A Way West

by Peter Westaway

  Chapter Nine

  “I’m starting to get really hungry. McDonald’s fatty little breakfasts never seem to fill me up much. Any of their food for that matter. And if I ever eat enough of it that I do feel full, I feel real gross. I hope we see them pretty soon so we can look into finding some lunch.” Jeff looks over to Monica.

  Monica doesn’t look back at Jeff as she is watching carefully for the Mustang to appear, “Ya well you should of had the pancakes like I did, instead of those McMuffin things. And you’re forgetting that they now have almost healthy food with their various salads. But for sure you’re right about their disgusting hamburgers and greasy fries...Yes! There they are! Let’s go!”

  They both jump up from the grass they had been sitting on beside the on ramp, and grab their helmets and hurry to the waiting bike. They both are instantly in a real good mood once again, and feeling a little excitement about their current little quest to catch their new friends. Monica can’t wait to see the look on Issy’s face when they pull up alongside and surprise them. Moments later they are quickly picking up speed on the last half of the ramp. Jeff thinks about how smart Monica was to realize the obvious solution that they have found to this little temporary separation from these two new friends of theirs. The shiny black Mustang sticks out like a sore thumb as there is no other vehicle on the road that looks anything like it, and the bike, with its ability to accelerate much faster than pretty much any car on the road, can easily catch it. Jeff isn’t forgetting the other obvious thing though; he sure doesn’t want that trooper to see him speeding. If that trooper catches him going only five miles over the speed limit to catch the Mustang he would probably pull them over, and tell them that he finally lost his good mood. Jeff looks back as far as he can behind him as he is entering the interstate and is relieved that the cruiser is nowhere to be seen.

  Monica has her eyes glued on the Mustang that never went out of her sight. She had figured out this little plan seconds after they had first got back on the highway, and knew it would work as long as they got off at the first exit. If they didn’t get off at that one, Pete just might have got off the first one himself. Looking for a case of beer for all she knew, seeing what she has of him so far. Then they would have probably never seen them again. Jeff would have lost patience and insisted they take off. The only gamble she figured was if it was the kind of exit that you weren’t able to get back on the highway. She hadn’t seen that type in the States yet though, but she remembers her dad having that problem a couple of times over the years back in Canada. But it worked out perfectly, and she’s feeling so good about it that the horrendous feeling she had only a half hour earlier was now replaced by a feeling of almost jubilation.

  Less than two minutes later Jeff was slowing down and easing up to the side of the Mustang that was barely going over the speed limit. Monica can’t help but smile wide as she sees the familiar mirrored glasses of Pete. Staying alongside them now it only takes Pete a few seconds to glance to his left and notice them. His face shows his immediate pleasant surprise, and he turns away to tell Issy the good news.

  Three seconds later, Issy’s face appears in front of Pete’s, and she’s smiling and waving frantically at Monica. There is no way for Issy to see Monica’s excited smile in her helmet, but Monica is waving frantically back with her right hand. The left hand stays holding onto Jeff. It was incredible what a close bond the four of them, and especially the girls, had seemed to have formed in less than twenty four hours.

  “You rock girl! That was so cool of them to wait for us, eh Pete?” Issy watches excitedly while Jeff pulls in front them, where he belongs.

  “Ya I wonder if all Canadians are as cool as these two are turning out to be.” “Ya maybe, I don’t remember ever having a Canadian as a friend before, I’ve met a few over the years, but haven’t really gotten to know any. It’s going to suck when we really do have to split up when they have to head back north. You have any idea how far that farm of theirs is from Seattle?”

  “Naa, not a clue.”

  Pete’s favourite tune was coming to an end.

  “and she’s buying a stairway to heaven...”

  “I’m going to buy you that stairway to heaven someday pumpkin you just watch.” He loves Led Zepplin, and would give anything to have been able to have seen them live. He looks over at his gorgeous Issy and smiles. He can’t believe how frickin beautiful she is when she’s smiling back like that.

  “Well I tell you what. You can start by giving me something I want right now... and since it won’t cost you a dime I am pretty sure it costs less than that stairway thing. Even though I still have no idea what that means.”

