Murray Family Farms Fudge Rules!

Dis be da place if ya gotta sweet tooth, or if you like tradi-
tional fresh farm produce. Their homemade fudge rocks. Grab some, especially because the next 200 miles to travel will induce as trance like a state you'd ever be in without being on drugs. Made it up to Sacto in 9 hours even, which was pretty darn good considering I stopped 3 times. For ONCE LA traffic was a breeze, only 2 minor slow and goes for a few minutes. Unheard of. Apparently no-one stuck their head up their backside in consideration of my trip.

1st break in Lebec about 200 miles from my house, just after I got over the Tejon Pass north of LA. Denny's meal and gassed up in Lebec. Next HAD to stop at Murray Family Farms, in Mettler just 12 miles up the road. I stopped there last year, and knew the fudge was dynamite. Will pick up some produce on the way back.

(Orange and Vanilla Cream and Maple Chocolate - friend Christine is darned lucky I'm disciplined and didn't scarf all of it - as it was we ate a bit before I remember to take even this picture)

Once I got north of LA and over the mountains the next 200 miles gave no excitement except for a 10 second cheap thrill. It's only two lanes at that point each way on the Interstate 5 [the main drag between Hell-Lay and Sacto & San Fran .] About 100 yards ahead of me, a car swerved into the right lane and I instantly knew why. There was huge hunk of blown tire tread right in front of me, right in the middle of the lane. I had about 5 seconds to decide my option. Car behind me was a good 200-300 yards behind me...BUT there were TWO bigass(TM) trucks to my immediate right. Some space between them - but did I want to cut over there? Stop? OR do what I did which was drive half on the left shoulder and half in the lane without breaking stride.

My heart raced for about 5 seconds as I came around it and just prayed there was no loose debris on the shoulder. St. Anthony "found" me some good passing room. Naturally, I looked in the rear view mirror to check out traffic behind me....duh...did the guy behind me also change lanes once he saw what I did? Hell no...he was almost on top of it too, and dodged right last second. Did he think I was doing a stunt car move for his entertainment benefit? Whatever dude. Pay 'tention closer next time. I think "they" put blown out tires in that stretch of road just to keep you alert! (Truth be told, that area must be a "bitch" to police, because it is HARD to pinpoint to highway patrol just where that stuff is - it can be a good 20-30 miles on that stretch of road before you come to the "next exit.")

Took lots of "I am Camera" video clips with one arm straight and steady. Will try to put some up later this a.m. after I get some sleep. Made another stop at the cute town of Santa Nella, just about 120 miles south of Sacramento...and it was just about dark around 8 p.m. -- Coasted the rest of the way in to Sacto. Staying across from the old Governor's mansion the next block over from the theatre. Lincoln Steffens family also owned the house before it was a the governor's mansion. Ronald Reagan and Nancy were the last Ca. 1st family to live there. [It is a total fire trap!]

If you go to Sacramento, you'll find it's VERY annoying that in the center city section it's a real pain in the rear not be be able to readily find either a convenience store or a gas station. The politicos must have taken a lot of money from the restauranteurs not to have fast food outlets or 7/11s in that part of town. It's surreal. Managed to score my twelve pack of Cokes though - I'm not spending a buck plus a can for that stuff. It's like valet parking. I don't use it "on general principle" - unless under major duress. The patron in front of me was a real load-and-a-half - he managed to turn what should have been a 1 minute transaction into 5 minutes of street theatre. Thus making EVERYONE in line want to kill him. ("NO, you MORON, she doesn't have a pink cigarette lighter, take the damn red one and get out." - we all thought, but were too gutless to say.) When I am empress, I will make a rule that you get to kill ONE person every decade. NO questions asked. (JUST kidding "angels" and Father Blake.)

I'll see 1776 Thursday night and will be all fired up to answer that "bloodlust" thang we Americans are supposedly all het up about. [Hint: ponder the fact that most of us are descended from people who got the wrong end of the stick in some way in the "old country."]