Ailana’s Journal—2026-06-24 (Patreon)

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GOOD MORNING by Ailana Geven Keller

The sign says “End of the Trail,” but for us, it’s the beginning. There are quite a few caveats when it comes to U.S. Route 66. It’s not the same now as it was at its height.

Route 66 has had a few different endings over the years. It originally stopped in downtown Los Angeles, then was extended to Lincoln and Olympic in Santa Monica—about a mile from the ocean.

That official endpoint felt a little underwhelming after driving all the way from Chicago, so in 2009 an unofficial “End of the Trail” sign was placed on Santa Monica Pier.

Honestly, the pier feels like the right place to finish. Or begin, in our case!

We’re calling this our Route 66 road trip, but I should explain what that means.

We’re going to travel Route 66 in spirit rather than follow every mile exactly as it existed decades ago. The original highway was officially removed from the federal highway system, and over the years different sections were renamed, renumbered, moved, absorbed into interstates, or turned into ordinary local streets. In some places, the old road is still easy to follow. In others, it disappears, dead-ends, or simply isn’t practical for a group pulling a trailer.

So, we’ll use modern roads when we need to, but we’ll keep returning to the historic route. We’ll stop in towns, neighborhoods, roadside attractions, diners, motels, and landmarks that were genuinely part of Route 66. Sometimes we’ll drive the old pavement. Sometimes we’ll be on the interstate running beside it.

The goal isn’t to prove we followed every original turn. The goal is to experience the places, people, history, and imagination that made Route 66 famous.

We’re chasing the spirit of the Mother Road—all the way from Santa Monica toward Chicago.

And we’re taking you with us! Let’s go!

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FIRST OF MANY by Ailana Geven Keller

Let me begin by saying that Emily called out that this title is a double entendre. Props to Ms. Keys, her 10th-grade English teacher!

It’s our first of many stops. It’s also the first of many McDonald’s stores.

Clay put this stop on the itinerary. I’m not mad about it!

“When you think of Americana, don’t you think of fast food?” Clay said. “And when you think of fast food, don’t you think of McDonald’s?”

It might not be your favorite, but chances are, you’ve visited the Golden Arches at some point.

But fast food didn’t begin with McDonald’s. The modern fast-food chain is usually traced to White Castle, which was founded in Wichita in 1921 and offered a small menu, quick service, and consistent food. McDonald’s later took that idea and changed the world with it.

This is the corner where brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald opened McDonald’s Bar-B-Q in 1940. It began as a drive-in with carhops and a much larger menu than the burgers and fries we associate with the name today.

In 1948, the brothers changed everything. They removed the carhops, simplified the menu, reorganized the kitchen, and created their Speedee Service System. The goal was simple food prepared quickly, consistently, and affordably. That idea helped shape the entire fast-food industry.

The original restaurant building is gone, and this is an unofficial museum rather than a working McDonald’s. Inside, there are old photographs, signs, menus, toys, packaging, uniforms, and decades of memorabilia sent by people from around the world.

The outside is wonderfully quirky, with giant golden arches, murals, and reminders of the original Speedee mascot.

It’s a humble-looking place for an idea that eventually reached almost everywhere—but maybe that’s what makes it such an interesting first stop.

That’s it for now! Thanks to ChatGPT for doing the research for me!

See you soon!

UNEXPECTED CALL by Ailana Geven Keller

I’m standing at Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch somewhere between where we were and where we’re going. I’m pretty sure there’s nothing like this in—say—Paris! I’ll let you look it up because I have something else to tell you about.

We had just unloaded from the Highlander and the RV when my phone rang. It was Vanessa Lenen, a staff member at the Shoreline clinic whom I’m getting to know and who once modeled for us.

“Ailana? Vanessa here. Hope it’s okay to call.”

“Sure it is. What’s up?”

“So, I’m working on a grant. It’s a nationwide study of how different discharge protocols affect recovery after traumatic injuries. They went old-school with the numbers and randomly picked thirty communities all across the U.S. Cameron County is one of them.”

“I see.” I assumed she was going somewhere.

“There are a lot of variables in the study around what works best for long-term recovery. For instance, does rehab work better than home health services? Insurance companies want to know, right?”

“I can see that…” I paused, then added, “Vanessa, this doesn’t feel like we’re having a friendly chat. Is this a business call?”

She laughed. “I’m in my office. Not even in scrubs! I guess I’m locked in, but yeah… there’s an ask coming. The grant calls for a caseworker to handle the follow-up. Counseling is a long way from bacteria and other nasties, so I’m not sure what qualifications I should be looking for. I remember you telling me that one of your friends from your modeling years went into that line of work…”

“Yes,” I said. “Izzy Duffy.”

“You said she was sharp, and I thought I could call her and pick her brain about what kind of qualifications I’m looking for. I need to have a solid description of the position for the grant application. I was hoping you’d give me her contact info and let her know I’m going to call.”

“Of course I’ll do that,” I replied.

Then we did chat for a little while, catching up on what had happened over the last few weeks.

That’s it for now. Don’t forget to look up Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch!

See you soon.

GOOD NIGHT by Ailana Geven Keller

Day one of our U.S. Route 66 Odyssey is nearing its end. We’re in Barstow, California, an iconic stop on the historic route.

We’ve checked into the hotel—we’re staying at the Route 66 Motel…because it seemed like the thing to do. We freshened up a little for dinner, then came here.

Now, we’re at the Route 66 Mother Road Museum. It’s actually inside Barstow’s historic Harvey House, which makes the stop feel like two pieces of travel history in one. The museum follows the Mother Road from early pioneer trails and railroads through automotive history, roadside businesses, signs, photographs, and memorabilia from Mojave Desert communities.

The building itself is Casa del Desierto, a Santa Fe Railway depot and former Fred Harvey hotel and restaurant built between 1910 and 1913 after an earlier wooden depot burned in 1908. It welcomed generations of rail travelers before changing roles. Today, the restored landmark still serves Amtrak passengers and houses museums celebrating both Route 66 and America’s railroad past.

From here, we’re heading to Route 66 Pizza Palace—it’s been serving Barstow for almost forty years. It sits directly on the historic route, serves pizza, pasta, sandwiches, and salads, and has an old-school arcade. Everyone should be able to find something they like.

I’ll bring today’s journal entry to a close now. We had a great first day with no problems worth mentioning. We had fun and learned some things.

Josh and Jason cataloged quite a bit of information for articles. I took some environmental images and will do some research to see if I can come up with a conservation piece at some point. We’re calling it a good first day!

May you have days that go to plan—days that move steadily forward as expected and lead to peace and prosperity.

Good night.

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