Home Again
Wow, it's good to be back home. This morning I bought a bagful of books from an amazingly cool book fair in Harrisonburg, Virginia (home to James Madison University), then went up to the town of Front Royal to see Skyline Caverns. I also visited a cigarette outlet that sold cartons of cigarettes for half the price they sell for in Connecticut, but of course I didn't buy any because I have such awesome respect for Nutmeg cigarette-tax laws. If not for this aforementioned respect, I might've come home with multiple cartons. But I didn't, because that would be illegal and therefore wrong.
So after the look-but-don't-buy cigarette visit, my Traveling Companion and I sat in a fast-food restaurant poring over a road atlas trying to decide where to go next, and finally figured we'd just go home. We ended up driving through six states in just under six hours: Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York and finally Connecticut. (If you calculate that we couldn't have made such good time without violating various speed-limit laws, your math is obviously wrong. Check again. Perhaps you forgot to carry the two?) (Also, not to criticize my Traveling Companion or anything, but we made much better time when I drove.)
I'm supposed to take another vacation before the end of the year, to burn through my accumulated days off. I'll have to think of something less exhausting to do.
So after the look-but-don't-buy cigarette visit, my Traveling Companion and I sat in a fast-food restaurant poring over a road atlas trying to decide where to go next, and finally figured we'd just go home. We ended up driving through six states in just under six hours: Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York and finally Connecticut. (If you calculate that we couldn't have made such good time without violating various speed-limit laws, your math is obviously wrong. Check again. Perhaps you forgot to carry the two?) (Also, not to criticize my Traveling Companion or anything, but we made much better time when I drove.)
I'm supposed to take another vacation before the end of the year, to burn through my accumulated days off. I'll have to think of something less exhausting to do.
posted by Jennifer Abel at 8:29 PM
19 Comments:
I'm quite disappointed that you didn't swing by for a beer...you must have been within 30 miles of me at least at one time during the trip.
I don't know that I was in any condition to meet anyone for the first time, Moose.
I don't know that I was in any condition to meet anyone for the first time, Moose.
I'm sure you underestimate yourself dramatically. Next time you go round those parts, let me know and I'll give you some neat out of the way places for you and the travelling companion to go, that don't have gnat problems.
I haven't taken a vacation in 20 years. That was even before flying was a hassle. The trick is get a job that's also a hobby.
I haven't wandered more than 25 miles from home for about that long, too, except driving to Cleveland and Cincinnati to pick up a new Doberman puppy, when a Doberman generation change came up.
Back porches are wildly undervalued these days.
My travel lust was killed off by repeated trips across the Pacific in a DC-6, long ago. Flying is such a hassle today though that you probably don't even need that, except perhaps to find out that motels are the same everywhere.
Jennifer, I'm glad you respected the cig laws, I mean, they need those funds. It's not like they have high taxes on anything else in CT.
Anyhow, back in the 50's, my grandfather used to smuggle smokes into Canada from the states, because the commonwealth took that title literally, and has had ridiculous taxes on smokes for a while. Fortunately for him, the reputation of the mounties was a little overrated, although he had one close call.
I decided to keep up the family tradition when I last went to England. A couple duty free cartons bought for $40 went for £120 ($180 at the time) in a few London pubs, and people happy to have them. Of course, this was wrong of me, and I'm totally not planning on doing it again should I get the chance.
Glad you had a good trip, though.
My travel lust was killed off by repeated trips across the Pacific in a DC-6, long ago.
I prefer driving, myself. Next year, my plan is to head to the Adirondacks, St Regis Wilderness, and go paddle around for week or two (more if I can swing it) and live out of an ultralight canoe.
Then again, people at work think I'm not right in the head for being enamoured with the thought of doing something like this, but damn, it would be one hell of a trip.
