Day 55
Leaving Dede was a let down for sure. She’s such a breath of fresh air, making the long drive the rest of the way out of Texas a big chore. All together, there were 822 miles to drive from border to border. Yuck
However, as usual, I started amusing myself with paying attention to the scenery. Here are the new-to-me sights I encountered along the way.
A train that shadowed me for a whole day; this train had at least 100 cars and 6 locomotives, with storage containers piled two high on every car. My thought? What will we do when fossil fuels go away. I can’t imagine 6 locomotives, powered by renewables, that could do the job, can you?
I noticed the juxtaposition of wind turbines and oil pumps (you know, those things that look like mechanical dinosaur’s head and neck, slowly moving up and down). It’s not lost on me that TX is trying to take advantage of its natural resources.
In one town I passed through it seemed as though the local economy revolved around the refining and storage of oil products. Tanks and pipelines, and even guys in fire suits on every corner. Where are the cute guys with 10-gallon hats and cowboy boots? *sigh*
What is that chimney with fire spewing out? I saw several in the distance along the way. I have since read that these are called “flares” and are used to dispose of volatile by products of the refining process. They can also be used to relieve pressure if the need arises but this only happens in an emergency. I suspect this is one thing environmentalists hate. I’m hoping that there is some scrubbing going on to alleviate pollution. I’m sorry now I haven’t paid better attention.
Anyway, as much as I appreciate fossil fuels, the countryside was bleak in oil country.
Midland TX