The Mary Augusta has not moved for three days because we have been parked at the JGW RV Park in Redding, California recuperating from our 40 day tear across the United States. We have seen 23 states, met thousands of people, and paid a king’s ransom for gasoline. In the past 10,000 miles, I have seen the sun set in Arizona, watched the waves of the Pacific lap against the California shores, and ridden a cab with a Middle-Eastern driver in New York City. Of all the things I have seen, the thing that has intrigued me the most has been the Deaf community, something I have lived within all of my life. As we have gone from one community gathering to another, we have gotten a feel for countless Deaf communities across the nation. Seeing them all in such short intervals allows me to really distinguish the similarities and differences among them, well as their quirks. For instance, let me take you way out into the place that was put on the map only when Bill Clinton became president, Little Rock, Arkansas.

At the Little Rock Association of the Deaf, we were greeted by some of the friendliest people I had ever met before. Almost all of them are blue collar workers who still take pride in their softball regional championship way back in 1991. I could easily see how far behind the people are in technology when I tried to explain to them that all the film we were shooting and all the notes I was taking were going to be put on the internet.