe: 

                      If I were to hit a moose going 75 mph, the car would be totaled for sure!

                      Seriously? As if the livestock doesn't have enough space on these huge ranches?

      Shouldn't the rider be looking out for cars?  

Oh man, I'd never forgive myself if I hit a mother and/or her calves.

 

I’ve also been on the lookout for sheriffs, state troopers, and highway patrol cars (btw, have not seen any of the above) so I find that I’m pretty knackered by the end of the day, and only have energy left for…Netflix.