SOUTH DAKOTA!

Ba-ba-bad-bad!!!!! Ba-ba-bad-bad!!!!! Lands!!!!  (Mom, that’s not a song.)

I was soooo looking forward to visiting South Dakota. I had such fond memories of when I did summer stock at the Black Hills Playhouse a gazillion years ago.  I recall such an exciting summer of theatre, buffalo, new friends and beautiful country!!  I couldn’t wait to share it with Curly J.  Now, we had just come from Wyoming and the gorgeousness of the Great Tetons and Yellowstone.  Even the long (VERY LONG) drive across Oregon did not damper our visions from Wyoming.  So, we finally get to S.D. and our first stop was Jewel Cave. I love caves and was very excited about exploring this one.  We get to the ticket office and they tell us the elevator to the caves is broken and all tours are cancelled for the day.  Bummer!!!!!  (The first actually noted ‘bummer’ in the trip!)

So off we go to see Crazy Horse.  They charge us $11 each to enter and bombard us with everything touristy and cheeky.  I did appreciate the Native American museum/artifacts area, but everything else was just crappy tourist stuff. (It sucked.) I know I know, I sound so negative, which is unlike me, but I have officially turned into a National Park Snob!!!!  I am completely jaded after the Grand Canyon and Great Tetons, that I did not appreciate being bombarded with trinkets that are not even made here.  So we finally make it to where we can view Crazy Horse, which you can hardly make out anything…part of the full face is done.  I was not impressed.  (We are in no way belittling its cause and what it stands for – it just was not at all impressive.)

And then you can’t even hike close to it because of the blasting area, so to get close you have to pay extra to take the bus which will drive there.  Now maybe if there was some blasting or something going on I would have enjoyed it, but it was a waste of time.  Save your money.  (Seriously just google it, or stare at these pictures we’ve posted.) Julia and I did share a moment when we were making a pit stop in the restroom before we left and the bathroom was just being cleaned.  The two gentlemen cleaning it must have been around 40 and late 50’s.  Both veterans.  They were sweet and smiling and we shared a laugh about something silly.  Seems I have seen lots of vets working at the national parks and memorials.  My heart just swells a little and I wish I could take everyone’s hurt away.  Maybe they have no hurt.  Maybe I’m just feeling so grateful that they would risk their lives for me. So thank you…to all the brave men and women.  I hope our country works harder at taking care of all the vets who do come back wounded…they deserve that.  Okay, I digress…

Next stop was Mount Rushmore.  Definitely more impressive and you get to take a nice hike up lots of stairs to get close. We both enjoyed that and the museum that explained how they actually did the carvings.  Impressive.  Worth the visit.

By this time we are ready to eat.  So we find a hotel in Keystone, SD.  Very touristy little town, but lots of fun shops to look around in.  After reorganizing the car (we definitely packed too much stuff – my prediction of claustrophobia on the trip has fully revealed itself) and a quick work out, we went to search for food.  It was 9:00 p.m. so not a lot open, but we found the Red Ruby Restaurant.  A cute little country, western bar decorated with guns, animal heads and of course the waitresses had little outfits with fringe and a red garter.  The best part was the two man band playing and singing some good ole country music…some Johnny Cash, Hank Williams and original tunes.  True country redneck boys just singing their hearts out and we loved every minute of it.  (Mom did, I just support the arts.) And looking around there were all these cute older couples just tapping their feet, fingers and nodding their heads to the country tunes.  All smiling!  So cute.  Good food, good drink, good music!!  What’s not to love!!!!  (Maybe the creepy animal heads on the wall…)

The next morning we headed out to the Badlands.  They were kind of like The Petrified Forest…we were just going to drive through not expecting much and POW!!!!  We are accosted with amazing beauty!!!!  More crazy curvy roads and the gorgeous rock formations and prairies!!!  We see a field with tons of little dirt mounts and these cute little critters (they’re called prairie dogs Mom) scurrying all over the place!!!  We drive through taking lots of pics and wowing at the mountain goats just hanging out on these narrow ridges of the rock formations!!!  Finally we get to an area where we can hike.  The trail started on the rocky dry desert rocks and mountains…then winds its way through and we are in the prairie.  No one else was near us so when we stopped walking you could hear a symphony of birds chirping, frogs croaking, some kind of rattly thing (Definitely SNAKES), the wind blowing….  It was peaceful, warm (finally) and quite nice (except for the rattlesnake sounds).  We hiked for a little over an hour and finally felt that South Dakota had redeemed itself!!!  The Badlands are soooo worth the visit, but the state as a whole is not on my top 10 list.

Lots of driving to do on this leg of the journey.  We are power listening through my 12 CD set of Mike Dooley’s Infinite Possibilities which has given us so much deep stuff to talk about. (I have no choice in the matter. We have shared the front space of a car for like three weeks, there’s nowhere to run.) I’m planning on teaching some workshops when I get home….about choosing the positive things in life…love, joy, fun, adventure.  I hope some of you might want to join me. (All of you would be fools to pass on my mother’s inspiration.)

I can’t believe our Curly Adventure is coming to an end.  I miss Luke and my loved ones and clients and classes and all….but the month has really flown by.  Savoring all the last moments that we have.  Off to Wisconsin to stay a couple nights with friends.  Can’t wait!!!

I appreciate all of you following us out there…sooooo much!!  And your comments and notes mean so much to us! (Seriously, it brings me to tears the comments and notes that have been given to us. We’re happy to have brightened some mornings!)

Love,

Curly Mom