Six Days On The Road

It was Tuesday morning.  Tina and Adam just walked up to camp.  I was sitting there, going through my stuff and thinning it out.  Monday night we talked about leaving Tampa, Florida.  Tina being like the camp little sister, but Adam’s girl.  Adam being the baby of the camp.   Henry and Paulie went to the labor hall not knowing of our decision.  Jim, we heard, went to jail.  Jim was my best friend, Adam a close first.  Paulie was the drunk and Harry was dad of the camp since Robert Young died a few months back of a heart attach.  He founded the camp.

We all were situated along the tracks off Fletcher and Nebraska, on county property.  We had permission, four large tents, one used as a living room with power we ran from an auto shop. We had a TV, radio and light there.  That’s also where we discussed changes in camp.  We were able to have campfires and areas for the bathroom, even a toilet seat chair we made.  Also, we made a horseshoe pit.

Well, as it started, Adam and Tina came into camp and started gathering what they wanted.  After about an hour, we were all three headed for the freeway. So here is how our journey started.  We got to I-275 and Fletcher.  Well, we weren’t there for very long at all.  Some really big fellow in a white Chevy duelie picked us up.  He gave us a ride about thirty miles outside of town to Pasco County to an exit at State Road 52.  He also gave us a loaf of Cuban bread that was still warm.  As we sat at that exit, we talked about the rainbow gathering that was going on in the Ocala National Forest.  Adam, being in Austin before, suggested us coming to Austin.  Everything he said was good about helping the homeless, but he thought if we got to the rainbow gathering we would get a ride to Austin.

Anyhow, as we were talking, a rig pulled over.  We jumped up in the white 18 wheeler.  There was a black truck driver named Harry.  Tina and Adam sat on his bunk and I sat up front.  He and I were sharing jokes and talking.  Harry then grabbed his remote for his TV and VCR where he proceeded to put some porno flick on.  We had about 70 miles to Ocala, Florida where we wanted off to try and track down the rainbow gathering.  I never could understand the porno flick he put in, for he told me and I showed pictures of his family.  Finally we got let off in Ocala, Florida.

So, as we said our goodbyes and thanked him, we proceeded towards a nearby store.  There we asked about the rainbow gathering.  The store clerk gave us direction about what she had heard.  So we headed towards the way her instructions told us which, by the way, was straight through town.  Tina, walking with a fractured ankle, it went slow.  The store clerk said it was about ten miles away to our cutoff road.  Well, we kept walking, unable to hitch in the city, we kept going.  It was about five miles just to the center of town.  After we passed that point, we walked another five miles, picking cigarette butts up to smoke.  We were getting tired and hungry. 

Oh, I did forget to mention that before Harry picked us up, a Mexican girl who caters to the construction sites, stopped and gave us food and drinks.

We started wondering how far this cutoff was.  Well, we stopped and took a break, smoking what butts we had.  As we started again, it was starting to get dark and we were looking for a good spot to sleep but we were too much in the city still. 

Now the strangest thing happened to us.  A man pulled out of an executive park dressed in a suit, driving a brand new Jaguar, stopped us and asked if we have five dollars.  We said “No” and wished we did for we were hungry, wanting a beer and cigarette.  He asked us where we were going to sleep.  We said we didn’t know.  After a long stare, he said to Tina to come there.  He jumped out of his vehicle and pulled out his wallet and handed her some money.  Adam and I were about 20 feet away.  As she started towards us the man drove away in his car.  Well, she walked up and handed Adam and I twenty dollars each and she said she had one, too. 

So now we were discussing what we wanted to do with the money.  Adam, a full-blown alcoholic, wanted beer.  Tina was quiet and I suggested a motel room because it was almost dark and there was a motel two blocks back down the street which we had just passed.  So, it was off to the motel.  It cost us $45 for all three of us and it had cable TV and two beds.  It was great.  Well, Adam wanted beer and we got a twelve-pack and two packs of cheap smokes with the rest of the money.  We all got in a good shower and dressed up, plus got a nice, little buzz.  Then all of us watched an old movie, then crashed out.  That was day one of my adventure.

