Random Scrap:
My 'Magnesia Falls' corner was a good to watch the traffic and see how quickly it was picking up. The three lanes were now full of cars which one could divide into two groups - nice American shiny ones and trucks belonging to the lawn movers and construction workers. American invasion on Afghanistan had been on its way for the last few weeks and more and more cars kept carrying small American flags. Byran was a veteran of Vietnam war and seemed to have a distant approach to politics. In fact, I don't think we ever really spent much time discussing the events of 9/11. He was then at Salton Sea, a nearby lake which with eastern winds would bring smell of dead fish. By the time he came back home there was so much that had been said that there was not much to add than express our amazement at what happened. But he was becoming a great host father. The whole house had very informal atmosphere and while other American host families would host polite barbeque parties ours were filled with music and the sound of crashed ice in a blender filled with triple sec and margarita mix.