December 26, 2025, Tucumcari- I admit it, driving a large vehicle, with limited and convex mirrors, through a busy Metropolitan area kind of frightens me. Nonetheless, my present task, for the next seven days, involves driving this Penske moving van from Plano to Prescott and back. I was taught to face my fears and find a way to get difficult things done. I credit both my father and my Army drill instructors for this.

After Aram dropped me at the rental office, this morning, I spent an hour with the flustered agency clerk, working through the AI-generated snap price increase-which was reversed by calling the main office. The clerk was more than a bit irritated by the increase, and felt vindicated when the area director restored the price than he and I had agreed on, over the phone.

So, I set out onto a busy US Highway 75, holding still for three vehicles to my left, who were trying to exit the highway, then merging onto the thoroughfare and letting my phone’s GPS guide me through the rest of the Metroplex portion of the journey-about 50 miles. There was no further hassle.

First stop was for lunch, at a Pilot Truckstop, in the small village of Justin, best known for its cowboy boots outlet. I have no need for such boots, so after lunch and fueling the truck, I headed up the Northwest Passage. Another fuel stop in Childress was followed by dinner and picking up a few items at the Buccee’s, in Amarillo.

It was still light out, so I enjoyed the sunset and headed onward to the Mesalands. Almara Inn proved a perfect stop for the night, with a spacious area for the Penske to rest the night as well. Best of all, it’s right next to Del’s Diner, where I had dinner the last time here, and plan to enjoy breakfast there tomorrow. I might very well get all the way to Prescott by tomorrow night, adding an extra day for boxing up remaining items and loading the truck, ahead of Tuesday’s furniture pick-up and deep cleaning by a hired crew.

It has always paid to face my fears.