Day 2

We started day two in good fashion. I got up around 8, took a shower, and headed down to the continental breakfast. For those not acquainted with mediocre-hotel jargon, "continental breakfast" translates into layman's terms as "shitty pastries and oatmeal." Of course the upside is that you can have as much as you want and it's free.

After filling up on raisin Total and mini blueberry muffins, I returned to our room to find Rob still asleep. It was still before 9 so I turned on the TV. Keep in mind that it's Saturday morning, so all of the major networks are playing their morning kids lineup. I was fortunate enough to stumble upon some Japanese import that involved playing cards and CGI dinosaur battles. I seriously have no idea what the show was called but few minutes of it that I saw were astounding. Imagine two triceratops' fighting a pair of tyrannosauruses, except instead of just ramming them with their horns, they shot lightning bolts out of their heads. And instead of just standing back and watching, you view the battle via a flying jet-powered helicopter that swoops back an forth between the lizards. Yeah, it was kinda like that. Needless to say, I was thoroughly entertained.

Soon after this, Rob awoke and we began the checkout process. It was around 10:15 by the time we left the hotel so we figured there would be time to see some of the D.C. sights. We hit the National Mall and took a quick tour of everything west of the Washington Monument.

I wonder if he's hollow

Insert phallic joke here

We soon returned to the parking garage and stopped off to fill the tank and put air in the tires.

The only car for miles with a solid crust of rock salt and dirt

Then, we set off for Raleigh. Now I have to say, I suspected that this part of the ride down would be bland. I have no problem with rural environments but by this point, we had seen enough of the sparsely-populated temperate climate. We're ready for deserts and great plains! Enough with tall trees, rolling hills, and winding river valleys! Alas, we have yet to reach that part of the country. For now, we'll continue through a less snowy version of the same shit we have up in New England. But I digress

We eventually arrived in Raleigh (more accurately, on the northern outskirts of it) around 4:45. The first thing we did upon arrival at the house was to seek out a car wash. Two days of rock salt and road dirt buildup in the north-east had accumulated to the car and left it with a nice dull sheen. After getting world-class service at an AutoBelt, our ride looked waaaay better than what it started out as. To celebrate, we rode the .25 miles back with the top down.

Squeaky Clean

We went to Ted's Montana Grill for dinner. I guess Ted Turner is a restaurateur when he isn't running media conglomerates or doing environmental stuff. His chain of south-west "down home cookin'" specializes in Bison products so naturally, we both ordered bison burgers. Mine was actually quite good. Definitely a different experience than traditional beef, but still very enjoyable. Now we're home watching "Little Miss Sunshine" on TV. It's aover 350 miles to Knoxville tomorrow but hopefully the trafic wil be thinner than it's been so far. This will be our first real drive West and I am very much looking forward to it.

LOL White House