February 18...gotta be fit in Maine!

Okay, so you have to stay fit to live in Maine….

Down jacket…well, yeah, it’s 20 degrees outside

Boots – well, yeah, there’s 24 inches of snow…

Shorts??? Duh, Mom. I’m going to work out…………..

So, this morning at 6:30 we stamped the snow off our boots and took off for home (via Chicago)….the first thing we noticed was the size of the snow drifts…..for the last 3 weeks, we’ve pulled ‘waaaaayyyy out into the street, because you can’t see over the 6-foot snow piles at the corners of the streets. Well, obviously, Massachusetts didn’t get hit with the same snow storm, since their corners are about 12 inches high.

We drove south from Maine into New Hampshire, where we were greeted with my favorite (and scary) state motto: “LIVE FREE OR DIE” IN New Hampshire. Okay, I get the message, but they print it out in really scary letters, like it’s a threat…. Live Free , or D I E …..

Anyway,we entered the Massachusetts Turnpike, stopped and got coffee and breakfast from McDonalds (read a prior post about the Mass Pike and McDonalds)….Massachusetts looks like they took advantage of federal tax $$, because the turnpike is lovely – except for every overpass, which is ridden with tons of huge, tire-killing potholes. (See my issues with Mike Pense, prior post). On the bright side (for those of us who are readers – that’d be you, Virginia Wagner) – we went through Lowell, Mass, which is where one of Spenser’s  adversaries lives.  As we drove through the western suburbs of Boston (okay, the whole freaking state of Massachusetts is a suburb of Boston, let’s face it), we saw a bunch of folks ice fishing and otherwise skating, playing, etc., on the ponds. Kind of like a Currier and Ives picture, only a la 2017.

Traveling by car through New England is interesting, as regards to the highway/control pass system. In Maine, there is an EZ Pass lane, and you just drive through, at highway speed. No slow down, nothing. In Massachusetts, you have your own lane, but you have to slow down to 10 mph and creep through. In New York, you have to go through a booth, as if you were throwing coins into the basket, and then the light turns green and lets your through…..So, Maine gets the prize for easiest travel.

So we are getting used to having a BIG truck. While I’m having a difficult time learning how to turn, Bob’s having a hard time, too. Hmmm …..this is a first for him. He’s never NOT been able to see the right corner of his vehicle. Welcome to my world! (If I didn’t know better, I would think there IS no right corner of a vehicle – I’ve certainly never seen one.) While we were in Chicago, we’d go to Costco or Target – when we came out, we’d just look for the biggest vehicle in the lot – that’d be us. However, in Maine, EVERYONE drives a big truck. We’re just one of 20 F-150’s or larger. Made us feel right at home.

As we left Massachusetts and entered New York state, we entered the Erie Canal system. I guess I never realized just how long the Erie Canal is….we traveled alongside it most of this afternoon, finally leaving it at Buffalo, where it enters Lake Ontario. Really fun to see – we passed a number of locks, which are, of course, not in use this time of year. But still, it reminded me that I’d really like to cruise the great circle some day.

A fun thing happened while we were driving past Herkimer, New York. (Like anybody ever heard of Herkimer, New York)….we were driving along, and we heard a little “beep, beep.”  We looked over, and there was a little blue Subaru, with a lady waving at us….as she passed us, we saw that she had a Washington license plate. So we honked back and waved like crazy. This is the first Washington license we’ve seen since we left Idaho! Felt like home. (Well, kinda.)

So, tomorrow we’ll get back to Chicago. We left Maine a week early…..we had a “no snow” window, and Jocelyn came down with the stomach flu yesterday ….so, clearly, the time was right to leave New England! I will miss Ross and his family. It’s tough to say good bye…..

BUT….we will be in Chicago for Miles’ 11^th birthday on March 1 (and Happy Birthday to Sabien  on the same day)…..and then we’ll be home in the middle of March. I’m looking forward to cooking on my own stove and seeing everyone again.