Wherein our hero, Davy, continues his vagabond RV adventure on the road through America and ventures into scenes and scenery one only dreams about.
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"Shut the door
Cut the light
Davy won't be home tonight
You can wait till the dawn rolls in
You won't see our Davy again"
Hearing the author, John Simon, croon out the song made me smile. I always preferred his version to the Manfred Mann one. It made me think it was written just for me.
After my adventure on the first night of my travels, I considered that maybe I'd never come home again. Maybe something out here in America would derail my trip home. Maybe this would be a watershed for me. Perhaps my life would change dramatically. Out here, in the heart of my country, anything and everything was possible.
As I traveled through Ohio, I realized that I was in no rush. There was no where to be at any specific time. All I needed was an RV hookup to park next to and then go to sleep. I found that the ideal speed for gas consumption was about 55 and I held to it mostly running on cruise control and singing along to my iPod library. Several times, I'd find a nice scenic spot and pull over to walk my buddy, Santo. but most of the time he contentedly snored away on the floor.
I was running along the southern border of Ohio, well south of Cincinnati, when I decided to take a driving break. I saw a sign for a "scenic view" and pulled in to make coffee and to walk and stretch. It was beautiful and tranquil and I could picture the valley floor covered in lilacs but unfortunately it was not that time of year. Still, I felt that my mind was clearing out and tossing all the detritus away, opening myself to my imagination. I felt very fine.
As I prepared to get on my way again, I saw a van pull into the parking away and drop of a young couple, one tall and one short. I watched as they unloaded their gear from the van and headed toward the exit lane, thumbs out. Obviously, they were hitching to somewhere. I figured I'd ask if they needed a ride and have a little company for the day. I was very interested in hearing stories and adding some color to my travels. I imagined myself writing a book about the trip and desired all the fodder I could amass.
I pulled up to the couple and asked where they were going.
"Jefferson City, Missouri or as close as we can get."
"Hop in. I'll take you there." As I had no particular itinerary to follow, why not check out another place I'd never been.
I got out and helped them place their larger bags in the rear storage wells. They took their backpacks into the RV.
"Hi. I'm Davy and this is my pal, Santo." I said extending my hand, "Where are you two coming from?"
"Hi and pleased to meet you, Davy. I'm Shelley and this is Linda."
Privately, I was surprised. I had assumed that Linda, the taller one, was male as she was lanky with short-cropped hair. I didn't notice the bulges under her hoodie.
"We left Michigan three days ago and this trip has been pretty rough. We're going to Jefferson City to tend to my Mom, who had an accident and is in bad shape."
"Well, as I have no plans to be anywhere, I can take you to her door. If you like, you can relax while I drive. There's a shower and a bathroom in the back, plenty of food in the fridge and you can bunk up here above the cab."
They both looked at each other and, with eyes popping out, said "A shower!" in unison.
I set my GPS for Jefferson City as the young women cleaned themselves up. Santo seemed happy with these new companions and he followed them into the rear compartment. They closed the door and as I drove along, I could here the water running, the toilet flushing and lots of giggling. I was glad to help these two out.
After a while, they joined me. They'd changed into spaghetti tees and shorts. I silently admired their braless breasts as they chatted. My expert assessment put Shelley at about 36D, and Linda at 34C. We spoke about my trip for a while and then discussed their arduous journey and all its bummers. Somewhere around Vincennes, it was time for me to take another break and to walk Santo. I found a small turn off overlooking a stream and some woods. The girls volunteered to walk Santo while I stretched out for a few minutes. This was a mistake as I fell asleep for about an hour.
"We didn't want to wake you. You were sleeping so deeply," said Linda, the tall one.
"Snoring, too. I hope you don't mind but we put some lunch together," said Shelley.
I looked at the clock and I was surprised to see it was nearly 3pm. I rubbed my eyes.
"No, not at all. I could use something," I said as I headed for the john.
When I came out, there was a tuna sandwich and some chips waiting for me. I didn't realize how hungry I was as I wolfed it down.
"So what do you two do when you're not hitching?"
"We both worked at a restaurant. We met there and fell in love."
"My mom doesn't approve, naturally, but she'll learn to love us both. She'll have to because that's the way it is."
"I think it's great that you too are happy. It's a beautiful thing. What are those tattoos?"
"We both got them one day after a wild night."