Stage 12: Las Vegas to /F/e/r/n/l/e/y/ Hawthorne
This morning, we decided that getting a bellman and getting the van to the front of the hotel was such an incredible hassle that it was easier for us to make three trips down to the parking garage with our luggage. As some of our stuff is in bankers boxes, I wish I'd brought the folding luggage cart. (The boxes are great on a cart, but troublesome to hand-carry.) We checked out and were on the road a few minutes after 10 AM.
We had no idea just how fatigued we both were until after Beatty, the start of the "long middle" of US-95 in Nevada. We limped in to Tonopah and considered calling it a day there, but felt slightly better after having sandwiches, so we pushed onward. This was a mistake. Both of us were having tremendous difficulty staying awake. We each tried spelling each other at the wheel, but it was frightening driving while having to keep shaking myself to stay awake. Lisa was literally in pain from the fatigue.
As we approached Hawthorne, 325 miles and about seven hours since we left Las Vegas, we decided to give up. The first motel on the south end of town is an America's Best Inn, and has decent rooms and about the price/quality of a Holiday Inn Express, including a wired internet connection. (There are many other cheaper properties; we're spoiled.) We bailed out 100 miles short of home. I got online and e-mailed my manager, who agreed that it was better to arrive alive. I expect to be home around Noon tomorrow. As soon as we could, Lisa went to bed. I'm going to do so as well.
A bunch of things have happened online today, including another Hugo Controversy. I don't have time to address them right now and I'm too exhausted to give them proper attention. But I will once again say that one should never assume malice or conspiracy when there are other reasonable explanations.
We had no idea just how fatigued we both were until after Beatty, the start of the "long middle" of US-95 in Nevada. We limped in to Tonopah and considered calling it a day there, but felt slightly better after having sandwiches, so we pushed onward. This was a mistake. Both of us were having tremendous difficulty staying awake. We each tried spelling each other at the wheel, but it was frightening driving while having to keep shaking myself to stay awake. Lisa was literally in pain from the fatigue.
As we approached Hawthorne, 325 miles and about seven hours since we left Las Vegas, we decided to give up. The first motel on the south end of town is an America's Best Inn, and has decent rooms and about the price/quality of a Holiday Inn Express, including a wired internet connection. (There are many other cheaper properties; we're spoiled.) We bailed out 100 miles short of home. I got online and e-mailed my manager, who agreed that it was better to arrive alive. I expect to be home around Noon tomorrow. As soon as we could, Lisa went to bed. I'm going to do so as well.
A bunch of things have happened online today, including another Hugo Controversy. I don't have time to address them right now and I'm too exhausted to give them proper attention. But I will once again say that one should never assume malice or conspiracy when there are other reasonable explanations.