Heading back from Vegas Well, after a few days in the desert sun, and the decadence of Las Vegas, we headed back across the Mojave to home. It's a wonderful long drive, especially on the evening of the summer solstice; we've driven twice through the desert on that day now. we love listening to audiobooks as we drive; this trip, it was Stephen King's Stationary Bike; Stephen King's The Man in the Black Suit; and Michael Crichton's State of Fear. We made it through all but the last half of State of Fear; we're listening to it in bits and pieces now.

One of the fun parts of the ride back is a stop at Andersen's Pea Soup, on I-5. In the exact middle of nowhere rises a Dutch-Germanic country farm, with a massive truck stop and old fashioned food and service. Marked by the windmill, it offers a fun, civilized retreat from the road with good food, genuine staff and great service. Can't recommend the decaf coffee, despite their claims to fame; even out waitress suggested we head into town to Starbucks for that.

Finally, after an 8 hour drive (traffic on I-5 was annoying), we arrived home: relaxed, refreshed, and happy. We'll be heading back to Vegas at some point soon, with family, but for now, we're happily back in Northern California.  ¶ 11:02 AM