I will admit that I had a bad first impression of Wyoming. I wanted to be picturing Park Ranger Joe Pickett and County Sheriff Walt Longmire (two of my favorite fictional detectives and Wyoming residents) as we drove through Cheyenne heading towards our stop for the night, Buffalo, WY. I was optimistic, and then our car’s air conditioning went kaput. It was 85 degrees.

We faked light-heartedness. How bad could it get? We drove and drove, with our windows cracked and this as our scenery….

There was a lot of “what did you say?” And “I can’t hear you.” At one point there was a bee in our car. I am happy to tell you neither of us are allergic to bee stings, nor did either of us get stung. As far as I know, the bee is still in the car, awaiting today’s adventures and sharpening his stinger.

We arrived at our hotel in Buffalo, WY, put on our masks, and went to reception. The receptionist looked at us as though we were robbing the place. I’m pretty sure she pushed the silent alarm. Apparently Wyoming is mask-free. But they aren’t snickering-free as a total of three people laughed at OUR COVERED UP FACES as we made our way to the room. They were blissfully unaware that we had just spent four hours in a car with no air conditioner and a bee and this as our scenery…..

 I’m happy to tell you that in his Bill-like way, he fixed our air conditioner…..

And then we went to dinner where I had a delicious ribeye steak and a terrible martini — but it was a martini. And our air conditioning was fixed. Next to the restaurant was this…..

So the meat was probably freshly slaughtered. Hmmm.

I leave you with this:

Two happy travelers…..

….and this menu item at the restaurant at which we ate…..

The Bomber Mountain Burger is what makes America great.