ROAD TRIP FINIS

Our trip back yesterday was uneventful, except the temperature dropped to 37 at several points. (The forecast high was 51.) We didn't have time to stop at Wall Drug, so I didn't get my 5 cent coffee & buffalo burger. We also didn't have time to do Badlands. I was just there last month on the WJAG bus tour of the Black Hills. Lois & I were there last year on our trip back from Glacier.

It was a great vacation. Here are some highlights.

* Best meal:  hibachi steak & lobster from Fuji Japanese Steakhouse.

* 2nd best meal:  charcuterie board from Prairieberry Winery.

* Best wine:  Pumpkin Bog, which we sampled at Prairieberry Winery near Keystone.

* Best treat:  Dark Chocolate Cookie & Chocolate Pecan Fudge, which we bought in Keystone.

* Best drive:  Custer State Park Wildlife Loop & the road through the Black Hills National Forest on the way to & back from Custer.

* 2nd best drive:  The Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway.

* Best mixed drink:  The bloody mary I had at Sliders Bar & Grill, the restaurant attached to our hotel.

* Most unique weather:  Temperatures in the 20s & snow on several days.

MORE ROAD TRIIPS?

Lois & I are planning a trip to San Antonio with David & Carmen in early January; also a trip to Minnesota to visit Nathan, Laura, Calvin & Claire in January.

WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

Northern Rescue on Netflix.

WHAT I'M READING

> "Ernie's War:  The Best of Ernie Pyle's World War II Dispatches." If you enjoy books about WW II, it's a must read. It's a unique perspective of the war.

> Now I'm reading "A Blaze of Glory:  A Novel of the Battle of Shiloh," by Jeff Shaara.

CHURCH GOES UP IN FLAMES AFTER ATTEMPT TO SMOKE OUT WILD ANIMALS GOES AWRY

"A rural church in east-central Iowa has been destroyed in a fire sparked by an attempt to smoke out a wild animal that had gotten inside, firefighters said . . . It took seven fire crews & several hours to fully extinguish the blaze, fire officials said. The church was established in 1867 . . . "  Omaha World Herald, 10/15