Coast to Coast: Day One

Greetings Friends--

Having completed our tour at Vandenberg AFB on Friday, we have set out on our cross-country trip back to SC and then on to the Pentagon assignment. Thought you might be interested to read our travelogue, since nothing is ever boring with three little girls in tow . . . especially for 3,000 miles.

Today we are overnighting in Henderson, NV, the less-grungy sister city of Las Vegas. Yeh, they still have the casinos, but you don't get the street hawkers passing out flyers to peep shows. This is probably because with no shade and 110 degrees, hawkers would have to be on an IV to avoid passing out themselves.

The big jewel today was the Hoover Dam, and yes, it was "dam" big. Sorry, I couldn't help myself. No more cussing, but take a look at the pics (click on to enlarge). It is quite the engineering marvel, a testament to a time in America when people worked harder. Apparently the project was completed two years early and several million under budget (and this was government work?!). We didn't take the tour (couldn't imagine a 7 and 5 year old being interested in water turbines), but we drove over and peered over the sides. I would have gotten more dizzy if I weren't so sick from the 108 degree heat. Somehow, a more sturdy generation of Americans braved the heat and the heights putting this thing in place.

Back in town, we enjoyed a West Coast experience we will sorely miss--the good ole In-N-Out Burger. We ate there for the last time tonight, since there are none outside of CA, AZ, and NV. Fresh cut fries, never frozen hamburger meat, absolutely fresh everything, in the cleanest restaurant you've ever stepped into, and with workers who look like they just walked out of a "Leave It to Beaver" episode. And this is cool--John 3:16 printed on all the cups! So eating fatty meats and fried potatoes is actually supporting the Kingdom of God, wouldn't you say? Yes, I hear that "AMEN" from my portly buddies across America.

Off to Utah tomorrow . . . another state I am fairly certain the Lord never intended for man to inhabit. We'll just be "pilgrims passing through," of course.

Good night.