Saturday, August 27, 2005
On The Road Again
Sorry for not writing for about the last week or so - has it really been that long???
Took the oldest up to college last weekend; let her take a truck because she goes to school in the mountains. She had to follow me with the old man riding shot gun with her - what a riot!! Ever have someone follow you through NYC and the Bronx?? Thank God we didn’t go on a weekday - otherwise I would have gone totally gray!! Can’t stand driving that part of the trip anyway, let alone with someone with little city driving experience following me. Drivers are probably more ruder in that stretch of the trip than anywhere else on the island parts of NY.
Do have to say that she did pretty good all things considered - and at the moment we aren’t worrying too much that she will try to drive way faster than normal people; the truck always gives you the feeling that it will roll-over if you take a corner or curve too fast (which in truth it will) so hopefully she will remember that it doesn’t like to take curves at more than the posted limit.
Well, we got up there late on Saturday; found out that the part that had been fixed on Friday malfunctioned so needed to find someone to repair it - ah, small town no one open on Sunday. So, we stayed an extra night and got it all set up to be repaired on Tuesday and late Monday we headed back towards home to prepare for our next adventure.
Got home Monday night and started doing wash so that clothes were clean to pack on Tuesday.
Packed early afternoon on Tuesday, picked up our precious pups from the kennel and started on our journey west toward Michigan!! Got in the middle of the Bronx and the pups just had to have a potty break so we stopped at the only McDonald’s that we know in that area and took the dogs out. Forget taking a potty break when you are in the city, under EL tracks (elevated trains), and ninety people around you who are strange - and we mean that in every sense of the word - there was no shutting these pups up. I truthfully think that if they hadn’t been on leashes they would’ve killed someone. (Have to mention here that both dogs were born in the Bronx (strays) taken to a shelter, landed at a joke of an ‘animal rescue’ person in Brooklyn and then adopted by us).
After that fun filled (note sarcastic tone) rest stop we got back on the very heavily congested roadway and proceeded to head to the George Washington Bridge and the main land. Ever been in a vehicle with pups in a crate and end up in a tunnel with a semi truck next to you that is making that awful rumbling racket?? Did you go deaf from the barking?? The next best noise creator was the motorcycle - eventually I couldn’t hear it over the noise in the vehicle.
Having never traveled a long distance with the pups we played it safe and stopped to let them out often - this also makes your 5 1/2 hour ride last a very long time. We stopped at our usual stopping place in PA at 3 a.m. - please remember that we started on the road around 6:15pm. At the motel the pups wanted to go outside every hour on the hour so dear hubby had to take them outside - this is ok, because he can sleep in the vehicle - I can’t, I have to drive.
The next day went much faster and smoother because we didn’t give the pups the recommended “Rescue Remedy” that was supposed to calm them down and let them sleep during the trip. After reading the bottle - 27% alcohol - I decided that drinking does not agree with the pups so we are not giving them that again.
Now we are here in Michigan and other than trying to get our house in shape, we have been on the road or stuck waiting for appointments every spare minute. And now that it is after 3 a.m. if I hurry I can still get to bed earlier than I did last night!! (Yeah)
More updates on our traveling and conversations overheard while on the road - lots of fun stuff to share - so stay tuned!!
