Cough * Cough * Hack

Remember that Seinfeld episode where Kramer invites all the smokers into his apartment for unrestricted tobacco and nicotine? And there's smoke pouring out from under the door when Jerry goes to investigate? Well, that was our hotel room last night. If it's possible to catch lung cancer overnight, we need to see a doctor.

We knew it was a smoking room when we checked in, but when you have been driving for almost 300 miles, and you are at least 50 miles from the nearest town, you take what's available. There are 3 hotels in Meeker, Colorado. The Meeker Hotel (no vacancy) The Valley Inn (the roaches don't even shower there) and The White River Inn (one room left). We could have camped in the city park by the softball field for $15, but that seemed a bit too rustic for us. We opened the door and windows for a few hours and hoped for the best. Denise, the lovely proprietress felt our pain, and lent us a bottle of Fabreeze. Have a nice night!

Lisa and I woke feeling as if we had smoked a carton of cigarettes. We had those scratchy, throaty voices like we'd been out all night at a frat house. Eyes were red and puffy, heads pounding, and our dander was up.

One of the things we've been trying to improve about ourselves this trip is to speak up when we feel we've been aggrieved. This was just the time to stand up and practice our skills. We talked to the owner of the hotel, explaining that this was one of the most offensive rooms we've ever stayed in (and remember we stayed in that room in Cleveland). His response: "It's a smoking room. People sit in there and smoke." Have a nice day!

On the plus side, we were out of there by 8:00 am, our earliest start in a while. If you ever go to the White River Inn in Meeker, CO, ask for a non-smoking room.