On the road...literally!
We got up at 5:30 am in Yuma, Arizona where a spectacular sunrise greeted us on our 1,200 mile journey to Dallas, Texas. That amazing sunrise ended up being the highlight of our day. We ate at Blake’s lota burger a New Mexico tradition in serving up big and juicy burgers near Alamagordo, and drove all day, nothing but flat land, prairies and 18 wheelers.…..into the night.
I couldn’t wait to stop and have dinner and sleep. Along came Pecos Texas, in case you are ever out that way, don’t bother. There were only a couple of places open in the whole town, one of them was a Chinese restaurant, and oh how I love Chinese food. It was so bad I couldn’t eat anything. Well, at least I could get a good nights rest right? Wrong! I came out of the bathroom and asked Al if we were in prison or a hotel. Get me outta here. Let’s get on to better things…food and hotels!
On our way out of town Al heard on the radio about a major explosion at an oil refinery in Sandy Springs, a few miles ahead of us on Interstate 20. Soon we would learn that it was a national news story and that the highway was closed…we were delayed nearly an hour and a half but managed to get some great picures…unbelievably, nobody was killed in this explosion that could be felt by folks nearly 50 miles away in Midland, Texas.
"We spent the weekend in New Orleans, what a glaring contrast this town is. We stayed at a really unique and cool hotel down on Canal Street within walking distance to Bourbon Street, the Waterfront, and all the fun that is so much of what New Orleans is. I have been trying to eat healthier, but threw that all out the window once we hit town...the food is nothing short of fabulous! The music and food make this place one of the greatest weekend trips imaginable. The Gumbo at the Bayou Cabin, the ribs at Voodoo Barbeque, were out of this world. 
Big Al Carson sings the blues and anything else in between and we caught his show on Bourbon Street on Saturday night. it really was fun. One of the most popular tourists sights in The Big Easy is the cemetaries believe it or not. Many movies have been filmed in these historic graveyards including the famous St. Louis #2 which we walked through..it was creepy I musts admit!
On Sunday however we ventured to that part of New Orleans that truly breaks your heart. We toured the 9th Ward and the completely destroyed Barnard Parish. Hurricane Katrina and the failed levees really did a number on this place and one can only walk away shaking their head at the damage still sitting there. While there certainly are homes that have been rebuilt, they sit among blocks of houses yet to be demolished. Signs of the destruction remain everywhere, especially in Barnard where every home and business was destroyed. It seems unimaginable that nobody is screaming at the top of their lungs on a national level about the slow pace of the clean-up, or the lack of interest in helping these people rebuild. It has been 2 1/2 years since Katrina struck, and yet seeing this place rebuilt appears to be years away..what a sad statement about our country in my opinion...I am a proud American indeed, but seeing New Orleans makes you truly question where our priorities lie....why can't we get this done? They say the answers 
are complex...I don't know....all I know is that this place needs a lot of work and it simply isn't getting the help it needs to fully recover from Hurricane Katrina. I left New Orleans with very mixed emotions...it is a fun place, but a tragic place too.
I couldn’t wait to stop and have dinner and sleep. Along came Pecos Texas, in case you are ever out that way, don’t bother. There were only a couple of places open in the whole town, one of them was a Chinese restaurant, and oh how I love Chinese food. It was so bad I couldn’t eat anything. Well, at least I could get a good nights rest right? Wrong! I came out of the bathroom and asked Al if we were in prison or a hotel. Get me outta here. Let’s get on to better things…food and hotels!
On our way out of town Al heard on the radio about a major explosion at an oil refinery in Sandy Springs, a few miles ahead of us on Interstate 20. Soon we would learn that it was a national news story and that the highway was closed…we were delayed nearly an hour and a half but managed to get some great picures…unbelievably, nobody was killed in this explosion that could be felt by folks nearly 50 miles away in Midland, Texas.
Sandy Springs, Texas Refinery Explosion
We arrived in Dallas at the comfort Inn that we had booked for 5 days because we had several concerts there and wanted to stay in one place for a bit. We loaded everything in for our extended stay. I woke up early in the morning, mmmm stretch and get up nice and slow. I didn’t have
my glasses on so everything was a little bit blurry, but I saw something move high up the wall across the room. I squinted to make out a big butterfly. They follow us everywhere I thought. I put my glasses on and realized it 
was the biggest cockroach I had ever seen (I lived in the south for 5 years) Of course it fell off the wall and scurried in my direction. I awoke AL with a scream and me standing in the middle of the bed. AL calmed me down enough to pack so we could leave…he assured me that he was a stray little lost bugger. I shook everything as I packed. I went to pack the bathroom and turned around to see 2 more roaches in the bathtub. That was the end of that. Al killed the biggest one and shamed me for making the little guy lose his life simply because it dared to enter our room….but I think he was as glad to leave as I was.
