We slept at Wal-Mart

As we drove into Flagstaff, already after dark, with errands to do, we drove past Wal-Mart and Ruby said, “Maybe we should stay there...” Our plan had been to finish our shopping, then head out into the Kaibab National Forest west of town, find a Forest Service road where we could sleep the night. But that takes time and we were both tired from hiking and driving. Friends had told us that Wal-Mart lets RVs and motor homes stay overnight in their parking lot and, sure enough, when we got there to check it out, there were a few camped out off in the corner.

It was a bizarre plan. The experience of shopping at Wal-Mart is strange enough, let alone camping out in the parking lot. But, after we found the 6-volt battery, the headlamp and the utility lighter we had been looking for (and after Ruby, infected with seasonal spirit, flirted with and ultimately rejected a string of LED Christmas lights for the bus) we found a spot in the brightly-lit, busy lot, near I-40, put up our curtains and...slept. OK, it wasn’t the wilderness. In fact, cars drove by us back and forth from the store, most of the night. But it’s nice to have friends in a strange city, n’est-ce pas? and I’ve harbored warmer feelings about Sam Walton ever since.

We got up early (but who can tell when it’s always as bright as daytime?) and went to the 50s-themed Galaxy Diner for breakfast before leaving town and heading on west.