Day 16 - Mar 2 - Texas!

I would LOVE to say that I had a wonderfully restful night's sleep in the motel. I went to bed early -- 8:00 p.m. -- and slept well until 11:30 pm. I awoke with a pounding headache. I thought it was from dehydration, since I had not drunk much all day. I was cold all day, so cold beverages were not appealing. I got up and drank a bottle of water and sat up in bed, hoping it would soon subside. It didn't. I got up again and drank another bottle of water. Usually, when I get a dehydration headache, it's because my sinuses are blocked and not draining (I know, too much information, but it's my blog and I can write what I want!). A lot of water usually does the trick. It didn't. So I got up again (mind you, I have a roommate who is sleeping) and took two ibuprofen. About ten minutes later, I was in the bathroom, retching my guts out. I have no idea why. I went back to bed -- shivering -- and sat there for awhile with my head pounding. At some point, I fell asleep and slept until 7 a.m. I still had a slight headache, but otherwise, I felt okay. Tired, but okay. So much for a restful day off.

The motel had a decent free breakfast. I wasn't sure if I could hold down food, but I did, so I tried to fill up. We left about 9 a.m. and rode in the cold wind. It was supposed to be sunny today, but the sun didn't come out until about 2 p.m. We had a headwind all day, too, which made riding more difficult. There weren't many services along the way, so we didn't eat much until we got to Kirbyville.

But we're in Texas!!!! Our fourth state (not counting Florida). Yay for us!!!

We really didn't know where we were going to stay tonight. We knew there was a motel here, but we didn't know what it would be like, and some of us are on limited budgets, so we can't stay in motels every night. After gorging ourselves at Subway (and enjoying the warmth), Ryan and I rode to the police station to seek permission to camp in a large city park behind the Subway. The police department sent us next door to the mayor's office, so we went there. A lady behind a glass window gave us permission, so Ryan and I rode back to the park. We're hanging out under a super large pavilion, waiting for some people to leave before setting up camp. It's supposed to be 31 degrees tonight, so I want to get set up and into my tent before I turn into an icicle.

                                                   (Ryan helping Mike fix a flat tire)

                                       (Our accommodations for the night in Kirbyville, TX)

                        (That's Ryan asleep in his sleeping bag on the picnic table in the corner)

    (My nickname for Ryan was Honeybuns, because he always had honeybuns strapped to his bike for a snack)

Tomorrow, we're headed to Silsbee, TX, and perhaps beyond. I'm supposed to call in to a court hearing tomorrow at 1:30 p.m., so I have to be somewhere that has cell service. Depending on what's in Silsbee, we may stay there, or we may ride on. We'll have to wait and see.

So stay tuned, all. Talk at you tomorrow.

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