  Pete chuckles, “Sure Issy what’s that?”

  “Well I’ve put up with your ancient music now since we hit the road. Do ya think I could put on one of my CD’s now?” She looks at him and gives him a sweet little smile no guy could possibly resist.

  He chuckles a little again, “Sure pumpkin go ahead.”

  “Yaaa! Finally!” Issy quickly pushes the eject button of the CD player. She puts the Zepplin CD back in its case and grabs her favourite CD. She slides it in and sits back, and with a glance to make sure Monica is looking safe in front of her, she closes her eyes while the song is starting.

  “Ya figures, how anyone can like crap like Lady Ga Ga over Led-frickin-Zepplin? I have no clue.” Pete looks over to Issy but instead of answering him, or even looking at him, she reaches back to the CD player and turns the volume of Poker Face up a little.

  Pete has to yell a little, “In twenty years no one will be listening to this crazy egg lady, but they will still be rocking out to Zepplin!” Pete looks ahead and keeps his eyes on the bike. At least the Canadians will be stopping that nonsense of using the interstate as their own little race track.

  Jeff sure can’t remember ever having such a tumultuous few days before. This trip is turning out to be interesting anyway to say the least. They still have lots of miles before they get to Tom’s farm. What more can happen? He’s glad to be back in the front of the bike, but he sure didn’t want her to get caught for speeding like she did. Oh well it turned out better than he thought it would. That trooper was pretty decent to them. He thought American cops would be harder asses than the few cops he and his friends have run into back in Ottawa. New York cops or something like that he bets wouldn’t be so nice.

  They’ll pay the fine in Bismarck and that will be the end of it. She sure isn’t getting back in front again though. It sure is amazing that almost every bad thing that happens has some kind of silver lining. He glances back at the two in the Mustang. He isn’t going to speed again if he can help it himself. He would just as well never talk to a cop in his life again, Canadian or American.

  Jeff sees the exit to the town of Steele. He flicks the turn signal on to show he’s getting off the highway and waves his right arm just to make sure that Pete knows his intention. He comes to the stop sign at the end of the off ramp and turns left to go over the interstate and into the little town. On the right is a large gas station so he pulls in there at a pump and stops.

  “Hey guys I am glad to see the trooper back there didn’t decide to arrest you, I guess that means you’re not a wanted man.” Jeff is standing by Pete’s window and Monica is approaching Issy’s side.

  “Ya dude that trooper turned out to be pretty cool, he likes my car, anyone who likes my car is cool in my book. Hey thanks for waiting for us I know Issy here really appreciates it.” Monica and Issy are smiling at each other.

  “Jeff is getting pretty hungry for some lunch. What do you say we find a grocery store and buy some stuff to make some sandwiches?” Monica is looking from Issy over to Pete.

  “Ya that sounds like a good idea, that way we can have a good pig out for cheap.” Pete looks to Issy, “You okay with that Issy?”

  “Sure. That’s not just a good idea, it’s a smart idea.” Issy looks past Pete to Jeff in the window. “Is my girl here always th
is smart?”

  “Oh ya, and it was her idea to wait for you guys on a ramp, knowing we would see you easy enough and of course could catch you in a flash. Let’s gas up and then ask the attendant where the closest grocery store is, I’m starved.” Jeff grabs his pump nozzle.

  “Wow these are good, I’m glad we all agreed on smoked meat on rye.” Issy is chewing as she speaks, and washes it down with some Coke. They bought some plastic cups and a big bottle. “And is it true you don’t have to put this bottle of mustard we bought in the fridge? My mom always did.”

  “It’s mostly vinegar, does your mom put plain vinegar in the fridge?” Monica’s chewing her own thick sandwich.

  “No, she doesn’t, wow you really are smart. I’m starting to really like hanging with you.” Issy and Monica exchange smiles yet again.

  Jeff’s chomping down on his second sandwich, while he studies his map, “It looks like we are only about fifty miles from Bismarck, we’re stopping there to pay the ticket my little speed demon here got.”

