Day 2 observations

No, Cheyenne, I don't think I will be trying your sushi

- There is a gap between Sidney, Nebraska and the I-80-I-76 split where you can't get any phone reception, and I wasn't able to stream Pandora. At first, I felt lost, alone and and angry, and that made me realize that I've got it pretty good here in America. And then I realized I have to pass back through that same stretch of road again, and now I'm pissed. HOW CAN I GO 45 MINUTES WITHOUT HEARING TOTO

- While I was driving through Nebraska, I saw a legit cowboy working with some horses. He had the hat on and everything, I think he was rustling.

- While the first cowboy hat was a pleasant little novelty, I came to find that residents of Cheyenne wear them unironically. If you have a stereotype about Cheyenne, it is accurate. 

- I got into town early, and I headed to the mall (Frontier something or other). Honest to goodness, the first two stores I encountered were "Wild Western" which sold, obviously, western gear, and "Boot Barn" which sold western gear (with a special emphasis on cowboy boots). What IS this place?

- I went to the Chik-fil-a at the mall. There was a gentleman eating his sandwich while wearing a cowboy hat. 

- My hotel room overlooks I-25. Across the interstate is nothing. Miles and miles of nothing. I can see a couple lights, but that might be Laramie. Laramie is 40 miles away.

- There are a great many buildings with marquees here, something that adds to the undeniable charm of this place. Most of the marquees have a cowboy on them.

- The various news stations here come from; ABC - Casper, CBS - Denver, NBC - Cheyenne. The ABC station advertised it's morning show, claiming live coverage on Monday from the grand re-opening of the Red Lobster in downtown Casper. (Sidebar... internet research tells me the place burned down. Ironically, a bar in Eagan, MN called Casper's just burned down before I left. What do they have in common? I wouldn't eat seafood at either restaurant)

- I went out for dinner at a sports bar in downtown Cheyenne. It was a very nice bar, called Shadow's, with TVs (flat screen and tube. Tube TVs!) and very good burgers. Anyways, two customers stood out to me. One was a gentleman wearing a Detroit Lions sweater, which was strange enough, but he had a gigantic Lions tattoo on his calf too. Sitting next to him was a gentleman in a very nice full suit. He was wearing a cowboy hat.