Jim Crow Law

I talked to the bartender. She was a round woman from Birmingham, Alabama. I told her I cycled through Alabama, and it made her delighted. I asked her what it was like to live there before the Civil Rights movement. She told that they had different water fountains for whites and blacks, that she had to sit in the back seat in a bus and was asked leave the seat when there was no seat for white people..

I knew all about these facts, all the segregation and Jim Crow law.
But the history was dead to me. I couldn’t feel it. Just like the fact I know people die in Palestine but I don’t have much of sympathy for them.

But today, I could feel it. Her life became a part of my history.

Corny

I met Corny in a restaurant in Tupelo , Mississippi. She is round, looks about 42 years old and has beautiful smile. She told me that she never traveled in her entire life.

“I envy you. Even though you’re from Korea, and I’m an American, I’m sure you’ve seen my country much more than I’ve seen."

The biggest place she has ever been to was Memphis, TN, which was 3 hours away from the town.
I ordered a turkey sandwich. She brought me a fresh baked sandwich and a wooden bowl. “You see the salad bar over there?” she smiled,”help yourself”






3000 miles to NYC.

Dry County

Distance: 59 miles

weather: partly cloudy

difficulty: moderate

This is the most interesting town I’ve been to in USA. It’s a dry country. I didn’t know what it meant. I thought it was a town where it doesn’t rain much in summer.
- “We don’t sell alcoholic drinks”
- A 17 year old waitress said to me. I couldn’t believe my ears. No alcohol in the whole county. What do they do on the weekend?
- “Well, we go bowling, we have a movie theater.”
- It was 9 o’clock on Saturday. It was dead silent.
- You missed something, mister” she continued. “If you came here earlier, you could have seen the football match of the ~ middle school”

Gibson Guitar Factory

Gibson Factory, Memphis.

Memphis

Memphis, the hometown of Elvis.

Also, the hometown of Justin Timberlake. What's the odd.

Mississippi River

I camped at a small state park along the "Mighty River"

It was.... dark and no fun.

Tom, 42, a photographer who takes pictures of small insects, showed me some pics of 'flying scorpions'.

Tom Sawyer in Mighty River

Distance: 27 miles
weather: partly cloudy.

I’m right next to the Mississippi River!! And I’ll sleep over here! This feels great. I set up the tent next in the wood. I brought 1 gallon water,
The weather is nice, I checked forecast and it will be sunny the whole week.
I always dreamed of camping here, ever since I read “Adventure of Tom Sawyer” 150 years have passed by since Mark Twain wrote the wonderful story. But the nature couldn’t have been changed much. Trees after trees, far away from the towns. Noone can find me.

I used to hate sleeping in a sleeping bag. Bad memories from the time I spent in the US Army.

"On the road again"

On the Road again.

But, when are we actually 'off the road'?

On a bicycle, in a car, walking, talking, eating- no matter what,
we are on the road constantly.

Arkansas

long, silent roads,

Trees,

filthy gas stations

local newspapers

...Things I saw in Arkansas.

my memory of 911

911.
I was sitting on a bus, chatting to my girlfriend. I heard it from the radio the bus driver turned on. It must have been about 8 o’clock in the evening of 11th of November. I thought it was a new type of radio drama. Then I thought it was some sort of gimmick that someone did after the “Invasion from Mars” in the 30’s.
I found out what really happened when I got a phone from dad. He asked me if I was watching the news. I said no. He said I should come home immediately. He said “Something incredible happened”
By the time I got home the other building was crashed by the suicide plane.

Next morning, everyone was talking about 911. I felt sorry for the Americans who died on that day. I was scared. If I’m selected for the KATUSA program, do I have to go somewhere to fight against the terrorists?

I was scared, what happens if USA attacks North Korea. Will North Korea attack USA or attack South Korea?



I was confused, just like anybody else at that time.

Old Man and the Sea

I sat at McDonald's.
I had a menu "number 4".

I'm thinking, I should make "the old man and the sea" into a musical. It's going to be a romantic & action and r-rated musical.

I forgot why I started.
what a sad story.

Flat Tire and a broken vending machine

(55 miles, sunny, 59F, difficult)

“Lexus” started shaking hard when I rode it downhill 30 miles an hour. I sighed. I got a flat tire. In a small road, I took out some of the tools. Bike patch, bond, sapo. Tears fell from my eyes while I fixed the problem.

A flat tire cannot be even compared to a vending machine that swallowed your coins. It’s that desperate.

Maybe

Maybe, i shouldn't have started this.
If I stayed home, I might have thought everything was OK and just adjusted myself to my miserable life.

I have pedaled 1200miles since i started from LA.

It was a horrible day.

Rodeo in Ft.Worth

We watched Rodeo in Ft. Worth which is located about 30 miles from Dallas.
The arena was half full (or half empty). I thought rodeo is a sport where a cowboy gets on a bull and falls on ground eventually.
But there were many events other than that. Riding horses, catching a small cow with a rope, small children running to catch a calf.

It wasn’t exciting at all, but it was fun to watch Americans.

(this game seemed pretty dangerous to me, but the parents don't care about it in Texas)

(A Cowboy!!)

Hooter's in Dallas

Distance: -
Sunny

Dallas is big. The first thing we did was having lunch at the Hooter’s. Brad looked very happy. I don’t like a restaurant like this. They advertise that they have waitresses who are blond and have big boobs.

I went to the website of the hooter’s.

“The element of female sex appeal is prevalent in the restaurants, and the company believes the Hooters Girl is as socially acceptable as a Dallas Cowboy cheerleader, Sports Illustrated swimsuit model, or a Radio City Rockette. The Hooters system employs over 25,000 people - over 15,000 of which are Hooters Girls. The "nearly world famous" Hooters Girls are the cornerstone of the Hooters concept, and as part of their job, these all-American cheerleaders make promotional and charitable appearances in their respective communities. Hooters hires women who best fit the image of a Hooters Girl to work in this capacity. The chain hires both males and females to work in management and host, staff, service bar, and kitchen positions. The Hooters Girl uniform consists of orange shorts and a white tank top, short-sleeve or long-sleeve T-shirt. Pantyhose and bras are required.

Claims that Hooters exploits attractive women are as ridiculous as saying the NFL exploits men who are big and fast. Hooters Girls have the same right to use their natural female sex appeal to earn a living as do super models Cindy Crawford and Naomi Campbell. To Hooters, the women's rights movement is important because it guarantees women have the right to choose their own careers, be it a Supreme Court Justice or Hooters Girl.“

I’m just not used to watching such girls in public. I think I need to dine at hooter’s dozen more times until I feel really comfortable.