On May 4, 2020 after listening to the increasing death tolls of citizens around the globe, and hearing that my Sioux Falls governor hadn’t put any preventive measures in place to minimize the spread of the virus like other state governors such as stay-at-home orders and business closures even after discovering Smithfield, a South Dakota pork plant caused the state to become the only north-central epicenter for the coronavirus pandemic.
This is when I made the decision to reserve a one-way rental car and drive to Sioux Falls to retrive my pickup truck from storage and return to Arizona rather than make my usual exodus in my RV home in June and remain until September. However, situations in Sioux Falls had changed this tradition as well. Now, my preferred rv home of residence is Bureau of Land Management (BLM) properties, canyons, forests, and airy out-of-the way campgrounds until this disease is contained.
When I mentioned my plan to travel home to retrieve my vehicle to a new founded friend. I was floored when she said, “I’ll go with you.” Although, I have only known Debbie and her husband, John for a year; they have always treated me like a family member and have supported me through some offer times in my life. Wherein people I have considered friends for the last 20 to 50-years have not been as kind. Further, I was a little hesitant about taking this trip to Sioux Falls although I travel from place-to-place like a gypsy on a regular basis. However, occurrences in this country under this current president upon taking office in 2017, and the February 2020 pandemic indicates the America I once knew is being extinguished.
The arrival of this pandemic and speed at which it claimed the lives of a hundred-thousand or more American citizens (young and old) occurred because Donald Trump, disbanded the pandemic response team in May 2018, sixteen months after assuming the position as president of the United States. This team was established in 2015 by former President, Barack Obama’s National Security Advisor and consist of white house personnel, whose duties were to advise the president on national security and foreign policy matters.
As the pandemic sped around the globe, the president and his band of corrupt republican party nitwits were made aware of its existence in February 2020. Rather than make American citizens aware of this nearing death treat, nothing was done by this president to insure as many lives as possible would be saved in accordance with best practices used during past pandemics. However, no preparedness instructions were issued to American citizens, medical facilities, nursing homes, etc. So, this country and its citizens were caught off guard and unprepared when the Pandemic arrived in March.
Once Americans begin hearing about the coronavirus and people begin to die by the thousands or were being hospitalized around the globe worldwide, this disease was no longer a republican party and president secret. It was at this time, the president decided to talk about the virus and downplaying its probable effects on American citizens by characterizing this virus as a type of flu and sugar-coating its deadly affects with crazy comments such as, “It’s going to disappear”. “We have it under control”. “It’s going to be fine.”
The arrival of this pandemic and speed at which it claimed the lives of a hundred-thousand or more American citizens (young and old) occurred because Donald Trump, disbanded the pandemic response team in May 2018. This team was established in 2015 by former President, Barack Obama’s National Security Advisor and consist of white house personnel, whose duties were to advise the president on national security and foreign policy matters.
Now, here I sit on my couch trying to determine based on situations around the world what my girlfriend and I might need or what types of problems we may encounter during this road trip.
I had many questions floating around in my head such as (1) What states are under quarantine orders, (2) will service stations be open or closed, (3) will rest areas be open or closed, (4) will interstate and county road traffic be heavy or sparse, (5) will hotels and motels be open to travelers, (6) how easy would it be to contact AAA and get roadside service if needed, (7) Should we drive during the day and check into a hotel/motel before dark, or drive straight through only stopping for gas and bathroom breaks, (8) Where do we eat, restaurants, diners or fast food eateries, and if one of us become ill are local hospitals accepting travelers.
Based on research, I determined the types of operating procedures that were in effect to prevent the spread of the virus in every state we will past through on our way to Sioux Falls SD which are as follows: (1) Quartzsite, Arizona (cities declare state of emergencies. Order close bars, restaurants, and indoor facilities), (2) New Mexico (out of state travel not recommended; self-isolate for 14-days upon return. Residents must stay at home; only leave for outings necessary for health, safety, or welfare, etc.), (3) Colorado (governor issued an executive Order declaring a state of disaster emergency due to coronavirus. Social distancing recommended. Restaurants, bars, theaters, and gyms are close, (4) Kansas (governor declared state of emergency after 1st covid-19 death), (5) Nebraska (grocery stores, pharmacies, hardware/home improvement stores, restaurants etc. are open), and (6) Sioux Falls SD (a state of emergency was not declared in my state at this time).
