Greetings Ragtime Fans:

  Well, the party rolls on. Linda and I just finished a two month tour that began in Michigan's Upper Peninsula about October 20 and just now finished in the famous Blackwater, Missouri. Oh, yes: it's December 15 right now, about two months since we left in October, and we're now trying to outrun an ice/snow storm in order to get home without having to camp out for two days along the road somewhere.

   What? You thought the life of a concert pianist was easy? Jet planes, cruise liners, stuffed lobster for dinner and bonbons? Nope, wrong. We hammer down from gig to gig in our small motor home (pictured somewhere else in this website), and it now has 531,245 miles on it. (Yes, we take good care of it! Oil and grease are cheaper than parts and labor.) 

  Three years ago we encountered a glare ice situation in the Texas panhandle in early December. The roads were so icy that you'd slide into the ditch if you stopped driving. We pulled off onto historic Route 66 and stayed in McClain, Texas, overnight, only to discover the next day that Texas doesn't put sand on icy roads. In fact, I approached a deputy of some sort the next morning as he ate donuts and coffee (seriously!) and asked him if the roads had been sanded yet. He looked up at me for a long moment, then drawled,

  "Boy, do you know how much it costs to dump sand on 170 miles of Texas Panhandle roads? Just wait a while: the truckers'll have that ice all busted up for ya'll."

  We heard three people were killed and saw countless cars, RVs, and 18-wheelers in the ditches, some of them standing on their roofs, when we were finally able to leave the next day. 

  So, briefly though, I'm glad to be able to check in with this update. The roads are good, the snows' not here yet, and I gots to hit the road again. See "ya'll" next time!

Bob Milne

P.O. Box 586

Lapeer, MI  48446

810.441-0021

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www.bobmilne.com

 Bob and Linda's Challenge:

Anyone who makes it to all the concerts in any given month will get free burgers with Bob and Linda at the local truck stop! The "Flying 'J" has been offering good stuff lately. Although no "5 Star" endorsements are being ballyhooed from finer dining compendiums, the National Truck & Road magazine rates 'em "Mighty Fine!"

See you soon!