I was  checking in when I first laid eyes on him. He was sitting in a chair in the hotel office watching an old black and white movie on the television. He resembled your average homeless, very dark skin, out of control gray/white hair and beard. He was wearing a tattered “don’t mess with Texas” ballcap. He had that serene look about him that a truly happy person has or perhaps he was crazy or maybe a little of both. I exchanged a few words with him and the clerk, an energetic fellow, then retired to my room for a shower.  The next morning I was checking out at daybreak and here comes Juan, returning from the store with a cup of coffee. I asked him where he got the coffee.  He hands me the cup and says “you have mine”. When he sees how astonished I am that he would give me, a complete stranger, the cup of coffee that he just walked to the store and bought for himself, this makes him so happy he hands me the bag he is carrying too and says take this also. In the bag was a pound cake, not a slice of pound cake, but a whole cake. I don’t know what to say. I put the cake in my handlebar bag and started drinking the coffee while Juan starts filling me in on everything I need to know for my ride to San Fernando today. He is very excited to help and is speaking rapid fire Spanish and waving his hands about. He acts like I am going on a mission to crash the gates of Hell, and it is something that he has done it before, and the only way I will survive is if I know everything he knows. He tells me to drink the coffee for energy, when my calves hurt, (he claps the back of his leg to demonstrate) then ‘cambio’ (downshift) and he points at the rear wheel cassette. I nod my head. As he is waving his hands around I notice that two of his fingers have been broken and not set right, they cant off on an angle. He points out that the taillight on my trailer doesn’t work but I show him that is is just a reflector. He says but it is dirty and the trucks won’t see you,. He spits on his hand and wipes the reflector clean. Finally, it looks like I am ready, he gives me the directions to get on hwy 101 and I give him a hug and tell him we are friends for life and will not forget him. I swing a leg over the bike and look at him. He has his hands clasped in prayer and is looking at the sky, then he points at the sky, then he said (and I knew what he was going to say) “vaya con Dios amigo”.