peter brierton

Feb 5, 20237 min read

Day 13. "I need a cup of coffee. She needs a couple dollars change." (artist name anyone!?).

Saturday January 21, 2023.

Its a country song suggested by Joan. So you can't guess OK?

Geez I fell behind in my daily blabbing. I mean blogging. I do get kinda windy here huh? I literally could write for hours sometimes. Especially in sunny 70 degree weather wow. So much goin' on to put down on paper. So much in my head anyway. And not paper actually - but somewhere out in that cyberspace nebulae I spoke about in some other long ago blog in a state far far away.. But sometimes my mind doesn't shut off. It seems to enjoy talking to myself continuously. Ever notice that? I mean most times I'm nice to myself. I can be my own best friend. Like a ManDog. Part man? Part dog? Own best friend? SpaceBalls the Movie? Never mind. But see what I mean!!? How did I get over here in the movie genre?

I woke up at 6:00am in Gulfport Mississippi. Right outside the "Perk"coffee shop.

Perkfect : )

Well I thought so.

They open at 8:00.

Say what!!? Isn't the morning half over by then? Maybe that's why there is a lady with a lot of clothes on looking in the garbage pail near my jeep in front of the coffee shop? Like a lot of clothes. Maybe four layers of outfits. She's probably super thirsty for an iced latte and since they're closed is looking for someone's throwaway!! She is mumbling a lot. Maybe this wasn't such a safe spot to park. There was also that guy at 2am holding a conversation with himself too. Kinda like me. His mind was all over the place too. But kinda angry. And he talked out loud. And he answered himself! Wow he's a better ManDog than me...maybe he'll make the sequel.

So I drove to the beach to kill some time for the shop to open. It was a dark brooding kinda morning...cloudy, really cool and at any moment going to drip some of that mood all over me. This shoreline does not speak to me like the Florida panhandle ...mostly an industrial shipping area kinda feel. There are metal cargo like structures in the distance and the town itself resemble the mood of the skies...

Made it back to the shop by 8:15 and had the best egg/avocado/sweet jalapeño roll sandwich ever! The place and the sandwich had a nice down home southern feel to it...even some of that loving Christian vibe with different signs n things for sale about the store.

I blogged for nearly 2 hours. Yeah between uploading photos and typing and publishing it takes awhile. Albeit I was drooling over a sandwich too.

Finished up and set the GPS for Baton Rouge first - on the way to Galveston.

I had decided to do seaside towns back somewhere when this duck was stuck in minus three windchills in Tennessee or something... so following the coast line here was my route on the way to get to the next "I know somebody here" stop in Dallas TX.

Now Baton Rouge could be a blog in itself. But man I may lose even more readership if I describe some of the events that went down. I'll keep it PG.

Long story short...I found a quick bite in a place called Schiltz and Giggles. Yes, I picked it because of it's name. I am a total sucker for marketing. They could've been serving Rocky Mountain Oysters and I still woulda went in just 'cuz of the name. Well they almost were serving something...lets say similar? I mean the place was packed with people dressed in hot pink. Men in pink jackets, women in pink heels with clashing pink scarves and these tiny little pink top-hat looking things...like a party but not the kind of party I woulda been invited to? Guess I invited myself? And this one woman...well she placed something on the bar, right next to where I was eating, that definitely falls into the toy category, adult toys mind you, and I nearly fell off the chair.

Check Please!

I walked around town - to get a different flavor - and I had actually never been on or near a levee before. I found that kinda interesting...with the flooding that took place in and around here many storms ago. Kinda cool to see the huge bank built up defending the town. Seems like a tremendous idea and a ton of work to accomplish...yet I think I do the same thing everytine I go to the beach and build a fort near the water..."Build a wall quick!" we always yelled... "keep the waves out!" Kinda the same idea no? Like the army corps of engineers musta spent a lotta time at the beach when they were kids. There's some pics of the levee below for you...and for my nephew Kavan who wanted to know If I had seen the Mississippi River yet. I did now...here ya go dude!

