Day 2 - Lake City, FL and Gila Monsters

Saturday mornin we wake to some fairly overcast skies, but no immediate threat of rain in the air. After a little breakfast, we pull out of the drive and head south on US-221…as Muthuh reluctantly heads north back towards the house. Cuz 'n I couldn't hardly believe it…we thought for sure we had him talked into joinin us the night before…but that musta been the beer talkin. Now, the last few times Cuz 'n I had been ride schemin, he had repeatedly mentioned a road down thru SC and GA he wanted to hit again...US-221. He had told me several times how it was one of them "forgotten" roads…a two-lane stretch of asphalt thru the country…sprinkled with lazy sweepers, and podunk towns devoid of traffic signals, and all but unknown to the masses of today's superslab generation. Ahhhh…perfection. And man, was he ever right on this 'un. Once we got outta the metropolis of Laurens, SC, I believe we musta rode for a couple hours without seein 'nuther vehicle. We rode thru farmland, forests, and passed thru many little towns that appeared as tho time had passed them by…often times, with not so much as a stop sign on their corners, and ramshackle buildings you would think not capable of housing a business, that is 'til ya ride by and see the "Open" sign hangin in the front window and folks millin 'bout inside.

We rode thru several of the above described scenes 'til we happened upon the Strom Thurmond Lake where we took our first butt break of the day. It was at this stop that my phone rings. I answer it, and there's Muthuh on the other end askin, "What are you doin answerin the phone?" I said, "Well, it is my phone isn't it?", as I laugh to the others, "It's Muthuh. How much ya wanna bet he's changed his mind 'bout joinin us?" Of course, that's when I hear, "OK smartass…just thought you'd be ridin is all." He then proceeds to tell us we're better off without him 'cause he's just blown a tire right in the middle of a curve, and how it took everything he could muster to keep Ol' Huck from hittin the ditch and messin up a perfectly good day. But, he IS ok, and just waitin on a tow. We wish him well, and confirm his opinion that we ARE better off not havin to wait on his ass…which, of course, elicited a muttered, "Asshole!" from our fortunate friend. Whew, nuther close call with a happy endin for 'nuther close friend. Hope this is a good omen.

Anyways, we saddle back up and head south. We followed US-221 to near'bout the end of GA, where we picked up US-441 S. to Lake City, FL…our first night in the land of gators. We had campin cabins waitin for us there at the Lake City Campground, and were delighted to find at least one of 'em had a screened porch to ward off the blood suckers…no, not the IRS…the mosquitoes. This place used to be a KOA, but turned private last year…so ya might recognize the cabins left over from its KOA days if'n yer so inclined to visit the place on yer way thru someday. We had covered 350 miles this day…all on backroads…startin out cool, but turnin progressively hotter the closer we got to FL…so we were happy to order pizza from a local delivery outfit…and settle in under the ceilin fan on the screened porch for the eve.

It was while we were waitin on the pizza that one of those "memorable" moments hit…ya know, they somehow work their way into every scooter ride. We're all sittin 'round the table on the porch…me drinkin my evenin Margarita…Cuz readin the paper…the sistahs makin fun of the men…the usual stuff. All the while, there's this lizard…or as Cuz would later call it, a Gila Monster…runnin up 'n down the 2x4 framework of the porch. I happen to glance up just in time to see this creature run down the frame to just above Cuz's shoulder…raise its head up, and puff out the red skin under its neck three times…as if to say, "Look out sucka…I'm comin ta git ya!" And then? Well, with what I'm sure was unintended comedic timing, the thing lunges onto Cuz's shoulder in a flash of fury. BWAHAHAHAA!!! Now, I'm not gonna say Cuz screamed like a li'l girl or anything…mostly 'cause I can't remember what that sounds like, and he'd probably kick my ass…but let's just say he quickly and noisely rearranged the furniture on that porch. Of course, by the time this was re-told to anyone else, it was a six-foot long Gila Monster with poisonous, two-inch fangs. heheeeeee I guess bein a true bud and all, I coulda given ole Cuz a warning of the "monster"'s intent…but it all happened so quickly I didn't have the chance. Honest! Well, that's my story, and I'm stickin to it.

The remainder of the night was uneventful, and we turned in at a decent hour so we could get an early start for the next day's ride. See ya for breakfast.