Day 25, June 12th 2008, beginning in Idabel, Oklahoma

We awoke to some horrific, terrible news. The restaurant was not open for breakfast. We love a big hearty breakfast, pretty disappointing. They had some complimentary doughnuts out, so Paul and I each ate 4 to get us ready for the day. Healthy.

We made a long a ride into Hugo to start the day. On the way we saw a dead baby horse in one of the farms. It was pretty sad, but interesting to see all of the adult horses circled around it in mourning. Once in Hugo, we ate at a place called Dos Amigos. Oh man I love Italian, but clearly this was Mexican, so I guess that's unrelated. We would be staying with friends of Paul's the following night, who had moved from Connecticut to Oklahoma City. I suggested Paul contact them while we ate lunch to make sure they were ready for our arrival. Paul's mother had given Paul their phone number an estimated 5 times up to that point. Did Paul take it down anywhere? No. I challenged him saying that I could find their phone number faster than he could. After "unintentionally" giving me the wrong spelling of their last name, I was still able to find it faster than he calling his mother, using the internet on my cell phone. Swelling with pride, we were still unable to get a hold of the Hutchens, the family we would be gracing with our sweaty presence the following night.

We rolled on 26's to Antlers. There we stopped at a small grocer where we got some delicious watermelon and some drinks. There happened to be an attractive worker there that Paul took a notice to. It was time to build some confidence, after his previous episode that landed him with some spare ribs (not entirely unsuccessful I guess). After inhaling a mouthful of succulent watermelon, Paul noticed the young woman heading back into the store with a shopping cart. Springing into action, he decided he would be chivalrous and hold the door for her. As he attempted to do this, he began choking on his watermelon, and the door swung in so he could hardly hold it for her. It ended in her having to open the door for herself and Paul nearly spitting his mouthful of watermelon as she laughed at his puny existence. It was wonderful. Strike two. We decided then and there that Paul's new nickname would be Rico Suave.

Mcgee Creek state park, our destination was only about 15 miles away. Stopping at a gas station right before the park we figured we'd try get some stuff for the evening. After speaking to the nice owners for a while, they offered for us to stay on their land next to the store for free, instead of going the mile into the park and paying the fee.

We thought it sounded like a great idea, but headed into the park first just to see it. It was a beautiful lake. I went for a shower in the lake while Paul was on the phone. There were maybe 30 people there swimming and having a good time. It was a really nice spot and the water was nice and cool.

The sun was descending, so we headed back to the convenience store to set up camp. With the lovely sounds of frogs croaking we were ready for bed. A nice cool night, and some comfortable grass made for a lovely camping experience.

Life was good.