"Let's stop in front of that graffiti!" Kim said on our way to breakfast. We had gotten up early to drive the 10 hours it was going to take us to get to Missouri and, as usual, I was hungry. We stopped at a little café for food and just outside there were two walls that stretched around a hidden parking lot, covered in art. We posed, took photos, and laughed until we couldn't breathe.
"Do you want to go into that Flea Market?" I was still driving, but I was getting tired on the road and Kim could tell. We pulled off at the next exit. Walking inside we found one of the most extraordinary hidden treasures. Shelves of trinkets lined the walls as we walked in, old toys were arranged upright as we wandered down the next aisle. Every turn presented a memory from a past era. We put on hats and danced around, we dressed up and played with toys, we found fun things to take back to our friends and to take home with us.
"I'm sure there's somewhere to eat this way." Kim and I had stopped at a gas station for lunch, but I was super hungry. So I pulled off at the next exit we came across, assuming there would be somewhere to eat within a few miles. After driving for 20 minutes we hadn't seen anything but a few farm houses, Kim looked up places to eat. We finally found somewhere. Another 20 minutes away. It was a small diner, with broken lights and a gravel parking lot. We stepped inside and almost ran into a table seating six men, with southern accents so thick they hung in the air, reminiscing about their high school football days. Kim and I took a seat at one of the remaining three tables as the sole waitress came over with menu's. The selection was slim, but I will stand by the fact that it was the best cheese omelet I have ever eaten.
"My phone just changed over!" We had finally crossed over the Eastern Standard Time zone and into the Central Standard Time zone. We called our friend Leslie, who we were staying with, to let her know we were only about an hour away. She sounded ecstatic and we couldn't wait to get there and be done driving for a bit. Since I didn't tell Destiny that Kim was coming (because we wanted her to be a surprise to Destiny) we were going to have Leslie pick Kim up and we would all meet for dinner for the big surprise!
"There's no way this is it." Kim and I stared at the building in front of us. We were officially at the small Bible college, and we were sure we were at the wrong place. Aaron, one of our mutual friends, came out to greet us and showed us around the 5 building campus while we waited for Leslie. Kim and I talked to Aaron until Leslie came to pick up Kim. Leslie arrived to the joyous screams of Kim and I, and along with Aaron, we caught up. Leslie and Kim left right as Destiny came back, but since Destiny was too tired to come to dinner, I drove to meet Kim, Leslie, and Leslie's dad.
"Y'all have to have their salsa!" Leslie is about as Mid-West as they come, and her accent sounded strange to my ear. I realized how long it had been since I had last seen her and how much I missed her. The four of us ate some of the most filling Mexican food I've ever had, and Leslie drove back to Destiny's college, with Kim and I following close behind.
"You guys got lost four times?" Aaron asked, making a pizza with ranch instead of tomato sauce. We were sitting in the little café area in Central Christian College of the Bible surrounded by Aaron, Destiny, and a couple of their friends. Aaron was working behind the counter as I recounted our drive up. Kim sat with Destiny and her Fiancé, Ian, talking about their wedding plans. Destiny had been super excited to see Kim, and the two had been talking since we got back. By midnight Leslie told us that she was getting tried, and she drove us back to her house, where we promptly fell asleep.
