Though it is one lane at a time right now, the bridge did open and we skedaddled for town bright and early. I had lost my Casino Card. That took about 3 minutes at the big Casino. I had a choice of waiting 15 minutes for lunch or taking the breakfast. I took breakfast-scrambled eggs with diced ham, hash browns, toast and jam, and a beverage. It was a great breakfast. Free! On to the bank to transfer money in, then to WalMart for the weekly shop and to Burger King for a treat for my starving dogs. Hint: if you order double hamburgers you will pay $2.00 for each, If you order "Buck Doubles" you will get two patties and a piece of cheese for $1.00 each. Don't ask me, but the doggies are getting Buck Doubles from here on. I got nothing. Cheap visit.
At 789 Casino the (other) Senior citizens were gathering for their Club 55 treats. Some of those old codgers had on their best jeans, tennie runners or boots, clean shirts, and hats. It was an OCCASION. And it is an occasion-seeing old friends and having a meal out. It made me want to smile and cry at the same time. They were happy but that it took so little to make them happy about did me in.
We were into and out of town in less than two hours. Great! I had a chance to look over the contractor for the bridge. I am pretty sure it was NATCO. The Northern Arapaho outfit. The bridge itself is a prefab-looks sturdy enough but NATCO does not have a shiny track record. They had to redo the highway by the Ethete Store three times to meet specs. They did Plunkett Road and are now redoing Plunkett Road. The first job started to deteriorate within two years. Having a do-over on a road is one thing. Having a do-over on a bridge is quite another-blub, blub.
I spent most of the rest of the day outside, doing little chores but mostly minding the dogs. The traffic was constant and noisy. After so much quiet all summer it was wearing. I have to keep my babies safe, though.
