Sunday

Surprise. I had no idea that I'd be posting tonight, but here I am in the small world of Katy, Texas. If that sounds about thirty miles on the wrong side of Houston, that's because it is. All of this is a surprise. When moving from one country to another, there comes a time when everything one owns must be crammed into the back end of a little tiny Toyota Echo. Some large, crazy-heavy suitcases only fit when wedged together in a certain way. These have little wheels that stick helpfully out. Some pairs of colorful little shoes get jammed here and there. Between these extremes there's a DVD player, several cardboard boxes, a tool kit, pillows, book bags, and half a bottle of Haitian rum. When the trunk is finally completely loaded, there's a satisfying twang as the poor clasp finally relents and holds the lopsided thing shut. It's good: because we had to hold things stacked inside this space as we slammed the lid--when we open it again, things shoot out like sprung snakes. Beneath this quivering payload, all the way in a recess of the truck's pressurized bowels, there's a mini-spare tire. Surprise. Earlier today, we had to unload all this stuff onto the soft shoulder of I-10 beneath the sweltering December sun. Our tire blew out near San Antonio in Sunday afternoon traffic. The jack in the tiny Toyota? Too small to raise the car all the way. I expected to clear Baton Rouge tonight, spend the night in the bayou, and then on to North Carolina in a spirited drive tomorrow. Instead, I was surprised. The decrepit mini-spare lasted us another hundred twenty miles to Katy. Near the local chain store tire center, incredibly, there's a Super 8 with free wireless. Surprise. [Cavin]