Ben in New Mexico

I flew out of Albuquerque to go back home for the first of what I hope to be only monthly work trips. It also gives me a chance to check in on the house and visit friends. Ben drove from Albuquerque to Phoenix on his own. He visited a few air museums, which seems to keep in with this trip’s Air Force theme, and stayed in two Harvest Hosts. He checked out the museum at Kirtland AFB before heading on the road. Being in New Mexico, it makes sense that they tested nuclear bombs there.

They tested in White Sands, NM. We’re going to try to swing up there on our way back through. The Trinity site here is where the first atomic bomb was detonated.

Here we see another Air Force museum taking credit for Army Air during WWII. Here’s a B-29 Superfortress.

Being surrounded by so much Air Force on this trip has led to many “chair force” jokes between Ben and me. Definitely in good fun, and definitely not where anyone can hear and take offense. If you’d like to take a break to watch a really funny spirit spot from years ago, try this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp6dwIplkWs (or search Air Force training at Navy). The creator had a few good videos; the best since Dave Harrington’s.

Ben’s first stop in Deming, NM took a while to find. The brewery is in an industrial area surrounded by dirt roads. He circled it a few times in the dark before finally seeing a road he could take. He said the Owner was interesting to talk with, and it was just him and Cody in there. Cody liked having a large inside place to wander around. He gets cabin fever in the trailer.

Ben was happy to find a Coast Guard plane in a museum in Tucson!

Ben made it safely to Lara’s. Friends of Lara’s was let us park in their driveway, so we appreciated not having to find a spot to store it. Diesel and Barkley took to Cody pretty well. Diesel here is showing Cody around the yard. =) That’s good, because Cody’s staying with them while we head to the Dominican Republic for a few days!