Making Good Time

I have been away, and I am better for it. Allison and I traveled to Long Island this weekend to visit family. She had a wonderful time, as did I. It was so great to see Jackie and Walter, and my brother and sister-in-law and and their family. We had a ball. The trip down was rather uneventful, as I drove like a man. That is to say that I was trying to make "good time". I don't know what it is about men, but as soon as they get on a road trip, the one and only goal is to make good time. That means that rest stops should really be called rest drive bys, as stopping is out of the question. They are constantly checking their watch and fretting anytime we stop - "we want to make good time you know". No, I don't know. What is the rush? Is someone clocking this trip? Are we in a race that I was not aware of? What is the point of making good time if you miss everything along the way? When I retired I pledged to myself that I would spend the time to enjoy the journeys. I was always so rushed when we were working that taking the road less traveled was not always an option. So now, whenever I can, I try to make sure that I take a route that isn't always the fastest. I want to see the side roads and the towns that the thruway passed by. We called Jerry as we were leaving, and I could hear in his voice that he wanted us to make good time. When it took us an hour to get from the Rowland's driveway in Port Washington to the expressway, I knew we were in trouble. We had stops to make. There is so much history in New York, and Allison and I had the opportunity to see much of it on our trip home. We shopped in Manhasset, gas, dunkin donuts, Linens and Things (closing sale). I was actually brutally quick and opted out of many side stops. We did well until we decided to jump off the thruway at exit 21 - Cairo. We passed through Cairo and up to Purling at Shinglekill Falls, which is where my Father spent summers of his childhood. It was so peaceful there, and we got out at the falls and looked around. I think I may have recognized the house that was Grandma Rowland's boardinghouse, but I would need a cousin's eye to be sure. That's a trip for family history that should never be missed. I was glad we stopped there. We traveled further west through East Durham and that was hysterical. It is lousy with the Irish and their flags and gift shops and pubs. Every single building has a shamrock on it. There was a bluegrass festival at the fairgrounds all last week, and it looked like it was a great time. I am adding it to my calendar for next year. Through Scholarie county and up to Cobleskill, New York is amazingly beautiful. This is where real farming is going on. Not dabbling like we are, but rich and vibrant farms that have been years in the making. There are so many small towns that are frozen in time, and you'll never see them from the Thruway. That is their beauty, that was their demise. It is a trip through the 50's when the Catskills were really hopping. The mountains are so beautiful, and the lucky ones are those who still get to see them up close. We stopped to eat when we were hungry, and to run into retail opportunities whenever they arose. It was a fabulous trip all around. We are only 240 miles from Long Island, but there are worlds between us. And that's the difference between Men and women. The Friday trip was 3 hrs. 50 min. Today's trip took us 7 hours. Today was the better trip by far. We didn't make good time, but we made the time good.