I woke up first.  I’m an early riser anyway.  As we packed up still concerned to find the rainbow gathering, we got on our way.  Well, all of us wanting a beer but none in mid-town.  So we ended up walking another five miles to get to the edge of town, we thought.  We were scared of no stores.  Well we found one and got some beer and walked another mile to find a good spot to drink it. 

After we got our beer down, we began onward toward the directions given to us.  But we walked seven more miles, no rides and nowhere for cars to pull over.  Well, at the end of seven miles, we came to a visitor station for the National Forest.  There we found out exactly where the rainbow gathering was, which was thirty miles away and very hard to get to.  So, we decided to go back to I-75 which the ranger told us a shorter way which was ten miles away.  It was one hell of a walk.  When we got seven miles from the freeway, it was getting dark.  Then we finally ran across a fire station which was great because we ran out of water 3 and a half miles back and it was hot that day.  They gave us water and we headed our way.  There were railroad tracks, so we headed there to sleep.  It was terrible.  We slept on rocks because the ditch was full of water.  Then, to top that off, the trains were flying about 45 miles per hour and there were about twelve trains that day.  Once we got to sleep, the train would wake us, plus, being scared of rocks flying from the trains passing.

That was a terrible night, plus to top, the mosquitoes were bad from recent rains.  That takes care of day 2. 

At day break, we packed up and started for the freeway.  The fireman said that we were four miles till we hit the freeway.  All of us dying for smokes, we were hunting for butts.  About three miles out, we made it to a grocery store and Citgo Gas Station.  We found a lot of butts and tried to panhandle the grocery store.  We were asked to leave.  We went to Citgo to get water and tried to panhandle.  The store manager gave us some food, though.  Tina lost her shoes but the store clerk called a friend and had some other woman drop another pair of shoes off up the highway in front  of us a couple of hundred yards.  She looked so that we saw them. 

Well, that four miles seemed like six miles to us, but we finally got to the exit.  There were a lot of stores and restaurants and two Pilot truck stops.  Well, we panhandled beer, food and cigarette money real quick and found a patch of woods. 

We took care of that stuff and went to the exit.  It was still early in the day.  But the exit had white poles and “no parking” signs, not allowing people to pull over.  So at dark, we hit the truckers that exited the Pilot’s parking lots.  Three people were too much and tempers flared.  That’s the last I’ve seen of Adam and Tina.  They got a ride first in a big rig.  About an hour later, I did. 

An El Salvadorian picked me up.  It was already around 10 a.m.  He told me about El Salvador and showed me pictures of his family.  I-10 and I-75 weren’t that far off.  He said he knew a truck stop five miles east of that junction so he dropped me off there, but it was basically a gas station in the middle of nowhere.  There was a vacant gas station there also, and that’s where I slept that night, on the concrete.

Well, the next morning came quick and it was cold and windy.  The first thing I did was to go hit the other two gas stations for water and cigarette butts.  After that, I started to hitchhike on the freeway ramp.  I started at 6:30 a.m., but by 9:30 a.m. I got a ride.  I was surprised because it was Saturday and there wasn’t much traffic there.  Well, my ride started and he was a very religious man.  We talked of Jesus and the Bible the whole way.  He told me that he thought about passing me but had said to himself, “What would Jesus do?”  Anyhow, he was going to Tallahassee.  When we got there, he offered me a cup of coffee and a couple of hotdogs.  After we shook hands and said our goodbyes, he gave me $10 cash.  Well, he dropped me off at the Pilot Truck Stop.  The Flying J being a half mile down the road. 

