Nothin' But Drivin'

Nothing to report today except that Provo Utah is a lovely, clean town with nice people, sort of a desert version of Naples. Years ago, 1991 to be exact, when I retired from the police department, Theresa and I bought a 5th wheel RV and did a lap around the country. It took less than a week to realize that our lifelong home, Washington, D.C. and its Maryland suburbs, was not the best place to live. We did like working there, but now we had other options. On our trip around the country we made it our mission to create a short list of alternative places to live and we became rather philosophical about the reasoning. We learned that above all, it's the quality of the people that should define where you live, if you have the choice. Thomas Sowell, the economist, introduced me to the concept of human capitol. If we all started off the same, and I know we don't, some would rise to the top of society and some would become junkie layabouts. Human Capitol describes a person's personal worth, not financial, although those with high human capitol usually do very well; Mother Theresa had no money but high human capitol. Rather, this personal worth is gained by doing the correct, responsible thing, all your life. Do your homework, brush your teeth, mow your lawn, stay fit, work hard, remain honest, and one day you will have amassed great human capitol. We learned in that 1991 trip, that we could assess the level of human capitol quickly when we entered a town by counting the tattoo parlors and pawn shops, the number of beer cans on the side of the road and if you could get an order at McDonalds from a smiling friendly waitress in 30 seconds, with correct change. If you get that, you will also find good city governance, a reliable hospital, and honest auto mechanic, a thriving Habitat for Humanity program, a low crime rate, etc. This feature of a town, human capitol, trumps all other considerations, weather, economy, cost of living, etc. Provo, Utah now enters my short list of nice places to live. I'll tip you off if I find others.

The trip from Moab to Provo was uneventful and the countryside is beautiful but all we did today was drive. There was one moment's worth of excitement, when Theresa spotted a mystery animal crossing the road. It looked like a big hamster with a pointed nose. I did not get a close enough look to identify it but when the traffic came, it retreated to the safety of a parked car and sat underneath for a while. Theresa had to investigate so she crossed the street to try to spook the mystery varmint out into the open but it would not budge. It ran away after she left with the kind of gait an overweight hamster might have but it was too far away for me to identify. I hope we see another so we can solve this mystery.

Lastly, for those who travel, there is a wonderful web site, http://www.factorytoursusa.com/Index.asp where you can identify some interesting things to see in each state. Tomorrow, we may explore the Kenecot Copper Mine and the MotoSat Antenna factory. Both discovered using this web site.