Day 8

We woke up late, after the impressive evening before, and packed and left Selena's place by 10am. We had to go buy some ice for the cooler first, but we wanted to check out a drive-through burger place called P. Terry's before we headed west. P. This is what all fast food joints should be. There are apparently three of them in Austin, TX, but there should be five in every city worldwide. The fries were amazing and the burgers were perfect, and that's about all there is to say. If you ever have the chance to visit Austin, make sure you hit up P. Terry's.

We found our way onto I-10 with no trouble at all and made really good time all the way to 285. On 285, we ran into some serious rain, and by the time we hit Carlsbad, the local roads were under almost a foot of water in places. Driving was slow, and the wipers got a major workout. Less than a mile outside of town, though, the rain all but disappeared. Bright skies and the beautiful New Mexico landscapes led us into Roswell before sundown.

And now we're in the hotel being lazy bums, gearing up for the UFO museum in the morning and the drive to Tucson. But let's not skip the most exciting thing of the day- tarantulas.

These things were crossing the highway it seems once every mile or more. I guessed that they had to be 6 inches long for us to be able to see them at our speed. Chrissie and I stopped in the middle of the highway (no fear of anyone running into us, there wasn't a car for miles) and I opened the door next to one. I was pretty much right on with my estimate (ok, maybe it was only 4 inches). I squealed like a little girl and drove away as fast as possible.

*I found this picture on a  different blog, but it looks just like the ones we saw.

Chrissie reporting-

Just a quick note: Mike did a squeal like a little girl. Numerous times. It was actually quite amusing. I, on the other hand, was not as grossed/freaked out as I thought I'd be (I also wasn't as close to the tarantula as Mike was, seeing as it was right under the car door he had just opened). They're so cute and furry! I wish I could keep one as a pet. Then again, Mike probably wouldn't be able to sleep at night with one of these in his room!  I don't get to make fun of him often, so I'm taking advantage of his mini tarantula phobia. :)