We high tailed it out of there and stopped to dine on some of the best BBQ we have ever had (except Dennis’s) at Odem’s Barbeque in Duncanville, leave it to me to segue from cockroaches to BBQ without missing a beat.
We drove to College Station, TX and stayed in the beautiful comfort suites… Pillow top mattresses & they made warm chocolate chip cookies for us before bed. Ok …..This is more like it!
Before the concert in Hearne TX, we went to the George Bush Presidential Library. This picture
includes a portion of the Berlin wall which fell during his reign. The library is located on the Texas A&M campus. On the other side of the campus we visited the memorial to the 12 students killed and 27 injured in 1998 when a five story log structure built for their annual bonfire collapsed. 
my glasses on so everything was a little bit blurry, but I saw something move high up the wall across the room. I squinted to make out a big butterfly. They follow us everywhere I thought. I put my glasses on and realized it 
was the biggest cockroach I had ever seen (I lived in the south for 5 years) Of course it fell off the wall and scurried in my direction. I awoke AL with a scream and me standing in the middle of the bed. AL calmed me down enough to pack so we could leave…he assured me that he was a stray little lost bugger. I shook everything as I packed. I went to pack the bathroom and turned around to see 2 more roaches in the bathtub. That was the end of that. Al killed the biggest one and shamed me for making the little guy lose his life simply because it dared to enter our room….but I think he was as glad to leave as I was.
We high tailed it out of there and stopped to dine on some of the best BBQ we have ever had (except Dennis’s) at Odem’s Barbeque in Duncanville, leave it to me to segue from cockroaches to BBQ without missing a beat.
We drove to College Station, TX and stayed in the beautiful comfort suites… Pillow top mattresses & they made warm chocolate chip cookies for us before bed. Ok …..This is more like it!
Before the concert in Hearne TX, we went to the George Bush Presidential Library. This picture
includes a portion of the Berlin wall which fell during his reign. The library is located on the Texas A&M campus. On the other side of the campus we visited the memorial to the 12 students killed and 27 injured in 1998 when a five story log structure built for their annual bonfire collapsed. 
Al at the Texas A&M Memorial
New Orleans was a mixture of both fun and sadness, Al wrote an entry on our EverAshley Music blog that I will share with you all here.
"We spent the weekend in New Orleans, what a glaring contrast this town is. We stayed at a really unique and cool hotel down on Canal Street within walking distance to Bourbon Street, the Waterfront, and all the fun that is so much of what New Orleans is. I have been trying to eat healthier, but threw that all out the window once we hit town...the food is nothing short of fabulous! The music and food make this place one of the greatest weekend trips imaginable. The Gumbo at the Bayou Cabin, the ribs at Voodoo Barbeque, were out of this world. 
Big Al Carson sings the blues and anything else in between and we caught his show on Bourbon Street on Saturday night. it really was fun. One of the most popular tourists sights in The Big Easy is the cemetaries believe it or not. Many movies have been filmed in these historic graveyards including the famous St. Louis #2 which we walked through..it was creepy I musts admit!
On Sunday however we ventured to that part of New Orleans that truly breaks your heart. We toured the 9th Ward and the completely destroyed Barnard Parish. Hurricane Katrina and the failed levees really did a number on this place and one can only walk away shaking their head at the damage still sitting there. While there certainly are homes that have been rebuilt, they sit among blocks of houses yet to be demolished. Signs of the destruction remain everywhere, especially in Barnard where every home and business was destroyed. It seems unimaginable that nobody is screaming at the top of their lungs on a national level about the slow pace of the clean-up, or the lack of interest in helping these people rebuild. It has been 2 1/2 years since Katrina struck, and yet seeing this place rebuilt appears to be years away..what a sad statement about our country in my opinion...I am a proud American indeed, but seeing New Orleans makes you truly question where our priorities lie....why can't we get this done? They say the answers 
are complex...I don't know....all I know is that this place needs a lot of work and it simply isn't getting the help it needs to fully recover from Hurricane Katrina. I left New Orleans with very mixed emotions...it is a fun place, but a tragic place too. 
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