Trippin' through KS...

So after making all the rounds- Topeka, Rich Hill, Columbia and back to Topeka, I packed up the trusty Taurus and headed back to the Mountains! It started off like any road trip, breakfast from McDonalds, coffee to keep me awake but then things got interested. First I saw a bunch of deer on a bluff close to the highway, you know the ones where they cut through rock to make the highway... anyways the deer were awesome but yet if they had jumped they would have landed right on my car! Then the wind started to pick up and via the radio I got the warning that there where 40 MPH winds all day *insert sarcastic yay here*. So then the battle began and all in all I think I did okay driving through flat Kansas while the wind tried to blow me off the highway. At least the temperature had risen from the 40's to the 60's that was nice.

Around lunch time I stopped to eat and discovered Jules had left me a little surprise in her cage. Apparently, the wind had claimed one victory in making my dog car sick. So, after cleaning up her vomit I got to enjoy lunch... good thing I stopped at Long John Silver's. eek. Needless to say I didn't eat much. After forcing myself to eat a little bit I decided to try and take a little nap in the car, however that did not work as the wind was brutal and made the door of the restaurant SLAM shut every time anyone went in. I decided to drive down the road a bit before trying to rest.

Eventually, I ended up at a giant gas station travel center monstrosity and decided I could park far enough away from people and the station to take a decent nap. I snoozed there for about an hour and when I woke the wind had died down and I was able to get back on the road. I will mention that while driving I saw about 18 highway patrol men in west Kansas. What the heck? I also had LOTS of tumble weeds cross my path on the highway during the day. I mean, its happened before but this time it was like every 5 minutes and needless to say I giggled every time. THEY'RE TUMBLEWEEDS! How can someone not find that funny? Or maybe you don't... whatever.
Anyhow, the wind was calmer, the sun was shining and the rest of western Kansas was actually not that bad of a drive. I had already been in the car about 4 to 5 hours and so was over half down with my drive.

Once I was about an hour from the KS/CO state line I noticed more wildlife. First I saw a hawk actually swoop down and grab a rabbit right off the shoulder of the highway. I thought that was pretty cool! Then of course I couldn't count all the antelope that were wandering the plains. The drive turned unpleasant however, when a trucker behind me starting honking, yes HONKING at me! I had not been passing anyone or anything so I know that I hadn't cut him off, I was going the speed limit and he wasn't so close that he was trying to pass me, so I have NO idea what he was up to. Either way I found it rude/creepy and then he flashed his lights at me, that was it I sped up to get away from him. Weirdo. I was on the phone with my mom at the time and she was just as baffled as I. I did enjoy a great talk with her though. I also talked on the phone with my cousin Carolee, friends Meredith, Jessica and Jenny and my boyfriend Micah. Talking on the phone (while being attentive and safe of course) always makes the drive more bearable.

Once I got into Colorado I never saw another highway patrol man or any type of law enforcement at all. It was kind of weird how many I had spotted in KS and I wasn't even trying to spot them then. I was actually looking for them like crazy in CO, but no luck. My drive was bringing me into Limon at this point and I was super excited because that puts me about an hour from home. I stopped to go to the restroom and get gas here and had an interested chat lol. There was a lady who was going in the doors the same time as I, she was older, and I noticed she was walking a little stiff from driving. I said hello and held the door for her and she thanked me while saying she was moving a bit slow because she had been driving from Springfield MO. I told her I had been in Rich Hill MO and Columbia MO that weekend so I understood. She was a sweet lady and chatted with me a little on our way in. She also said something that I dreaded... her son in Denver said that it was suppose to start snowing soon.

I left that gas station hoping to beat the weather when I noticed someone. I saw someone at the gas pump that was the perfect doppleganger for a friend of mine, Alex Peterson, back at MU. I immediately circled around to get a better look and still wasn't sure! So once on the road I called his girlfriend and she told me he was still in MO. BUT I swear that guy was his long lost twin.

I was only an hour from home when the weather took a turn for the worst. A blizzard hit me out of no where! YES! a BLIZZARD! I couldn't believe it, I had drove from 40 degrees and cloudy to 60 degrees with 40 MPH winds to 60 degrees with calm winds and sunny to this... snow that was so thick I could only see under 100 feet in front of me. Awesome. Needless to say the hour drive turned into more of an hour and a half because of driving slow and less visibility. Thankfully I made it safely to Colorado Springs with a little daylight to spare. I got all my bags inside, grabbed my mail and then went to bed. The next day I only had until 6 PM to get all settled back in and to get my apartment tidy because I had two friends coming to visit!!