Day 9, Monday, July 7

We drove down Illinois Highway 1 for several hours - much more great heart of America scenery. Stopped in the Cornjerker land - it's on the billboard picture. While there we took a photo of the children of the corn - see if you can recognize them.
Then on Highway 50 near Vincennes, Indiana we jumped to action for one of our better good deeds. Both cars pulled over when we saw a young couple walking with a gas can in front of their car. Jimmy jogged back to them first - it was a four lane road and traffic was whizzing by. He gave them two good deed doer cards and grabbed their gas can, then told them we would drive up to the next exit, get gas and return. When we returned, Pee Wee and Jimmy flagged approaching cars to move over a lane, Danny helped with the gas, and I explained what we do and asked them to pay it forward.

Our next stop was in the tiny town of Buckskin, Indiana for probably the most bizarre tour we've encountered. It was at Hennegar's Memorabilia and Nostalgia Museum. He had multitudes of old movie star pictures, records, singers, and many more American memorabilia. That part wasn't bad, but it was the way he presented it. We felt like we were being held hostage - he wanted the tour to last hours - we wanted 15 minutes. He claimed he's Elizabeth Taylor's cousin, has developed a woodworking technique that nobody else in the country has, has the largest indoor cactus plant in the world, has the only Army medic uniform that "wasn't turned in," and many more superlatives. He also showed us sketches to build a 100 million dollar facility to honor veterans and has a goal to honor all 43 million past and present service men and women by posting their names in the new facility. His current facility is similar to a two story garage and at the moment he isn't able to afford air conditioning. He also averages five to ten visitors per month. So the 100 million dollar facility may be as likely as me dunking a basketball. The only picture from the museum is of Pee Wee with his hero Pee Wee Herman.

We're spending the night tonight in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Danny's nephew and wife - Mike and Kelly were gracious enough to put us up for the night. We might look for one quick stop in Tennessee tomorrow and then dart back home. I'll put a final tally of good deeds done tomorrow for those who would like to donate to the Co-op. Good night, and if you're one of the 43 million service men or women, stay tuned.