About 10am on Thursday, September 6, 2007, I heard about a farmer in Alabama that had done artful stuff with round bales of hay.

By 10:10am on Thursday, September 6, 2007 I had decided to go check this out. I gave the trip specifications to The Navigator and he immediately started using the DeLorme Street Atlas software to lay out the route. He was really excited because he had just recently bought the 2008 update to the software and this is the first trip since the update. See the Route Overview below.

Long story short, on Friday we drove almost to our destination. On Saturday we spent about two hours finding the artful hay, about one hour taking pictures and then drove about four hours. On Sunday we returned to Aiken County, SC.

Click on the DeLorme Street Atlas map for a larger view
The map for this trip was carefully created by The Navigator using DeLorme Street Atlas mapping software.

As you can see from the map to the left (click on it for a larger view), we drove an irregular but circular route from Aiken County West to Alabama and then back to Aiken County.

The green and red dots on the upper right of the map indicate out starting and ending place, Aiken County, SC. The red dot on the far left of the map is the approximate location of the Hay As Art display.

When I explained this trip to The Navigator he said, "Oh, this will be a cinch. I-20 all the way there and back."

I said, "Okay, use I-20 to get there but let's take a scenic route on the way home." And so he did.

Once we got to Etuaw, AL, we got off I-20 and took US-43 South. We had to look for the Hay As Art as I did not have a specific location. I knew it was on US-43 between Etuaw and Demopolis.

Once we got to Demopolis, we turned East on US-80 and took it to Montgomery, AL where we got on I-85 North to Opelika, AL where we got on US-280 and went Southeast to Columbus, GA.

We took US-80 out of Columbus, continuing East to Macon, GA. Then we took Hwy-57 East to Wrightsville and then US-221 to Louisville, GA.

We rode Hwy-24 to Waynesboro, GA and then US-25 to Augusta, GA.

We took the I-520 loop around Augusta and into South Carolina, then US-1 back to Aiken County.

In summary, a nice trip with a good mix of Interstate and rural driving.

• Saturday, September 8, 2007
This was Hay Day as we got to see the Hay As Art display. Worth the trip! See the pix below. We drove East to Columbus, GA where we spent the night.

• Sunday, September 9, 2007
A leisurely stroll Northeast across rural Georgia. Drove through some towns we've not visited before.

• Saturday, September 8, 2007
Begin: 10:30am
End: 6:45pm
Net (includes stops): 8 hrs, 15 mins

• Sunday, September 9, 2007
Begin: 8:30am
End: 3:00pm
Net (includes stops): 6 hrs, 30 mins

• Saturday, September 8, 2007
Begin odometer: 40,542
End odometer: 40,845
Net miles today: 303
Average MPH: 36.7

• Sunday, September 9, 2007
Begin odometer: 40,845
End odometer: 41,124
Net miles today: 279
Average MPH: 42.9

Total trip miles: 933

• Saturday, September 8, 2007
Gasoline: $47.00
     Price: $2.569/gal
     Bought in: Columbus, GA
Food, ice, etc.: $0.00
Lodging: $0.00

• Sunday, September 9, 2007
Food, ice, etc.: $5.00
Lodging: $0.00

I planted some bird seed. A bird came up. Now I don't know what to feed it.

I had amnesia once -- or twice.

I went to San Francisco. I found someone's heart. Now what?

Protons have mass? I didn't even know they were Catholic.

All I ask is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy.

What is a "free" gift? Aren't all gifts free?

They told me I was gullible ... and I believed them.

Teach a child to be polite and courteous in the home and when he grows up, he'll never be able to merge his car onto a freeway.

Two can live as cheaply as one, for half as long.

Experience is the thing you have left when everything else is gone.

• Saturday, September 8, 2007
From June in SC, more Profound Revelations:

Those who live by the sword get shot by those who don't.

Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.

The 50-50-90 rule: Anytime you have a 50-50 chance of getting something right, there's a 90% probability you'll get it wrong.

It is said that if you line up all the cars in the world end-to-end, someone would be stupid enough to try to pass them.

If the shoe fits, get another one just like it.

• Sunday, September 9, 2007
From Charlie in SC:

Some words of wisdom from dear old Grannie.

• Friday, September 7, 2007
From Ralph in SC:

During a visit to the mental asylum, a visitor asked the Director what the criterion was which defined whether or not a patient should be institutionalized. "Well," said the Director, "we fill a bathtub with water, then we offer a teaspoon, a teacup and a bucket to the patient and ask him or her to empty the bathtub."

"Oh, I understand," said the visitor. "A normal person would use the bucket because it's bigger than the spoon or the teacup."

"No." said the Director, "A normal person would pull the plug. Do you want a bed near the window?"

• Saturday, September 8, 2007
From a redhead in CA that used to live in TX, a story about perspective:

He just couldn’t seem to get to work on time. Every day, 5, 10, 15 minutes late. But he was a good worker, real sharp, so the Boss was in a quandary about how to deal with it. Finally, one day he called him into the office for a talk.

"Bill, I have to tell you, I like your work ethic, you do a bang-up job, but your being late so often is quite bothersome."

"Yes, I know Boss, and I am working on it."

"Well good, you are a team player. That`s what I like to hear. It`s odd though, your coming in late. I know you`re retired from the Air Force. What did they say if you came in late there?"

"They said, 'Good morning, General.'"

• Sunday, September 9, 2007
Dorothy in SC reminds us to always consider ALL the possibilities:

An extraordinarily handsome man decided he had the responsibility to marry the perfect woman so they could produce beautiful children beyond compare.

With that as his mission he began to search for the perfect woman.

Shortly there after he met a Redneck who had three stunning, gorgeous daughters that positively took his breath away. So he explained his mission to the Redneck and asked for permission to marry one of them.

The Redneck simply replied, "They're all three lookin' to get married, so you come to the right place. Look 'em over and pick the one you want."

The man dated the first daughter. The next day the Redneck asked for the man's opinion.

"Well," said the man, "she's just a weeeeee bit, not that you can hardly notice...pigeon-toed."

The Redneck nodded and suggested the man date one of the other girls; so the man went out with the second daughter.

The next day, the Redneck again asked how things went.

"Well," the man replied, "she's just a weeeee bit, not that you can hardly tell...cross-eyed."

The Redneck nodded and suggested he date the third girl to see if things might be better. So he did.

The next morning the man rushed in exclaiming,

"She's perfect, just perfect. She's the one I want to marry."

So they were wed right away. Months later the baby was born. When the man visited the nursery he was horrified: the baby was the ugliest, most pathetic human you can imagine. He rushed to his father-in-law and asked how such a thing could happen considering the beauty of the parents.

"Well," explained the Redneck... "She was just a weeeee bit, not that you could hardly tell... pregnant when you met her."