West. Day 26.

July 4, 2016

Winnett to Grass Range, Montana

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The other-worldness of the high plains exploded my mind.

Life thoughts.

Point: Was this gypsy lifestyle I craved necessary to live my life "as art?" Wasn't seizing my unique path in life, rejecting societal norms and traditions enough?

It was a good thing Andy and I found each other after I quit my job years ago. No telling what I would have done if we hadn't.

Although I wondered--have I, all along, been merely balancing the gypsy I am against what I was brought up to be?

Was living on the road only a metaphor for living an authentic life?

From my B'76 journal:

7/5/76

What a fantastic rest day! We stayed at a KOA near the Royal Gorge on the 3rd. What a zoo! Rip-off city. Anyway--in the morning Len and Loree and I rode up (yes, up!) to the Gorge and rode right in for free! We beat the system. Anyway, it was beautiful but they ruined it. And it's such a bummer that the bridge has no purpose--the road goes over and turns around.

From there we came into Canon City--great! And participated in the town picnic. Watermelon-eating contests, sack races, and even a talent show. Ice cream social and the works. Had a great time. Then at night we went and saw fireworks--superb!

I really want to come back to this town someday--it's got over 9000 people so it's not such a small town. Oh well--

In 1976 I carried a Super8 movie camera and shot about an hour and a half of film. I mailed reels home to be developed. My family saw them before I did.

Here is a short clip to illustrate my B'76 journal entry: