M and I are camping down around Moab for a couple weeks, so if you’ve left some hilarious and poignant comment, or tried to contact me for a lucrative book deal and I haven’t replied, it’s not personal.
So, a couple quick reflections here, mid-trip…
We passed through Winnemucca, Nevada, which is where I had my first, official paid gig as a comedian (the first unofficial gig is another story). Winnemucca is…not a nice town. You know how Reno is kind of a sad, “certificate of completion” version of Las Vegas? Well, Winnemucca is Reno’s Reno. We stopped by the casino where I performed. Casinos during the daytime… Yeesh. It’s like capitalism’s scrapheap.
The only problem with places like Arches, Goblin Valley and Capital Reef, in Utah, is you get tired of cominng up with synonyms for “wow.”
Is there anyone left in France and Germany during August? Are they all on vacation in the US? If I flew over there right now, could I just drive a truck around door-to-door robbing houses and museums and banks? Because I may have an idea for solving the debt crisis.
Coming in to the Navajo nation is the worst road I’ve ever been on. I’ve been on it once before and when we were planning on the trip I said, “my only requirement is that we don’t end up on that terrifying road carved into the cliff-face.” Then we were driving along and came to a sign that read “Warning: next 3 miles, steep downgrade, one lane, gravel, sharp switchbacks, 5 miles per hour max, no large vehicles, proceed with extreme caution, you will definitely die.” (I may have imagined that last part). The feeling was a little like going to jump off of a step ladder and suddenly realizing that there’s a bungee cord on your ankle and the step ladder is on a bridge.
Sedona, Arizona is as cool as they say it is.
The Byronic Man 
August 16, 2011 at 9:10 pm
I’m envious of your vacation. My son got to spend two weeks down in Moab, Arches, Canyonlands, etc. a few years ago, and his photos were amazing.
Also, yes, all of Europe is on vacation by mid-August. I lived in Rome in summer of 2003. By August 15th (Ferragosto), the city is empty except for the North African immigrants selling fruit and crappy souvenirs out of their little carts.