Garden City

I really needed that camera this week. The airplane upon which I flew to Garden City was an antique. I had noticed this small vintage white prop job as I sat at the gate and it crossed my mind that it could be my plane. I consoled myself with the observation that it was closer to gate 3 than gate 2 and my gate was 2. As we passed through the door, the attendant said, 'The plane on the left'.....the WHITE plane. It was the small eighteen seater type with one row of seats on each side of the aisle and no overhead storage. Seven brave souls boarded that plane. The co-pilot told us the cross winds were pretty strong and we might not be able to land in Dodge City, but just go straight to Garden City. (That was fine with me!! )

During the boarding process and the seat belt/safey notification, the gentleman in front and across the aisle from me continued to loudly talk on his cell phone in his native middle eastern language. The co-pilot kept telling him to turn off the cell phone and he just kept talking away. I must admit, listening to one side of a middle eastern conversation on a less than pristeen airplane is a big disconserting. The co-pilot finally asked him if he wanted to get off the airplane and he disconnected his conversation. Hillary said I should have reminded myself that who would want to sabotage an airplane with seven people in the middle of Kansas. She has a point.

We landed safely in Dodge City, much to my disappointment. Now I had to take off and land once more to reach my destination. The very windy day was tossing the plane around as if it were a leaf in the wind, but we had talented pilots and arrived safely.

The next adventure in Garden City was the storm that hit around 5 in the evening. I could hear the thunder and pounding rain around 5, but by the time I left a little after 6, it had calmed down to a steady downpour. This was my first time driving around Garden City and I didn't know the streets. The staff told me the route to the hotel and I headed out. The water was running across the street and at the first major intersection the water was so deep that with the wind, there were white caps in the middle of the intersection. I could hear it sloshing under the car and thought, "This is the stuff they tell you NEVER to drive in". I survived the plane only to be drowned in an intersection in Garden City. It is just so flat here that there is no place for the water to run off to. Ann said I should consider increasing my life insurance.

This evening I drove to Holcomb, KS. The place where the Clutter murders from 'In Cold Blood' took place. It's just a sleepy little country town. I don't know what I expected. I didn't think there would be any signs saying...'Clutter house this way>>>>'. Skidmore, MO certainly doesn't have any signs pointing out the spot where Ken Rex McElroy was done in. It did make me think about Conception, MO where a family was murdered in the early 70's, much like the Clutters, except I think the murderer was a neighbor boy who had a crush on one of the girls.

Now, if I can just survive the plane trip back to Kansas City tomorrow. At least it is non-stop.