Over 40 Years Ago, Olivia Newton John Was With Me As I Crossed 1,430 Miles of Australian Desert

      Today's newspaper has a beautiful obituary celebrating the life of Olivia Newton-John. She had an incredible career. She sold 100 million records. She had an equally incredible career as an actor in major films. I do not remember her for the movie Grease, as many people do.

     My mind goes back a little over 40 years. I was driving a new Triumph TR-7. I had just left Port Lincoln, South Australia. I was getting on Australia Highway One. My goal was to reach Perth, West Australia; some 1,430 miles away.

    Australia Highway One is a two-lane highway that goes across the Nullarbor Plain. Perth is one of the most isolated big cities on earth. It has the Indian Ocean on one side and the Nullarbor Plain on the other side.  Long ago, it was cheaper for an Australian in Sydney or Melbourne to fly to Hong Kong or Los Angeles than to fly to Perth. Many Australians adventurous enough to go to Perth would drive to Adelaide South Australia. They would put their car on a train and ride in the passenger car to Perth.

    I decided to do it "the hard way." It was a three-day ride across a semi-dessert that is only inhabited by the Nungaar Aboriginal tribe and a few hardy Australians. Petrol stations are positioned to keep people from running out of gas. Some small settlements offer food and room to travelers. As the sun went down, life got dangerous on the highway. Kangaroos were abundant. If a kangaroo came on the highway and you hit it, the animal would break in two. The animal's top would come crashing through your windshield. It was often a fatal event for the car driver and front seat passengers. To survive, the trick was to ride right behind a large truck. If a "roo" came on the highway, the big truck with a large kangaroo bar in the front would hit the animal and smash it.

   One night the highway grew empty of traffic. I stopped my car and pulled it over to the side. I got out and looked up at the stunningly clear night sky with all the stars showing. I realized that for the first time in my life, I was truly alone.

    Days on the Nullarbor Plain were hot. I would run my car's air conditioner at full power. I still was sweating. There was no radio reception. I had several Olivia Newton-John cassettes. I played the repeatedly. One could say that Olivia kept me company on my long journey across the desert.