I'm packed and ready to go

Kevin helped me finalize the last-minute stuff. Extra towels. Dog food. Trash bags. Snacks. Dog treats. I have two five-gallon shower bags full, plenty of clothes for both hot and cool weather and two pair of hikers. I have my cameras, laptop, books (seriously, when will I have time to read once I leave Indiana?) and sheets.

I'm taking my .38 AND my stun gun. It's the stun gun I like in the wilderness as the one I have is so loud and scary-sounding that even I run from the sound of that thing. (So do the dogs). I figured if I get intimate with a hungry mountain lion or a grumpy bear the stunner may be the better choice. I really don't like carrying guns out in the wilderness.

***

As I get ready for a big roadtrip, here are some headlines:

Obama revives terror tribunals, dismaying liberals•

Killings of 4 Americans in Tijuana sow fear•

Photographer who took famous fall of Saigon photo dies at 67•

Shoppers, unite! Carrot mobs are cooler than boycotts•

Week of the Weird: Blago shampoo, jet engine eats luggage

Wayman Tisdale dies at age 44 of bone cancer

Farrah FAwcett's autopic of her cancer struggle airs tonight on NBC

Earthquake rattles New Zealand
General Motors cutting 1,100 dealers
MarksJarvis On Money: CFOs not very optimistic
14 million fewer fliers expected this summer
Tucson Citizen to Cease Print Publication
Hungry Eagles Target Maine's Coastal Seabirds
Today in History-May 16
Dead Boy Found Buried in Sand at NM Playground
AP Source: Obama to Name Utah Gov Envoy to China
Joe Biden Announces $100M for Lead-Paint Removal