I drove west until I hit interstate 95 South, a big, major freeway. Flat for the most part, I could make good time. Traffic was light. Because the rising sun was coming from my left, it was not much of distraction. The heater in my VW bug did not provide much heat.  Neither did the sun. The few stations I could pick up on my car radio were either country and western or evangelists.

Being 1964, there were not many gas stations or restaurants close by the freeway.

I drove until hunger forced me off the freeway in search of a restaurant and gas. I found a Dixie Diner not too far off the interstate. The place was toasty warm and they had a cheap but hardy breakfast. Then I filled my tank at the gas station right close by.  Now warmed up and recharged, I was ready to rack up some serious miles.

I drove pretty much all day. As evening approached, I found a cheap motel with a diner attached.

After dinner, I crashed so I could get an early start next morning.

I overslept. Guess I was tired. I had about 500 miles to Miami Beach, Florida. The road was really flat so I made good time except for some rain. When I say some rain, that was a bit of an understatement. The weather was hot and super muggy. The sky clouded over rapidly and it began to rain. You know you can tell how hard it’s going to rain by the size of the drops? Well the first drops were huge and started hitting my front hood and windshield with loud smacks. Then the sky just opened up. The only word I can think of to describe it is torrential. It rained so hard I literally could not see the end of my front hood. I was already in the far right lane, so I just pulled over, stopped and listened to the massive drops pound the roof of my car.  I had never experienced rain like that in my life. It lasted about 15 or 20 minutes then it was over just like that. The sun came even hotter than before and the humidity was oppressive.

I reached the Miami area right about dark. I kept driving and navigating over a bunch of smaller and smaller bridges that seemed to connect a whole series of islands. After what seemed like a long time, I found myself at the end of a street right next to a big hotel and the beach. It was dark but the hotel was brightly lit up.

I got out of my car. I could not believe how hot it was. It must have been over 80 degrees and it was super muggy. My clothes were already sticking to me. I walked across the beach toward the water. I took off my shoes and socks and waded into the ocean which was as flat as a lake. The water felt like bath water it was so warm. The water and the air all felt the same – sticky hot and wet.  It was getting close to 10 pm and there was not a breath of wind. Here I was standing in bath water on a nearly deserted beach late at night in front of a garishly lit up hotel. The whole day and this night seemed bizarre.

I found a 2 lane highway that took me due west. It ran directly across and through the Florida Everglades. The air was absolutely still.  A non-stop cloud of insects of all sizes smashed into my windshield. Even at 60 miles an hour, there was no relief from the sultry heat. Approaching midnight, there hardly another car on the road. My feeble headlights barely penetrated the muggy darkness. I stopped once to pee. The night was filled with insect sounds. The night felt like it must be like in a real jungle. The air had a thick green smell of rotting vegetation. With no other cars, I felt nervous. I got back in my car and drove non-stop until I hit some semblance of civilization on the opposite coast of Florida.

Florida was flat as a billiard table. It seemed there was water everywhere. It rained off and on as I drove due north. It rained so hard that water was coming out of the heating vents near the floor of my car.

I drove till I got to Tampa. I wanted to escape the sultriness. I finally spotted a little motel with a vacancy sign still on. I checked in. There was a refrigerator with some sandwiches and some soft drinks. I bought 2 sandwiches and 2 bottles of soft drink. In my room, I wolfed down one of the sandwiches – tuna, I think – and polished off one of the soft drinks. Well after midnight, I crashed on top of the bed with my damp clothes still on.

A knock on my door woke me. It was check-out time. I ate the other sandwich as I gathered up my stuff.  Back in the car and on the road again, I drank the now warm orange soda. I drove due north to hit the interstate going west.  I kept my eye out for a gas station to fill up and wash the thick film of smashed bugs on my windshield.

The last day or two seemed bizarre. And I was about to drive through the deep south. This was a world like I had never encountered before. My immediate goal was a Dixie Diner type place for breakfast and a gas station to fill up. Then it was due west.

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As always, I wish you and your family the very best of health.
Joe