Ray and I are driving through Childress, Texas right now. I’m typing on my computer in the car because I know I’ll be too tired to write once we arrive in Sherman this evening.

We started at 6 am from Grants, New Mexico where it was 23 degrees this morning. We have made good time and had lunch at our favorite spot in Amarillo, Eat Rite Health Food Store and Cafe. For those who don’t know about Eat Rite, it’s a family-owned establishment that has been going strong for 70 years. The couple who run it, along with several of their kids who are there too, are literally the healthiest-looking people I know. Ray and I have been stopping by there for years and the original owners are a walking testament to the whole concept of eating “rite.” We love this stop because their little cafe has delicious food that’s also healthy and they make homemade sweets, many of which are sweetened with honey or agave syrup. Today did not disappoint.

It’s a bright and sunny day, and if all goes well, we’ll arrive by early evening. I’m enjoying seeing the wide-open light blue sky against the beige, green, and brown colors of the winter fields. As soon as we cross the border, I always feel as if I am back home. Between the “Drive Friendly” signs and the slow drawl of the people in the travel stops, I feel back in the land of my roots. I am more of a Californian with what some of my Texas friends call my “left coast” attitude, but I love this land and people and am happy to be returning yet again.

Here’s to life, love, and travel. It’s pretty hard to go wrong with that combination!