  “Hey there hypocrite, you were going just as fast, only a little while earlier.” Issy looks at Jeff accusingly.

  “Ya that’s true I got a little carried away myself, but hey, I have the right license, and I didn’t get caught.”

  “So how much was the ticket anyway?” Pete’s on his second sandwich as well.

  “Only thirty-four dollars, in Canada it would have been over a hundred easy.” Jeff offers, while Monica is watching and chewing.

  Issy has finished her sandwich and drains her cup of coke. “So Monica, guess what?”

  “What Is?”

  “I convinced my little city boy here to agree to buy a tent and a couple of sleeping bags so we can join you guys at a campsite tonight. What do you think of that?”

  “You serious? That’s awesome. Right on! The next campground we were going to go to is in Roosevelt National Park and it’s got the same name as my cat, Juniper. I love my cat and am making sure that we have her shipped out to be with us when we get settled.”

  “That is cool, about the campground and your kitty. Pete here has never gone camping in his life.”

  “Ya, my family hardly ever left home to do anything. It sounds like it could be fun, but we’re for sure getting some kind of air mattress, I don’t like the idea of sleeping on the hard ground though, that’s for sure.”

  “You wuss, you’ll love it. Fresh air and roasting marshmallows on a campfire.” Issy pushes Pete playfully on the shoulder.

  Jeff is packing up his few things, “Let’s get to Bismarck and see how long it takes to find the right office to pay the ticket and get out of that city. Ya know, for the Capital City of a State it sure is puny, only 55,000 people. I wrote that down in my notes. I always thought of the States as having big cities.”

  Pete nods his head, “Yep North Dakota isn’t known for their metropolises.” He gets up, “Okay let’s get going so we can try this camping thing out. Bismarck is small but it’s not too small to have a Walmart, so let’s find one and get some inexpensive camping stuff.”

  “That sounds like a plan I can sink my teeth into. It is going to be great camping again, it’s been a few years since I went camping with the family. And now that we’re going to the mountains on the coast it will be awesome to get my Pete into doing it with me. We are going to do lots of healthy fun stuff from now on. Right Pete?” Issy looks over at Pete while heading to the Mustang.

  “Ya sure pumpkin, if you like it so much I will do my best to give it a shot.”

  Our intrepid travellers were in Bismarck just over an hour later and had found the courthouse downtown to pay Monica’s fine quick enough, and they were now wandering the isles of one of the two Walmarts that were on the outskirts of town. Monica is having a whole lot of fun again on this new adventure and is walking with the other three looking for camping equipment. “It is weird to me that places like Walmart and McDonald’s look the same here as they do back home. I guess when they find something that makes money they just do it over and over and over.”

  “Yep Walmart’s the biggest retailer in the world now, I am pretty sure they still make most of their money in the States, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they have these things in China now.” Pete is in front and he has stopped and turned around to address them, “Hey I wonder if everything in a China Walmart says made in China like it does here.”

  Monica gives a little sarcastic laugh, “Oh I am sure they don’t sell much from North America in them that’s for sure. I like these stores but I sure don’t like the fact that we all do so much business with China. I wish people were more concerned with human rights and environmental protection than just saving a few bucks. I think we should be paying more for stuff that is made in North America. In the long run I bet it would save money anyway, as it would be all better quality and worth keeping and repairing when it broke, instead of going in the landfills.”

  Issy laughs, “Maybe you should stand at the front entrance to the store and tell everybody coming in that they should boycott the store because of all the things wrong in China.”

  “Hey don’t laugh Issy, that’s exactly the kind of thing this kook of mine is capable of. Last year we got kicked out of Loblaws, which is our biggest grocery store chain, for getting an old lady upset about the bacon she was trying to buy.” Jeff is smiling at the memory.

  “I was just trying to explain to her that when she was my age they treated pigs a whole lot better than they do now. And she started screaming at me to mind my own business.” Monica is smiling about it too.

  “I would actually pay money to see Monica cause that kind of scene, but could you maybe wait until I find what we came for.” Pete starts walking slowly up the isle trying to get them moving again.

