Cabin, and the latest New Coke
I was not the only one driving Highway 10 last weekend:
Left the wife and kids up at the cabin – in the good hands of Grandmama, Boppa, Aunty Amy, and new cousin Isaac. Left late enough (7:15 p.m.) that I flew home. New car got 35 mpg on the highway – very nice. Made only one stop – in Rice – for gas, bathroom, and snack. I selected a new Coca-Cola Blak - for a little “pick me up” - - $1.99 for 12 oz.
The girl behind the counter at the Holiday does not work for Coke. She sneered, “Have you ever tried one of those?” if I had set down a pack of chocolate covered grasshoppers or something equally strange.
“Nope” I said, "but I like Coke and I like coffee, so I thought I’d give it a try,” was my genial response. Should have taken her “advice”. The official review: Very sweet – like a Coke/Espresso mix, and I nursed it for 90 miles. In the end, I did not finish it.
After 12 hours and three teeth-brushings I can still “taste” it.
The drive up was serene; no construction anywhere. I took Highway 10, which was the old route between the Cities and Fargo; it pierces a dozen small towns, each of which have their own character. Some have a solid contentment – the resorts and cabins feed a good economy, enough kids stay around after high school, and the downtown, while decades past its prime, still has a movie theater. If there’s a second floor, there might be something up there besides ghosts and rodents. When you stop at the Dairy Queen, you will be find a giggle of tween girls in the back chattering into cell phones; the new gas station has six kinds of coffee and the Wall Street Journal. You’re in the middle of civilization. Two minutes at 75 MPH, and you’re in the middle of nowhere. Which is how they like it, I imagine.
Left the wife and kids up at the cabin – in the good hands of Grandmama, Boppa, Aunty Amy, and new cousin Isaac. Left late enough (7:15 p.m.) that I flew home. New car got 35 mpg on the highway – very nice. Made only one stop – in Rice – for gas, bathroom, and snack. I selected a new Coca-Cola Blak - for a little “pick me up” - - $1.99 for 12 oz.
The girl behind the counter at the Holiday does not work for Coke. She sneered, “Have you ever tried one of those?” if I had set down a pack of chocolate covered grasshoppers or something equally strange.
“Nope” I said, "but I like Coke and I like coffee, so I thought I’d give it a try,” was my genial response. Should have taken her “advice”. The official review: Very sweet – like a Coke/Espresso mix, and I nursed it for 90 miles. In the end, I did not finish it.
After 12 hours and three teeth-brushings I can still “taste” it.
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