On our ride today I took a break in a roadside rest stop. I spoke to a young man there who was the caretaker. I asked him to recommend a cafe down the road for breakfast. He highly recommended one in Granville, 9 miles down the road. Just before turning off the road for Granville, I caught a glimpse of some huge wild turkeys. They wouldn't pose for a photo, but I enjoyed watching them slowly sneak away.
By the time I arrived in Granville, Pam and Carol were already eating breakfast in the Memorial Diner. When we asked Donna, the owner, for our checks, she informed us that Lance Johnson had already beat us to the cafe and paid for our breakfasts. We were overwhelmed. Lance works on an oil rig at night. When he gets off work he maintains the roadside rest area. On his way home to his family and some much deserved sleep, he stopped off to anonymously buy us breakfast. How could we not fall in love with the people in North Dakota?
Donna, Memorial Diner Owner
It was fun being in Rugby, the Geographic Center of North America. We snapped photos of ourselves at the official marker. Then Carol went to do laundry while Pam and I walked to the local grocery. The walk was a lot longer than the three blockes we were told. When it was time to return to our motel, Pam asked me if I'd like her to get us a ride back. I said, "Sure". By the time I went through the check out line, Pam had lined us up with a ride with a woman who was going right by our motel and she kindly dropped us off right at the door. Then she refused to have her picture taken. Thank you, Annette, wherever you are.
Rugby, ND Geographic Center of North America
Carol and I then went to tour the Rugby Pioneer Village and Museum. We saw a replication of a homesteading town. We went in one home and I wondered where the bathroom would have been. Carol reminded me that they had to go outside in those days. Just thinking about those cold winters made me grateful. Riding a bicycle coast to coast is not that hard.
Unfortunately our visit was cut short when people came running to tell us the museum was closing because a huge storm was coming. We ran outside to see a black sky and feel cold strong winds. We dashed next door to our motel room just in time to see the water and wind doing unpleasant things outside. We were grateful again to be indoors for the night.
Storm Brewing in Rugby, ND
2 comments:
Those storms are following y'all. I've been hearing on the news how the storms are unusual this time of year -- the severity, that is. And I was wondering how much of the rain you guys were running into was attributable to that same issue. Global Warming?
Hilary
Oh, and this is where you sent me my birthday card from. Thanks so much. Unfortunately, I didn't get the reference to Mayberry. Was Mayberry supposed to be representative of the geographic center of the universe -- I mean the country? Or was it just a fun joke and I'm reading way too much into it.
Anyway, inspirational that you keep running into people who just give and give and give and trust and trust and trust.
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