Don’t Mess With Texas
Don’t Mess with Texas!
Once we say that Texas is big, one has to keep in mind that everything is larger : Trucks , skies, plates, steaks, men, hats, and hairdos.
We could put some sort of cruise control on each one of these, since everyone of them seems to never end, just like the desert along the Interstate 10. I love the desert, its emptiness and expensiveness. Even time seems to be stretching until the moment our eyes are meeting a few houses here in Van Horn .
Tonight I am taking you near the border , North of Del Pasos. A small town comprised of one main street, Van Horn is nested between the highway, and the Pacific Railway. The facades are pretty much the ones we can see in Western towns. One striking thing, is that everything is empty. Abandoned. So coming out of the desert, you are entering another sterile land, out of time.
The beauty of it is that you can easily cross the large main street, even lie down there, and stare at the sky. While moon gazing, once in a while, a car, a pick up, or a truck shows up. Slowly. In a ghostly way. That gives you a special sense of space, no?
Despite this feeling of scarcity, there are numerous motels along the streets. Some of them of course, are empty. However, few of them are brand new.
Why? How do they expect to make a living here?
I discover that, according to the Wall Street Journal, Jeff Besos, the founder of Amazon bought 290.000 acres here in 2006. The project of Blue Origins should starts commercial operations in the space as soon as 2012. Vertical take off: Here. The New Shepard will carry two or three men to the edge of space for some tourism. Five tests have already been done.
So the Motels are probably getting ready to welcome some space walker.
This makes me even closer to the moon tonight .
Have a good night!
Skydiving
Ok, Texas is slightly bigger than France.
Highways are so straight that they seem to reach the sky. It s a little bit like going for a moonwalk . The truth is Texas is bigger than my country also because we drive slower here , therefore more. One of the beauty of the American Dream is the cruise control. The car drive itself while you are doing whatever you fancy. You can have a nap in the back seat until your next stop: Johnson.
One quaint main street, 2500 almost invisible people, a few stores still open among some ruins. A former mill , a carousel’s skeleton.
Cynthia moved here from Missouri in 1998. She and her husband opened a store here. They lost everything in 2009. This afternoon she was smoking a cigarette near the abandoned carousel. We tried to keep the place in good shape , but it’s too much work. Everything is collapsing. It used to be different .People were coming here. Kids were playing. Now there is nothing. Nobody. The American Dream? I don’t know. I don’t see any dream right now. I am concerned about my grandson. He is 16. He’ s a strait A student. But what about college? I had my American Dream before the crisis. But now, I don’t know…
Leaving Johnson, setting up the cruise control, riding through the night . Until the next Motel.
Trucks can park here, next to their bed stand.
Along the highway, the pool is empty.
Have a good one!
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