As a result, I decided we would picnic from Arizona to South Dakota in parks, a few rest areas, and roadside pull-off areas along the highway. Further, service stations where we stop for gas would also be the bathroom stop for us and my dog and vice versa. I brought a cooler and stocked it with sandwich meats, cheese, mayonnaise, ketchup, and muster including bread, and chips. As well as fruit, Gatorade, water, and dog food for my germen shepherd. We even made sandwiches for breakfast before getting back on the highway which turned out to be beneficial since hotels were no longer offering free-breakfast to guests; microwaves and refrigeration’s were no longer available in some hotels because keeping these items sanitized was a problems.
How we felt and what we saw during our trip. I am sure you can readily recall what your town looked like during the activation of the stay-at-home orders which closed businesses putting employees out of work. Imagine what this must look like nation-wide.
We travelled for hours on interstates and county roads which contained sparse to no traffic. Mile after mile of construction corns and work vehicles abandoned on the shoulder and in median strips. It was an eerie feeling to be the only persons driving on these roads. We never saw any state troopers, though sparse traveler’s shot-pass during 90 to 100 or more miles an hour.
I said, “Deb, this trip looks and feels like we are in the Twilight Zone. I have been thinking, a person could speed up on us fast from the rear, knock this 2020 Volkswagen off the highway into a ravine; kidnap or kill us on either of these sparsely travelled roadways. Law enforcement and/or traveler’s would not know until highway workers return to work and stumble upon our vehicle that something terrible had happened.” Please be quiet Edith, you could have kept that thought to yourself because this trip is creepy enough as it is”, she replied.
This is when I realized, the deep mental thought and realization of isolation due to the coronavirus’s hold on this country had previously formed in my mind’s eye which caused my hesitation to do this trip alone.
Small, medium and some large towns appeared to be abandon. There were no people on sidewalks, front-porches, driving on city streets, working in fields, or vehicles crowded on mall parking lots. Closed service stations offered self-service for credit card users. Some rest areas were completely closed; others were open with limited to no facilities. While a few offered full services (restroom facilities, covered picnic tables, snack machines, dog parks and walking trails).
It was getting late when we entered Gallup, New Mexico. A sign on the hotel door, directed us to the nearby train-type diner to register for a room. I was greeted by a friendly server. “Hi, the sign on the hotel door directed me here. What happened to the hotel staff and citizens?” This city is under quarantine, so only three businesses are open which is this diner, the service station next door and a family-owned grocery store-up the street and around the corner is opened to provide service to traveler’s passing through our city. Therefore, everyone else is at home. If you would complete this registration form, I will check you in and direct you to your room, he replied. We found our room, had sandwiches, Deb walked Dakota; I took a shower and went to bed with my left leg elevated.
The evening prior to our arrival in Sioux Falls, I called the reservation desk at My Place Hotel where I reside for 30-days in 2018 before deciding to purchase a mobile home as my permanent full-time residence. The front desk confirmed a room would be available whenever I arrived. Our first stop in Sioux Falls was at Wal-Mart to purchase microwavable foods for breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner for the next three-days. Then we checked into our hotel room which had a full kitchen.
On Thursday upon arriving at the storage facility I said, “Deb I am so glad to get rid of that darn Volkswagen. This was a painful and miserable trip for me because my left knee swells and remain in that painful condition until we checked into our hotel room for the night”. Uh huh. I knew you were in a lot of pain, but you were a real trooper during this entire trip. That is way I always walked Dakota whenever we stopped to eat or take a bathroom break. I am shorter than you and that Volkswagen was uncomfortable to me as well. Now that this leg of this trip is over. I can say, “Seeing you struggle to lift and get your left leg into that Volkswagen remind me of the movie, Police Academy. When Shaquille O’Neal ripped the driver seat from a vehicle too small for him to get into and threw it on the side of the road. Then, he sits in the backseat to drive the vehicle, she said. We both laughed.
On Friday morning, I drove the rental vehicle to the airport and returned it. Deb followed me in my truck. We visited Falls Park which is my favorite place to relax and reflect on life. As well as a brief drive through of Sculpture Walk. When we packed my F-150 pickup truck on Sunday morning and pulled out of the hotel’s parking lot we were all smiles. Our trip back to Quartzsite, AZ was a breeze and very comfy.