Now I started to walk up to the Flying J but barely, and I got a ride.  Still, with coffee in my hand and my stuff.  Well I soon found out that this guy’s name was Perry and he was headed to Houston.  Well, we had quite the time joking and bull-shitting.  We stopped to gas up right outside Gulfport, Mississippi.  There I washed his windows since I was getting a ride and his kindness.  He said I did a great job.  Well, a couple more hours of driving, we made it to Louisiana border and it was getting dark.  He told me his ten hours were up on driving and he had to pull over at the next rest stop.  When we stopped, I went and took a homeless bath.  Then, I went back to the truck and we ate since he had food in his refrigerator.  His wife’s meatloaf was great and with that I had a can of pork and beans.  Well, he gave me the top bunk and he turned the TV on.  We began to watch a moving called “The Untouchables.”

After about a half hour into the movie, I had to go to the restroom.  When I came out of the bathroom, a very attractive woman approached me.  She asked if I was going to Alexandria, Louisiana.  I told her I wasn’t and that I was in that 18 wheeler hitchhiking.  She couldn’t hardly walk and was about in tears.  Then she asked if she could sleep in the rig.  I told her it wasn’t my rig but said I would ask the driver when she pleaded with me.  Well, I asked Perry and he told me to check her ID and asked what she looked like.  Her ID was good and she looked middle class.  So then I invited her to meet Perry.  Having to walk her, since she had a bad ankle, it took a bit of time.  I found out her car had broke down and she hitched a ride that far.  Then she told that here ex-husband was dying in Alexander, Louisiana of heart problems.  Well, finally we reached the truck and I helped her in to meet Perry.  He agreed to let her stay, but said she had to bunk with me.  She was reluctant to sleep with me even though I swore I would be a gentleman.  She tried the front chair but soon joined me in the bunk.  We were back to back at first until she grabbed me and asked me to cuddle up next to her.  That was hard for me, not being with a woman for a long time, but I held my word and was a gentleman.  We all woke up early, 3 a.m. and started down the road.  Dorothy and I talked a lot more while Perry drove. 

I began to get really fond of her by now.  When she was asleep earlier, I caressed her hair to comfort her so I did feel an attraction.  Well, without saying anything, Perry got on the radio, trying to find someone going to Alexandria.  But, we weren’t having any luck.  So, without telling us, he went a different route towards Alexandria.  While still asking a lot of drivers if they were headed that way, even saying if he had to, he would take her there.  Now, as we were about fifty miles out of our way, and dozens of truckers trying to help out, we finally found someone who was about ten miles behind us.  Now we were headed over this long bridge of just swamp around Lafayette, Louisiana where there is a cop they call Skippy  who nails truckers for going fast over it.  Well, they were the truckers radio talking and helping the trucker who was going to Alexandria catch up to us.  That way we could meet and stay on schedule.  Well, the bridge seemed like twenty miles long and it was foggy.  But they got Cory within a mile of us.  On the other end of the bridge we met at a truck stop.  This is where we met Cory, the other driver going to Alexandria.  So I helped Dorothy get in the other truck, gave her a big hug and a kiss.  Also, I gave her a poem that I carry called, “The Lord Answered” plus told her I’d pray for her.  She asked one favor and that was to get Perry’s address at which I did.  She said she would see me again.  I’ve tried calling the number she gave me with no response yet.  But another twist is that Perry had gone to Viet Nam with my stepfather and I was raised in Las Vegas and his street address is Las Vegas.  What a trip.  It’s funny how God works.  I still think of Dorothy and hope we’ll meet again.  But it still was a short-lived love for her in my heart.  It’s still there, though, even if I don’t know her that well. 

As Perry and I keep going, we finally hit the Texas border.  After Beaumont, Texas we took a bathroom break.  Soon we were hitting the Houston area.  He called for a truck going to Austin with no response and we went through two truck stops.  Well, he was time pressed so he let me out at I-610 and SH-290 where there was no way I could hitchhike.  So I proceeded to walk to an exit where I could get a ride.  I walked upon a stop light where a Mexican in a pickup truck was at the light.  I asked for a ride and he said “okay.”  Our conversation went towards talking of a beer so he went to the store and he bought a twelve-pack.  He took three beers and gave me nine beers, which I stashed in my backpack.  He said the closest exit for me to hitchhike was six miles up the road. 

