It was immense!I don't know what they were drinking. It was in a pitcher, nestled in the ice in their cooler. They told me what it was called but I di...n't recognize the name and I don't remember it now. Roy insisted I have a glass of it though, and it was delicious. I couldn't even taste the alcohol in it. Roy refilled my glass several times. They even talked Dave into switching from his beer to their special concoction and he seemed to enjoy it too.We sat in the shade and talked like old. His name was Larry, and he had never flown in an OH-58A before.The OH-58A was a military version of the Bell 206 Jet Ranger, with longer main rotor blades and a lot less power. It was so underpowered, in fact, that on hot days we sometimes had to bump it along the ground until we moved the main rotor into clean air (air not stirred up by the main rotor itself) and achieved what the books called "translational lift". That was actually a good name for it, because when it hit, you felt like you. " I said smiling at him. It was just a stranger's smile not an invitation. I had been thoroughly screwed out.We refilled our gas cans before we went to bed that night. We also loaded up on water and crackers, just in case. Everyone said the road would be getting empty, since most of the traffic had been diverted to the interstate highways. The most likely we were to find food and lodging was where the old roads bumped into the federal highways.The old roads did go through the small western. It was late May, the start of summer, and the air was pleasantly warm. The sun hadn't set, but it was low enough to cast a golden glow on the surrounding trees.Clarissa's house was big, expensive and secluded, situated on the northern edge of 145 acres. The trees were tall and stately, almost certainly planted the century before. The grounds were immaculately landscaped, and the view of the river from the back terrace was astounding. Pergolas and gazebos dotted the large yard, offering privacy.