  “Ya Monica I think you already got yourself in enough trouble already today. We really should get going so we can settle into that campground; we still have quite a ways to go remember.” Jeff is gently pushing his baby toward the leading Pete.

  Five minutes later Pete and Issy have picked out a pair of matching summer sleeping bags that were on sale. And they settled on a four man tent, Pete wanted a little extra room.

  “We should get ourselves a cooler now too. That way we can shop here for some food for dinner tonight and breakfast in the morning. And oh ya, we for sure are getting a big bag of marshmallows. I haven’t roasted marshmallows in years.” Issy heads to where the coolers are displayed.

  “Just a second, I am checking these air mattresses out first. I guess we are going to be camping a few more times, at least, this year, so I can get my money’s worth after spending all this money.” Pete grabs one that comes with its own little foot pump.

  Monica is up the isle a little with Issy at the coolers, “I admit that it would have been nice to bring a few things like a cooler and a mattress. But we just don’t have the space on the bike.”

  “Hey Pete likes his car and I like my bike, to each his own.”

  Issy can’t help herself, “Sure Jeff but come winter up there in Canada I kinda doubt you are liking your bike much.”

  “Ya well I am pretty sure you get the cold and snow in your Duluth too. But sure, someday I will buy some kind of car, but I will always have a bike, you can bet on that.”

  Pete has agreed with Issy’s choice of cooler. “Kay guys lets go get a few groceries and get out of here.”

  “Three! Two! One! Go!!” Monica yells at the other three, and gives a little jump in the air in excitement. It is early evening and they are at the Juniper Campground in The Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. Issy had bragged that she was a pro at setting up the family tent a few years back and challenged Jeff to seeing who could set their tents up first. Jeff felt it was a bit unfair since he was familiar with his tent and Issy, not only never set their new tent up before, but it was a larger tent. The two tents were the same style though, in a dome shape with two long flexible crisscrossing poles holding their shape. And a fly wi
th another long pole to cover it.

  Jeff let Issy spread their tent out first while his was still in its little bag. And Pete was there to help Issy but he wasn’t going to be much help as he had never even touched any kind of tent before. Jeff smoothly dumps his bag out and spreads the tent into its square shape. Issy is assembling a multi piece pole that is held together by an interior elastic cord and telling the perplexed Pete to do the same with the other pole and the one that goes in the fly.

  “Go Issy Go!” Monica is still jumping up and down.

  Jeff pauses and looks at Monica, “Hey trader, I thought you were on side.”

  “No way Jose, its girl power all the way!”

  Issy is feeding the pole through and gets Pete to pull the tent straight. She then shows Pete where to hold the end so she can bend it into shape. As Issy puts the other end of the pole into place and it starts to take shape Pete sees that Jeff has already got his in place. Pete crawls over on all fours to Jeff’s tent and pulls one end of the pole out of its little socket.

  “Hey that’s cheating!” Jeff can’t help but laugh though. He sees that Issy’s tent is now standing so he throws up his hands in defeat. “I give up, with Monica cheering for you and Pete cheating for you, I know when to throw in the towel. You did do real good for never setting that thing up before.”

  Issy and Monica high five each other, “Ya! Your boy knows when he has met his match! Yes!” Issy is doing a little victory dance.

  “Okay how about you guys finish putting the tents up then Jeff you show Pete how to build a fire, and me and Issy will start getting these hamburgers ready to throw on the grill.” Monica heads to the cooler. “This place is so beautiful and we’re having so much fun, what do you say we all stay here an extra day. I would love to go for a hike tomorrow and look for those wild horses, or we might even see the buffalo they are supposed to have.”

  Issy is putting her fly over her tent, “That is a freaking awesome idea, what do you think Pete?”

  “Ya I’m cool with that, I think I could get used to this camping thing.”

  Jeff is putting a peg in the ground, “Ya sure, sounds good to me, you only live once.”

  Monica is taking the ground beef out to make some patties, “Right on! Considering I thought I ruined the trip this morning with that speeding ticket things are turning out A-Okay.”

  The four young travellers continue to chat, and laugh together, and set up their little campsite with not a concern in the world between them.