Quick as a bunny

It must’ve been the quickest 1800 miles in Bookwormom Central history. Eleven states. Three colleges. Several relatives- one of whom I’d not seen since he was eight He’s quite the cutie , too. One graveyard in the pouring rain. One tire that had to be replaced due to torn tread. What else? No cell service while we were in Maine. All sandwiched between 11 pm Wednesday night and 9:30 pm Sunday night. I’m a little tired. How about you?

The following is a list of observations we made while on the road:

1. 2 extremely obese men, think Sumo wrestler weight, fighting at the gas station Wed. Night as we were heading out of town. Don’t know what they were fighting over- Son #1’s theory is that one of them had just eaten the last Twinkie.

2. How do we always end up in Jersey at 2 am?

3. The huge cemetery beside the Jersey Parkway is creepy looking at 3 am, even when zooming by at 75 mph

4. Wish we could’ve seen the beautiful Hudson Valley, but between 3-5 am NY is bloody pitch dark. LOL We probably drove right by Tara’s house.

5. It was overcast and foggy the entire morning- a perfect foil for the gorgeous foliage. Which was still awe inspiring despite being past peak.

6. The VT gas station attendant who was amazed by our Dept. of Defense gate & inspection stickers. For once I wished Husband was a spy or spec. ops again or something. Just to see the young man’s eyes bug out even more.

7. You know you’re not in Suburbia anymore when the signs beside the road warn drivers “Moose Crossing”

8. VT has snow the day after we were there. *boo hoo hoo*

9. The hotel was so full that we couldn’t check in early. We’d been on the road 10 hours and desperately wanted showers & a nap before Son #1’s interview. Alas it was not to be.

10. The elderly man zooming along the sidewalks on a Segway. Tree branches and small dogs no obstacle.

11.Son #1 & Husband met a grocery store clerk who wanted to go to college at William & Mary (Husband's & my alma mater). It is indeed a very small world.

12. Sgt. Russell Durgin spray painted on a overpass on NH route 9. May he rest in peace & may the good Lord hold his family in the palm of His hand.

13. The water in Chocorua Lake was warmer than the air. The lake assn. Has beautiful benches & tables beside the lake. Free for public use.

14. If you’re ever in the Conway, NH area, check out the guy who does custom carving - he has a huge bear & an indian face (totem style) made from whole sections of trees. Quite impressive.

15. Torrential rain in ME Friday. Hard enough that bubbles and waves blew across the puddle outside the motel door.

16. We were passed by a giant double column of motorcycle riders.. we estimate at least 60 bikes. The weather was bright and sunny, and we figured they enjoyed the sunshine as much as we did.

17. There is a Giant indian statue beside I 295 near Yarmouth ME. Note: site chosen for photo, not accuracy of commentary.

18. The seawall in Biddeford is carefully piled, unmortared boulders. Very easy to climb atop & sit down upon, although cold on the derriere.

19. In a restaurant both Husband & the man at the next table had the same order number- thus followed many cheap date jokes.

20. In PA massage parlors are free to advertise on highway billboards. “Truckers Welcome” at all. Diseases free too I’d imagine.

21. Husband fell in love with the granite edged sidewalks.

22. Lukoil (the Russian energy giant) has bought up all of the Getty gas stations in this general region (PA north to ME).

23. I hadn’t seen Gulf gas & convenience stations since I was a girl & I’d assumed Gulf was out of business. Wrong. They seem to be alive and well in New England.