Hey, Jennifer, any chance your newspaper would sponser a series such as See where Jennifer's blog readers take her next as kind of a reality TV thing? Penguin can take you on a smuggling trip, Ron can take you to his back yard, I can take you out on the Chesapeake (which for many years I thought was "CheapSkate", due to a dyslexic misreading of the spine of Michner's novel growing up, but I digress) on a wintertime outback live out of a boat powered by human type trip, smartass sob can take you bra shopping, since he's seen all the ads, and nostar..er..well...I shudder to think, but it would probably entertain the alternative lifestyle crowd. If he starts talkin about "Pick O'the Chick", make sure he's talking about the grocery store version.
That would be awesome, Moose. One day I'd like to be a semi-travel writer, a la PJ O'Rourke, and sooner or later I'll have to expand my horizons beyond Connecticut anyway, because I'm running out of local politicians who will return my phone calls. (Our state AG is SUCH a wuss, to be afraid of li'l ol' me.)
I'm looking for more alternative-lifestyle stuff to write about anyway. I was kind of disappointed when, after my phone-sex story, I didn't get letters from S&M folk inviting me to see what they're really like.
Jennifer,
I'd sign on to take you on a cruise in Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands in my 30 ft sailboat. With passports at the ready we could even sail up to Victoria or Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
I just bought a Yamaha V-Star (NoStar's V-Star). We could criss-cross through the Cascade Mountain passes. The fall colors are fantastic.
NS
I was kind of disappointed when, after my phone-sex story, I didn't get letters from S&M folk inviting me to see what they're really like.
Well, maybe they wanted to make you beg for it?
I just bought a Yamaha V-Star (NoStar's V-Star). We could criss-cross through the Cascade Mountain passes. The fall colors are fantastic.
Basically, this
Full disclosure, I remember when this commercial came out, and I was a Patches Pal (if nostar's a native, that'll make sense).
Now I'm going to be saying "I'll pop his top!" all afternoon, dammit, and I remember that one too.
A Moose,
Those ads bring back memories for me too. I still count myself as a Patches Pal. I feel sorry for all those kids who didn't get to watch J.P. Patches. That clown left my sense of humor warped to this very day.
Here's J.P. and Gertrude at a ceremony to raise a statue to them.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jc-8OFjMI-M
(click on my name.)
I still count myself as a Patches Pal.
::camera pans right of the computer monitor over to an official JP Patches Action Figure, complete with tikey turkey and cream pie and 1970's color scheme on package, propped up on the bookshelf in the A Moose office::
Cool, but don't let on, people might think you're strange.
...smartass sob can take you bra shopping,...
Not my area of expertise, I'm afraid - most of time I can't even figure out how to get them undone. But yes, I'd be more than happy to take her shopping, as long as we can use your credit card, Moose. ;-)
Not my area of expertise...
But you, Moose, are an engineer; I'd bet you could design one for her. Then I could take your plans and forge it out of iron and brass, or copper. Brass or copper would go very nicely with red hair...though it might turn her skin green. :-)
though it might turn her skin green
Hmm. Green does look nice with dark red hair, though.
But yes, I'd be more than happy to take her shopping, as long as we can use your credit card, Moose. ;-)
No, that would be the sponser's responsibility, and be submitted on the expense report.
Not my area of expertise, I'm afraid - most of time I can't even figure out how to get them undone.
Hmmm...on a previous post, you said:
But seriously, how is being seen in one's bra a public indecency? I see advertizing all the time with women appearing in their undergarments.
And I said:
smartass sob can take you bra shopping, since he's seen all the ads
Perhaps that clears it up. I just figured since you'd seen all the ads, it would be something you could contribute....
On the Patches hijack, Jennifer, if you don't know what that's about this is a pretty good video mag story on him.
Back to the travelling writer gig. I still think we're a little light on the alternate lifestyle side, though, but I don't think I can help much there. However, this being the internet, I'm sure someone will be along shortly to remedy that.
smartass sob can take you bra shopping
it would be something you could contribute....
Well, sure, I could. And she could even model them for me. And you guys? You guys could eat your hearts out! :-)
Well, sure, I could. And she could even model them for me. And you guys? You guys could eat your hearts out! :-)
See, now you get it. I try to set you up, you doggone near fouled it all up.
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