drinking a beer

at Lewis and Clark's motel...Moose Drool, to be specific...finally something with a moose but not tasting like Molson. So it is 1030 after all. Not really sure what time I left Missoula but it did take 95 minutes to cover the 123 miles to Butte. Took a gander about Butte, saw the monster copper mine. It reminded me a little of old WV mining towns...uhm Fairmont in particular. Some old buildings seem to hearken to sunnier days but it is mostly bars and some chain fast food places these days. As I wandered about the mine trying to find a good spot for a pic (evening sun was not cooperating) I stumbled upon a Chinese-American restaurant. What the heck, it was a voluminous dinner. The staff had just moved from San Francisco in May. I'm guessing winter will be a test of sorts. Friendly and with the poilite inquiries as always. However, unlike with gringos who are often taken with the notion of the trip....my chinese sisters weren't terribly impressed by my lack of work ethic. Aah. On the way from Bernice's I met a fella, Rocky and we chatted alond the road for a good while. I think we actually said goodbye several times. Interesting person he is, a native who'd seen the country alongside his pooch and decided that Montana was the place for him. He wasn't particularly thrilled by the growth in Missoula but wide spaces was his thing. Among other things, we both shared a common disdain of the boom-boom car stereos of the college scholars. I'm sorely behind on pics and will try to correct that soon. First, I must figure out tomorrow's agenda. I sorely do not want to be caught in a bear-jam on a motorcycle.

Coming over the continental divide, just east of Butte, I could smell the pine trees.... not so much the one in your car but more like Christmas morning....

And so, cherries from the Mangy Moose accompanied with Bernice's monster cookie, washed down with some drool ..... aah...only Sinatra crooning 'My Way' and an altogether different memory manages to keep me anchored; just.