Well, I walked and walked trying to hitch on a frontage road along 290.  No luck and it started getting dark so I started looking for a camp spot.  I found one near a park and ride in an empty field near a Popeye’s.  So I decided to camp there.  I didn’t know, but it was just a mile from my departure exit that I would find the next morning.  Well, really hungry, because I hadn’t eaten since the day before I walked over to Popeye’s and panhandled $2 for something to drink and then asked the manager that when they closed if I could get some chicken before they threw it away.  She was really kind and hooked me up with a box full. of chicken.  I woke up around 4 a.m. and packed up my gear, not really knowing how far my exit was.  As I walked down the street in the Houston area called “Jersey City” I got pulled over by the police.  They combed through my stuff, I guess looking for weapons or drugs, both of which I didn’t have.  I also had no warrants so they let me go.  Well, I found my exit just a half mile up the block.  No smokes and out of water, too, also I was real tired so I found a spot to take a nap. 

When I woke up, I knew I needed water and smokes and I walked over to a nearby construction site where I sold my Stanley 25 foot measuring tape for $5 to a Mexican worker.  Then I went to a gas station and got some water and cigarettes.  Then I started hitchhiking at this exit.  I ended up getting a ride pretty quick.  An old man and a pickup was going 30 miles north to a city called Waller, Texas.  There was a Love’s truck stop there and I went in there to use the restroom and get a Gator Aid.  Then I walked back to the ramp. 

About an hour later, a trucker named Greg picked me up and gave me a ride just south of Elgin, Texas, which was just 30 miles outside of Austin, Texas.  I was out at a gas station in the middle of nowhere where I didn’t think I’d get a ride for a while.  But it wasn’t even thirty minutes and I got a lift to the other side of Elgin, Texas, which was a better place to catch a ride. 

My last ride to Austin was a trip with a red-neck with a dry but weird sense of humor who drive me all the way down to Sixth Street.  Wow.  I finally made Austin, Texas.  A cold beer was on my mind, still having a few dollars on me. I had two beers and found out where Salvation Army and the ARCH were for somewhere to sleep and eat.  Now my plan was to find my road dogs.  Been here a week and still haven’t found out.  Then that’s my road journey.  Well, I’m still looking for Tina and Adam.  Two days ago I started selling the Austin Advocate a Homeless Paper.  It gives pocket money for cigarettes.  Today is Saturday and I’m at my favorite corner, Sixth and Congress, doing my thing, selling the paper.  Always beautiful women here, so it’s really cool.  It puts a smile on my face.  Well, I thought this was to be a regular day. 

I was there about an hour and only sold two papers when a guitar player named Stanch walked up and we began to talk.  First, about music, then I started to ask him if he had seen Adam or Tina or knew about them.  Wow, what a trip. He knew exactly where they were so he and I headed towards where they hung out at.  On our way, I was totally excited.  My only true friends, all the way from Tampa.  I was happy they made it, cause I was afraid I wouldn’t ever see them.  Almost there, I saw Tina in the parking lot of a store panhandling.  She didn’t see me, though.  I casually walked to the store parking lot without her noticing me.  Finally, I turned towards her to let her see me.  When she saw who I was, she jumped up, screamed and hugged and kissed me.  Well, we all walked to the park, got some beer and headed off.  When we got to the park, we drank the beer and talked.  That’s when I found out that Adam, my brother, was in jail for P.I., third offense.  Damn it, man. But, also knew that I have to watch Tina.  I didn’t want her out here on the streets alone.  As Tina explained, they had only been there for two days.  It was just the right timing to at least find Tina.  Adam will be fine in jail.  So now I’m getting Tina hooked up on getting a medical card, an ID and a place to stay at the Salvation Army.  I met a girl named, Missy who is really cool.  A new dog in our trio.  I guess it’s four of us now.  So now I’m trying to get Tina to tell me what their road trip was like from the point of us splitting up in Florida.

Written by John Davis Acuff

Article to be featured in May's issue of the Austin Advocate