I spent another few hours driving...in the rain....then, in the dark in the rain....then, in the dark in the rain in a construction zone for like a hundred miles. You know the kind where the lanes all shift with concrete barriers n stuff? No lane lines to speak of? Cars kinda meandering their way along...? Man - just super focused for hours...beats you up after a while.

But the one visual while driving that kinda blew me away was the 'bridge' that I was on for what seemed like a hundred miles also. Just a raised roadway...over miles n miles of what I wouldn't call swamp because it was more like a forest with water in it. There were pine trees with just their tops sticking out from the water. So strange looking to me...(some pics while moving at 70mph below. I didn't take them the ducks did) (no ducks were harmed in the making of this blog either). (Safety first). Speaking of ducks (see the pics) they really seemed to enjoy the rain as evidenced by those near painted on smiles the entire drive. Like they kept asking me to stop and get out so they could play in the puddles. Just looking at me like "can-we can-we huh dad!?"

The last surprise after four hours of lane switching was, all of a sudden, popping up in front of me - a ferry stop! Right near Galveston where I'm going to stay for the night. Literally I pull up and the road ends. Shouldn't Siri have told me about this!? Maybe she did. Was she yapping at me while I was lost in thoughts of derailleurs and mountain trails? I mean I am a man. Guess it's possible? I don't listen? Wait! Don't add that to my bio. Please. Still wanna keep up the "I'm a good catch" thing goin'. K? Free blog access for two years I promise if you keep it between us...cuz odds are very few eligible woman will be reading about bikes n ducks n stuff here.

But what a cool little added adventure to the trip the ferry turned out to be. Just a few minutes hop over to the Galveston area which I could immediately tell felt closer to a home feel again. Although pitch black - I could feel the beach off to my left as I drove around looking for a place to park this hotel bed for the night again.

No hotel to speak of and no campsite available either so I found a kind of secluded spot in a Kroeger Supermarket parking lot that I'll call home for tonight.

Nitey nite.

Inside

My thought of the drive. When the outside journey gets a little boring...like driving for hours on end with no one to talk to but smiling ducks. There's always the journey inside!

The journey outside will take you to different places...new sights and feels. Well the one inside is similar! There are always things to tend to on the inside...emotions and such. Most times I won't notice these but if you're quiet enough and actually take a look...there's a lot goin' on in there! Even something as simple as a memory of a lost brother that can use tending too...may pop up...or a thought of a mom and her journey as she gets older. As these arise within us we can actually heal old hurts or grow deeper in things like patience or love for others...without having to journey physically anywhere...

Outside

Rainy dreary day for sure...all day. Great day to travel.

Upside

Spotify. Or any streaming music service I would say. I use Spotify. I mean a few bucks a month and I can listen to any artist, any album...for hours! SO good to hear all the songs artists write that don't get any airplay...And discover knew artists and all their work without having to physically go to a store and buy an album. Wow! Did we really have to do that not to long ago!!?

downside

Two things:

Hearing the conversations of those that live more 'on the street' as I am living there somewhat also lol. Whether to themselves, or as tonight - an argument that lasted over an hour between a man and woman. Maybe a couple. But very angry. And loud. Sad and an aspect of street life I've never felt so immersed in before.

Second!

I have a place to pee now...but...well...Walmart did not have a portable potty...so...the number after number one...is a story for tomorrows blog.... : )

Every which way but east!

Making headway west! From Gulfport MS to Galveston TX. Texas definitely geives me the feel of being west now. Just the name alone...

Perk Coffee shop!!

Gulfport sand....

Baton Rouge Schlitz and Giggles (and God knows what else!!)

For my buddies doing a 'dry' January. : )

Near New Orleans...didn't call my name to stop in....

The suprise ferry spot that Siri forgot to...well...ensure I heard about.

The levees in Baton Rouge

The levee and also an industrial kinda feel to the waterfront....Baton Rouge

This was my overnight spot. The Perk Coffee shop is just to the left of the jeep. This spot was was real dark too until about midnight...when the one streetlamp that was out...perfectly giving me a darker spot to knock-off...came on! Hello!