Day 4: Strangers in a Strange Land

Another small town somewhere in the deepest pits of Hell. This was the setting at the start of our fourth day in Hell. Admittedly, the terrain began to improve as it became deceivingly like Arizona, lots of mountains and sage brush. Although we also encountered more road kill than I've ever seen in one place. It was very disturbing. Thankfully the traffic was pretty light in this region of Hell. People are either trying to get out or aimlessly driving around. At one point, we entered a forest of windmills. It was kind of amazing. Huge monolithic turbines covering mountain tops but sitting listlessly in the dead air. There were miles of them but they seemed like some forgotten relic of another age. We stopped for a brief respite, probably right in the middle of Hell, at a "pleasant" and warm hilltop poop & piss place. Shanti took pictures of the mountain in the background and then one of the dogs and me. We set a goal for Las Cruces, New Mexico no matter what. We had, HAD, to get out of Hell that day. I can't tell you how miserable the energy is in that state or how it pulls down one's resolve and overall well being. We took "run for the border" to a new turbo-charged level. Somewhere in the middle of nowhere, which is all of Hell, we stopped briefly at an IHOP for grilled tilapia. This was the only healthy meal we had had since leaving Florida on Friday. Our food fare has been predominantly pizza and snacks. Uhg. Anyway, we finally hit the El Paso county line and were momentarily elated except for the fact that El Paso itself was still a million miles further down the road. Slowly the traffic began to build as we followed a long stream of red brake lights into El Paso proper. If you've never been to this border town of Hell, I recommend never ever going there. I've never seen such a depressing, dirty, and sleazy place. It was like a run down Vegas or something out of Blade Runner. Dark, dreary, polluted. We put on the Reiki both for protection and to clear a way through the ever thickening traffic that seemed to want to close us in forever. Whether it was the Reiki or our own sense of hope, or both, we soon found ourselves nearly on the other side of the city and the exits began dwindling down to 1. When we finally crossed over into New Mexico, it was as if the energy all around us lifted. It was a gift of the Divine. I literally got chills up and down my spine just moments into New Mexico. As we made it to Las Cruces and saw a sign for a La Quinta, we decided not to fool around trying to find any other hotels. We knew from our first night on the road that La Quinta's were dog friendly and nice places for a night's rest. Shanti received some amazing good fortune from a complete stranger who gave her a coupon to get the room for a song. I think she sang This Land is Your Land or may be it was Kumbuya. We eventually settled in our room with Caesars salads, oatmeal raisin cookies, WiFi, and cable TV for a good nights rest. Thank you god!