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| Chope's Town Cafe |
The predicted rain didn't happen overnight, but this morning it fell off and on throughout the area.
Another one of those days with no towing mileage, but over 150 on the RAV4. I almost feel like a native westerner - I drove 75 miles for lunch! I've driven past La Mesa, NM a bunch of times on my trips to & through the Southwest. It is the home of Chope's Town Cafe and Restaurant. While know for excellent Mexican food, the reason I've driven by has been to replace my "Stuff It" "T" shirt. One of my former students (a music major) after graduating Oswego with honors, made a major change in life & became an engineering major at the New Mexico State University at Las Cruces. Probably a good idea; she is now an engineer at Boeing. In any case, she sent me a "T" shirt back in the 90's that is worn out. The problem is each time I passed the La Mesa area it was either a Sunday or Monday, both of which Chope's is closed.
So, I decided it was now or never. A little over an hour drive, much of which is on I10 at 75MPH. I had chile relleno for lunch at the restaurant; three chiles, rice & beans, enough for two people & very good. I did manage to get another "T" shirt so I'm good for at least the next trip west. On the way I took a photo of the Rio Grande. Not so grand at least in the La Mesa area - just a dry river bed. I crossed it a bit further east, when I went to Bosque del Apache, and there was water in it, so I suspect most of it goes to the farms in the area. Much of the drive between Las Cruces & La Mesa was lined with pecan orchards.
On the way back I checked the tracking on my overnight package (that was mailed yesterday morning). Still in transit. It seems that overnight to the Post Office has different meanings, depending on where it is being sent. An overnight letter or package to Deming is really a 2 day mailing (although at the same price as an overnight one) that is guaranteed to arrive by 3:00PM Thursday, the 5th. Tracking says it left El Paso, TX at 7:25AM this morning, and is on its way to the final destination. Since it isn't at the Deming post office as of 3:00 today, and the two cities are only about 2 hours apart, I have to assume it is being carried by hand, although I didn't see a mail carrier running along I10 while I was driving back from La Mesa!
After driving back to Rockhound, I stopped at a sister state park, Spring Canyon, about 2 miles away. No camping, but lots of picnic sites. The sign stated there was a large herd of sheep imported from the middle east, but I didn't see any of them. A steep 17% grade driving up to the park, with a steep road inside between the picnic sites. Lots of hills/mountains surrounding the canyon.
While the rain has stopped I'm not going to be sitting outside. The wind is strong enough to rock the trailer even with the stabilizers down. Dinner will be simple since lunch was huge!
Until Next Time -
Yes! Fulfilling this hope must have been exciting. Tell that student that she started something good. Good food, too.
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