We left East Texas yesterday and spent the night with one of our sons north of Dallas. Lil' Miss GPS then directed us to head due north on Interstate 35 into Oklahoma to link up with Interstate 40 in Oklahoma City.
Immediately after crossing the Texas-Oklahoma state line we cross onto a Chickasaw
Indian Reservation. Since then we've crossed into and out of several reservations for different tribes: the Chickasha, Cheyenne, Arapahoe... Remember, as the Europeans (and subsequently, Americans) pushed west, they pushed all Native American peoples westward, too. Ultimately it seems that a ton of those tribes ended up with reservations in Oklahoma.
What most folks don't realize is that those "reservations" are considered sovereign to the tribes. A few year ago they realized they could legalize gambling on the reservations even if the state they were in didn't have it. It became the first real revenue source these tribes ever had - and they are gettin' rich! Seeing them go from abject poverty to having huge, beautiful casino facilities with hotels and restaurants ought to be proof enough that, in the long run, gamblers are losing money and casinos are makin' money by the truck load.
Don't get me wrong: I'm glad for 'em. But don't be lookin' for me to darken the door of a gamblin' joint anytime soon. I wanna keep MY money!
So, we're rollin' down Interstate 40 now - which used to be the famous Route 66. Should make Amarillo by noon and Albuquerque by nightfall.
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