As I drove through MO I was impressed with the gentle rolling hills and lush green forests.  Then I came to Springfield, MO and was surprised to learn it's the home of Homer Simpson.  Or so they say.  Who knew?

Then I came to Oklahoma where you don't need a tornado to go fast.  The speed limit's 75 MPH!

Also I want to extend my apologies to the butterflies of the world.  I think I single handedly wiped out several species as I drove through MO & OK.  They met their demise on my windshield.  Especially the ones that bleed "yellow". 

First stop St. Louis, MO.  Not far from the Arch is the Anheiser Busch Institute where you can probably major in beerology.  Further down the road I saw a bumper sticker that read "Re-Elect No One".  I completely agree.  If you're not a Democrat you have No Candidate worth voting for!

My daughter gave me a nice send off with a beautiful Mother's Day card.  Love you Em!  

My journey has finally begun but not without a few tiny glitches.  First I was still packing up the car at 4 AM the day I left.  And with only about 4 hours of sleep I also forgot a few things...like my make-up.  I discovered the omission when I happened to look in my rear view mirror hours later.  Yikes!