A visit from a tomato plant

Ron M. came to Afton with me today, and although we had a few "down" moments, for the most part the day was busy. Once again, the visitors were varied and interesting. There were 14 in all, and they included people from Plano, Dallas, and Liverpool TX, Melbourne FL, Newport News VA, Arroyo Grande CA, and Prescott AZ.

The truckers from Liverpool TX were driving two big tankers in tandem, coming back from delivering jet fuel to an airbase in Missouri. The Dallas family included a little girl (about 10, I'd say) who was cheery, responsive, and a BIG fan of Route 66, especially the movie "Cars". Of course we sent the family down the road to see Tow Mater at the 4 Women on the Route in Galena, KS. The couple from Arroyo Grande, CA were on their way to the national Square Dance Convention. The man from Prescott, AZ was an Auburn (the car) collector and was heading down to Broken Arrow to meet Glen Pray, the man who bought the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Co. and runs it there. The Melbourne, FL folks were retirees heading north for the summer in a fairly gigantic motorhome.

The lady from Newport News, VA is doing Route 66 in a late model VW Westfalia van, complete with a solar panel on top with which she draws energy to run her refrigeration in the bus. She is traveling with her dog Katie, as well as a tomato plant which rides shotgun with her. She also has a small herb garden in the van. When she reaches her destinations at night, the plants come out for a bit of sun. They seem to be doing well as "roadie plants", and the tomato plant already has some fruit on it. Pretty neat! The peace symbol on the back of the van made me happy.
Betty came for a visit too, and we sat outside for a while, although the noise from passing trucks and train whistles became almost unpleasant at times.

This picture has nothing to do with anything. I snapped it while waiting in front of the QuikTrip while Ron went in for some coffee. I just kind of like it (even though I have absolutely NO appreciation for carbonated beverages). :-)