Rio Virgin Grille

Location: Rio Virgin Grille, Mesquite NV (map)
Miles: 12804.9

I am sitting now amidst the remains of a very good breakfast. The eggs were flipped too soon, but not too much too soon. The bacon was exceptional. The tea was hot and tealike.

I slept like a baby last night. Better, even. If I dreamt of Bobbi or (what did I call her?) Katie I don’t remember it. Boy, I needed that sleep. I awoke gradually, the sounds from the road outside insinuating themselves into my dreams. Finally at about 8:30 I dragged myself out of bed and scraped the residue from the previous night off my body. When I was done I put on my glasses. I thought at first they were fogged from my shower, but no, there was a film on the lenses from the bars of the previous day. I wonder what the insides of my lungs are like now.

I’ll say this: The folks in this town can be right friendly. Now, to the desert.

7 thoughts on “Rio Virgin Grille

  1. Love the latset pics. But how did you get “techincal shots” of Hoover Dam and things like the intake towers without arousing suspicions that you were an “advance agent” of a “terrorist organization”? Because Elephant Butte Dam is a power-producing dam, it is considered a vital component of our national infrastructure, and no one is allowed near it any more.

  2. They still let tourists onto Hoover, largely because it generates revenue as well as electricity. One reason I don’t have a good shot of the face of Hoover Dam is that you have to pay to get to the best vantage points. There are security checks on the approaches and cops everywhere, giving the appearance if being safe.

    Plus a clever terrorist would realize that taking out Glen Canyon Dam would probably destroy Hoover as well.

  3. I think what’s different since 9/11, besides police and barriers, is that they don’t let tourists _inside_ the dam any more. People used to be able to pay for a tour that went inside. Last I heard, that was no longer available.

  4. So, did you get out of Vegas with a does of the clap and an empty wallet?

    I’m listening to the Springsteen set of the Vote for Change tour right now. I’d forgetten what a damn great songwriter he is. Awesome stuff. Anyway, I want to recommend a good recent CD you should pick up. It is Steve Earle’s “The Revolution Starts Now”, a great mix of punk anger, liberal politics and good old country style rock ‘n roll. Highly recommended, and great driving music. I especially like his paen to Condi Rice; you’ll get a kick out of it.

  5. No clap (yes, I’m sure), cash in wallet. Does that mean I wasn’t trying hard enough?

    (I modified the opening paragraph to make the sentence clearer.)

    I got out of range of Radio Free Santa Fe before the concert started. There doesn’t seem to be a Radio Free Clovis.

  6. I neglected to mention that there is a big highway project at Hoover Dam that I’m guessing will include a fairly spectacular bridge so traffic no longer drives along the rim of the dam.

  7. Hmmm…. taking out Glen Canyon dam, huh? Oh, yeah, I believe I did mention that Gerald read The Monkey Wrench Gang in his “Great Books, Great Ideas” class?

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