An Observation

In general, the facilities at public rest stops are cleaner than those at gas stations.

This applies to those found in Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, and Connecticut and only a single experience at a gas station.

Your experience may vary.

I think burg means "of nowhere"

Sunday, June 20th. Fathers' Day. Graduation date for Nashua High, South.

6:30pm: we leave Manchester NH on the first leg of our return to Georgia. Remembering our unplanned drive through New York City, we wanted to choose a route which would avoid such a detour. Her dad suggested taking Interstate 88 to Interstate 81. We had used I-81 on our way north and decided this was a sound idea. We were quickly on the Mass Pike (I-90) and drove most of the length of the state and into upper New York state. With no difficulty, we exited to I-88 and headed south-west as darkness gently descended over a balmy evening.
The children had been excited but now sleeping quietly (thank you!) and we felt comfortable with driving until quite late and making progress towards home. It did not take us long to notice that I-88 was different than the arteries we had taken north: no billboards, no rest stops which we can recall, and almost no references to local restaurants or lodging. Apparently, this was a relatively new road and most of the businesses were still centered around the local highway (Hwy 7). Finally, we saw a sign for some variation of Holiday Inn. We followed the signs which led us east (east?!?!) along the local highway, even to the point of taking us past a sign to I-88. Okay, this was weird! We stopped for gas and I asked for directions to the hotel. Yes, I asked for directions. It was close by but well hidden. They had no rooms.
Back to the interstate. The next town of any size was 45 miles further along. We pulled off the highway any time we saw a promising sign but found only old motels whose offices had probably close by 8pm. They were pretty run-down as it was. One sign indicated an exit to the town of Middleburg....
Finally, we reached the oasis of civilization which is Oneonta. They has a McDonald's, a Denny's and...... a Super 8 hotel. We were saved!!!!

Please understand that this route was a pleasant drive through relatively untouched hills. Had we left earlier in the day and not been concerned about a place to stay, it would have been a wonderful drive.

This is where I hope to insert the picture of the deer which Debbie saw out the window of our room the next morning.

Looks Like We Made It

Despite the unexpected detour through NYC and the best efforts of the congested traffic through Waterbury and Hartford, Connecticut, we managed to reach my sister's home in time for dinner.
And, much to our suprise, that thrice-cursed navigator actually proved useful, providing us a more efficient route through the state of Masschusetts, saving us some time and a whopping 60 cents in tolls.

As with the night before (Wed.), Sophie's patience with travelling was wearing out by early evening. From the time we reached the Mass Pike, she bombarded us with the dreaded "How much longer is it?" As we got closer, the questions became more frequent,

We had a great dinner and conversation at my sister's while the kids introduced their cousins to the Wii "Let's Dance" game. I foresee a trip to Wal-mart in their near future. It is amazing how quickly time passes: I clearly remember their wedding on May 11, 1992 and their older daughter just finished junior year in high school.

We got to the hotel in Nashua after 9pm and it seems like a nicer place than the Holiday Inn we stayed at in PA. At the very least, it has wireless!

Open the pod-bay doors, HAL

Okay.... how to phrase this delicately?

The Sprint Navigator can bite my hairy, fat ... thigh!

We weren't able to see each step on the route ahead of us, just the next action/turn. Everything seemed to be matching what I had planned from Google Maps, until we didn't turn north on to I-278 in NJ. We kept heading east. Its diabolical plan was to take us on I-90. We went to manual navigation.

We drove through Newark NJ... Route 21 has stoplights. We suurendered to the inevitable and got to 95 and crossed the G. Washington Bridge into NYC.

But, the human spirit cannot be crushed and we threw off the shackles of The Machine!

We're a few miles from I-84 and 200 miles from Littleton.

Breakfast Discovery

In my younger days, which include the present, I considered a biscuit or toast as a way to have jam or jelly. Ben seems to have the same approach but for butter. But he has taken this idea to another level. He waits for me to butter the biscuit and proceeds to consume the remaining butter, leaving the biscuit mostly uneaten.

/emote eats half of Ben's biscuit with jelly (and butter)

Day 2

Next time, I think we will fly.

Change of States

We woke up in Tennessee this morning. We crossed Virginia, the hard way. Or is that the long way? Whichever it was 325 miles worth. I-81 then slices along the edge of W. Virginia. I made the required remarks, never fear! Then through Maryland and into Pennsylvania.

The kids' states changed as well. It didn't take long for the excitement of the morning to fade and we were required to provide updates every 10 minutes on how much farther we had to go. I showed Sophie a map of Virginia at one rest stop. She asked "where, on this map, do my cousins live?" Well, seeing as they live in Massachusetts, nowhere. The whining started after 3 more DVDs. "Yes, we know you are bored!" She eventully fell asleep (passed out?). Her mood had not improved upon awakening shortly before 6pm. She was tired of sitting in her car seat. Not that I blame her - she had been sitting in it since 9am with short breaks.

Ben, as usual for a 3 year old, has been cheerful, whiny, hungry, scared, wanting to be rained on, etc.
Yeah, there were a few quick downpours to drive through. All were moving quickly to the east.


The lure of an indoor swimming pool determined our end point for this day's travels. Debbie and the kids are there now. I'm looking into somewhere to eat.

Wow, I had to plug in an ethernet cable in this place!

Day 1

This part is better if you imagine hearing it read with an accent.

Our party began the ascent in earnest today. The sherpas had vanished in the night, but we are determined to make our way over the ancient Appalacian mountains. Consulting ancient maps printed on paper, we went about choosing our route. The most promising option was a wide path leading north-east. If we read the faded glyphs on the map properly, there was plenty of game for food along the way.
The air got thinner as we climbed higher. We learned that our maps must be old since the path narrowed in several places. We also learned to watch for fallen rocks.

By noon, dissent broke out. Members of the party began to disagree over what stories the minstels should tell. The faction supported "the princess and the frog" won out, but fell into slumber shortly thereafter.

There are mumblings in the ranks now about the length of our trek. This should end once we enter the Land of Mary on the other side of these mountains.

Waking up is hard to do

... especially when some short, blond child didn't have any interest in sleeping. He wanted to lay on the floor, then back on their shared bed, then in our bed.

For weeks, Sophie has been excited about staying at a hotel. Maybe, at her age, a Motel 6 is not a huge disappointment. Hey, the shower had decent pressure and hot water! Can't ask for more.

Looks like another rainy start.

Day 0. We neeed an ark

I drove home in a major downpour, the car being pelted by the bits of the trees which couldn't hold on. Managed to make it home and pack my side of the suitcase and gather the essentials (this netbook, for instance).
We took a mostly direct route to I-75, avoiding the traffic around Atlanta. Stopped at a rest stop once we got to the interstate. I think we got to listen to one of the Nicklelodeon DVDs and then it was Sophie's turn to choose a movie. Oh, Ben doesn't like it; he wants to listen to Celtic Thunder. Yay, headphones!!

Sophie passed out by a little after 9. Ben was awake until past 11pm. Dang, kid!

We're a smidge past Knoxville which is about what we had planned on. Should the kids be watching Family Guy?

What? Why? Where?

It is DD's graduation from high school. We were not all able to attend Meg's last year -- Sophie and I flew up. This year, we're driving, Yes, driving from GA to Nashua. Close to 1,200 miles. With 2 kids in the car.

Maybe the title ought to be "The Last Gasp of My Sanity".

To maintain the kids' normal level of digital immersion, we got a DVD player with two screens. Let's see if they can agree on what to watch!