Ever get disgusted with the world?
A person, kind, wonderful, loving, and talented, with significant impact on the people around her, dies before her time?
Ever want to shout out at the Universe: “What’s going on?” “Who’s in charge, here.”

My upcoming Existential Auto Trip will give me time to think on that.

Merriweather Lewis, a disturbed but heroic American hero, died in his mid-thirties.
I will look for landmarks where my route intersects with the route of the Corps of Discovery and I will think of that man.
Of the many people who got took prematurely.

The Who? The Why? The What?

The Existential Auto Trip.

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Today is Monday, July 30, 2018
Good morning, my friends.
This is my 111th consecutive daily posting.

Time is 12:07am
Today’s dinner is London Broil with Top Round. I’ll slow roast it early in the morning (2.5lbs, 25 minutes;) when I get home for dinner I’ll sear and broil it at the same time, close to the flame. The earlier slow-roasting ensures it’s cooked on the inside. Still rare but not raw.

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SHORT TAKES
 

Today’s post concerns…TRAVEL. Packing, mostly.

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Today’s quiz:
Name one of the Indian tribes that were hostile to the Lewis and Clark ‘Corps of Discovery.’
Find the answer just before today’s Web Site post

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Today’s Movie Summary
“North by Northwest” is a 1959 American thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint and James Mason.
The screenplay was by Ernest Lehman, who wanted to write "the Hitchcock picture to end all Hitchcock pictures.”

“North by Northwest” is a tale of mistaken identity, with an innocent man pursued across the United States by agents of a mysterious organization trying to prevent him from blocking their plan to smuggle out microfilm that contains government secrets.
This is one of several Hitchcock films that features a music score by Bernard Herrmann and an opening title sequence by graphic designer Saul Bass.
This film is generally cited as the first to feature extended use of kinetic typography in its opening credits.

“North by Northwest” is listed among the canonical Hitchcock films of the 1950s and is often listed as being among the greatest films of all time.
It was selected in 1995 for preservation in the National Film Registry by the United States Library of Congress, as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
 

Thank you, Wikipedia

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A Thumbnail Biography:
Meriwether Lewis (August 18, 1774 – October 11, 1809) was an American explorer, soldier, politician, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, also known as the Corps of Discovery, with William Clark.

For the amazing success of the Corps of Discovery against the most demanding of circumstances and for the impact of the Expedition on the course of American history, Merriweather Lewis ranks in the highest circles of American heroes.

Lewis had no formal education until he was 13 years of age.
During his time in Georgia he enhanced his skills as a hunter and outdoorsman.
He would often venture out in the middle of the night in the dead of winter with only his dog to go hunting.
Even at an early age, he was interested in natural history, which would develop into a lifelong passion. His mother taught him how to gather wild herbs for medicinal purposes.

In the Broad River Valley, Lewis first dealt with American Indians.
This was the traditional territory of the Cherokee, who resented encroachment by the colonists.
Lewis seems to have been a champion for them among his own people.

While in Georgia, he met Eric Parker, who encouraged him to travel.
At thirteen, Lewis was sent back to Virginia for education by private tutors.
His father's older brother Nicholas Lewis became his guardian.
One of his tutors was Parson Matthew Maury, an uncle of Matthew Fontaine Maury. In 1793, Lewis graduated from Liberty Hall (now Washington and Lee University).

That year he joined the Virginia militia, and in 1794 he was sent as part of a detachment involved in putting down the Whiskey Rebellion.
In 1795 Lewis joined the U.S. Army, commissioned as an Ensign (an Army rank that was later abolished and was equivalent to a modern Second Lieutenant).
By 1800 he rose to Captain, and ended his service there in 1801. Among his commanding officers was William Clark, who would later become his companion in the Corps of Discovery.

On April 1, 1801, Lewis was appointed as an aide by President Thomas Jefferson, whom he knew through Virginia society in Albemarle County.
Lewis resided in the presidential mansion, and frequently conversed with various prominent figures in politics, the arts and other circles.
He compiled information on the personnel and politics of the United States Army, which had seen an influx of Federalist officers as a result of "midnight appointments" made by outgoing president John Adams in 1801.

When Jefferson began to plan for an expedition across the continent, he chose Lewis to lead the expedition: knew him well  as a Jack of all trades, record-keeper, fearless, a frontier and regular army fighter, and a man sympathetic to and with experience in dealing with Indians.
Lewis recruited Clark, then age 33, to share command of the expedition.

The expedition was an undertaking of unparalleled success by every measure.

Lewis returned to Washington to report to President Jefferson directly.
Unfortunately, no records of their conversation survive.

Lewis died of gunshot wounds in what was either a murder or suicide, in 1809.
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And from one of our loyal readers and a writers’ group stalwart:

Hi Dom,

I’ve been away, so I’m just now catching up on your posts.

I have to throw in my thoughts on Sideways. I loved that movie. I love it so much that I swore off Merlot (for awhile, but longer than even I imagined, and practically swam in Pinot Noir, again for awhile, but longer than I imagined.), and went and bought the book it was adapted from.

I have to say, though the book was an “okay” read, Maybe even a "good” read, the movie was a much better story: more concise, more to the point, crisp, and a lot more entertaining. I  might even ago as far as to say I was disappointed in the book because it didn’t live up to the movie. Odd, huh? I cannot, even to this day, think of a movie that was better than the book, except for this one.

Anyway, there you have it. I don’t regret reading the book. I was just surprised, that’s all. Anyone else out there read a book and then seen the movie (or visa-versa) and had a similar experience?

M.

And the Web Meister responds:
My feeling is that there have been a substantial number of movies which have proven to be ‘better’ than the books.
“The Godfather” is the classic ‘go-to’ example.
What about the “Harry Potter” series?

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Answer to Today’s Puzzle:
The Lakota and Blackfeet both had hostile encounters with the Corps.

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TODAY’S POST

An itemization of the Heavy-duty backpack was missing from the Auto Trip ‘Packing’ Page.
 

Heavy-duty backpack
Surface Laptop with power cord, except for hotel room, stays in backpack in the car
Soft goods: socks, pjs, underwear for one night
Toiletries and pills/dividers
Writing Supplies: pens, paper, 9x12 portfolio as portable desk
Paper: maps; tickets;
T-shirt and clean jeans if needed
Sweater/fall jacket/rain jacket as needed

Electronics: chargers: smart phone; Surface or other laptop; multiple-socket plug, extension cord to move lamps where needed.

Having tweaked the earlier entries with the Heavy-duty backpack , we can finish the packing with this post: “Car as Suitcase,” although I’m sure there’ll be tweaks as I continue to plan and/or get hints from our great bloggers.

Car as Suitcase

A plentitude of bags makes it easier to find things; and quicker to recharge the heavy-duty backpack..
Remember that when traveling solo, the passenger seat has its own list and is not part of today’s post.
The bags listed below all go into the trunk, or if necessary, the back seat.
We are talking open bags to avoid the extra step of opening them.
We are talking small, dedicated bags to enable us to simply reach in and take what we need.

We'll need individual bags for each of these:

1. Liquor and chaser: I will be taking nips of vodka and gin with some small bottles of tonic water for chasers.  And some paper cups.
Traveling across many states and communities will certainly bring us into contact with a ‘dry’ locale. All we need is ice.

2. Soft garments, includes socks and, underwear, back up for big backpack.

3. Books: I end up reading one of the six that I take.

4. Papers: Maps, writing supplies.

5. Dress Shoes, sneakers, rain shoes

6. Toiletries: back up for big backpack.

7. Pills: back up for big backpack.

8. Sweaters; rain jackets; fall jackets.

9. Jeans; t-shirts: back up for big backpack.

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Post Scripts
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