Lush Autumn Colors and some Lush Music

Isn't this beautiful?

I'd love to tell you that I snapped this picture 

as we came through the Poconos this morning.  

Actually, I took it when we were in Detroit recently.

You didn't know that there was such loveliness in Detroit these days. . .

did you?

I am amazed every day by the incredible beauty of this country.

I even like it at night.

Except, of course, 

when we are trying to find our way on crowded interstates!

I am going to really try to get more photos up on here - you can't imagine what wonderful things we encounter

And for your listening pleasure. 

I came upon the amazing talent of Victoria Vox recently 

and would encourage to give her a listen .  

Did you smile?

I did.

We stared The Big Apple in the face and WON!

We picked up a load in Columbus, Ohio and headed up to Newark, New Jersey with it.  I wasn't sure just where in New Jersey we were going, but since it wasn't NYC, I wasn't really to worried.   Hah!  How naive.  AND...we weren't just going to Newark, we were actually going to THE PORT OF NEWARK!!!!!!!!!  As in, across a small bit of water is Manhattan.  

 I got out the computer mapping program, the giant atlas and bunches of stickies and sharpies and started in with our routing.  

And, oh yeah, did I mention that we were on a Con-Way load which always allows just barely enough time to make the run. 

 AND to top that off, the trailer that we picked up had a bum blinker and needed to be taken to a truckstop repair shop before hitting the road.  Would be nice if the ETA was extended to accommodate - but alas, not to be! 

 

Let me paint the picture for you - we are coming into Newark at 4:00 pm local time

.  Lots of traffic.  I  was driving and Tony was navigating.  

Did I mention the rain?  Continual heavy drizzle - slick road and sparkly lights coming up off the pavement because everyone had on their headlights.   

Throw in some fog for good measure.   

We were really focused on our way in and did great.  Great looming signs kept telling us how to get to the Port of Newark (and how to avoid the Lincoln Tunnel).  We coasted into what we thought was the right place with a few scant minutes to spare.  

What's this. . . dead end? 

 Where is the Con-Way Terminal?  

Thankfully, we always write the address and phone number of our customers on yet another sticky note.  I dialed while Tony jumped out and ran to the gated guard shack at the end of the dead end.  He came back with directions just as I was connecting with the terminal.  A very helpful and nice man at Con-Way actually talked me through turning around and heading back out the way we had come.  He kept asking me, "tell me what you are looking at."  "Is there a bridge over your head?"  "What does the street sign say?"  This wonderful man stayed on the phone until I turned into the terminal driveway.

Big deep breaths and sighs - we made it.  

Now all we had to do was make it out.  

Piece of cake - we would just get the folks in the terminal office to give us directions.  

We knew we were headed to Hackettstown, New Jersey and from there to Horseheads, New York and then down to Albuquerque, New Mexico - a nice 2k run.

Tony came back from the terminal with the offered directions.  We sat with the atlas and computer and made detailed notes.  We were even able to use the new satellite technology and look at the nasty snarl of roads and bridges and pick our path through it all.  

So, I'm back at the wheel and Tony is again navigating.  

Did I mention that it is now DARK and still RAINING?  

We pull out of the terminal, under the New Jersey Turnpike bridge to turn left where we had come in before.  

But wait. . .  NO LEFT TURN.  

There is even a curb in the way to further thwart us.  

AND, the only way we can go is going to take us up on the bridge and seemingly into NEW YORK CITY.  

OMG OMG OMG OMG.  

We have no choice but to go where the road is taking us.  

So much for those carefully thought out plans and notes.  As we are heading up over this bridge, we can actually see a glittering bridge slightly ahead that must lead to the magical land of NYC.

  I basically slowed to a stop as we tried vainly to make an informed decision.  

Finally, another Big Rig squeezed around us on the right and we decided to go after him.  

The scariest thing of all when driving one of these behemoths is getting onto roads that aren't made for us.  We figured that if he was going there, we could too.  As luck would have it, we saw enough signs with enough remembered words from our prior research that we were able to squiggle around through the maze and work our way out heading in the right direction (basically AWAY from NYC).  

Did I mention that it was still DARK and RAINING?

  

So now, we are parked for the night in Hackettstown, New Jersey and I have Tony's trip all plotted out for him in the morning.  

When I wake up, we will be in the Pocono Mountains and the autumn leaves be lush and moist from the morning dew as I sip my coffee and gaze out serenely from my moving home.

I love this life!

Moving down the road. . .

We left Pasco and picked up a relay trailer in Ellensburg, Washington and then headed out with it to Columbus, Ohio.  Tony was sleeping so I am picked out our route.  We have several choices - I think I will choose to go eastward on I-90 until I run into Lake Michigan and then skirt around it and  finally drop down to Columbus.  This will be a long run - 2300 miles or so.  I hope the weather is nice as we head across the Plains - it was nasty last week.

Do you like the new look?  

I thought the other page format felt squished in the middle.

I'll try this for awhile and see if I like it.

Sitting Idle

We are sitting in Pasco, Washington.  We have been here for 3 days and don't see an out in sight.  I went on the 'net to see if there was something here that we were missing - turns out there isn't anything.  NOTHING to do here - the Wal-Mart Supercenter isn't even one of the big ones.  The craft/sewing department is only 1/2 an aisle in Housewares.

I have begun crocheting.  Well, really, I am working on a couple of projects and buying yarn.  The buying yarn is really fun, except there isn't anywhere to store it.  That puts a real limit on the amount of "stash".  There are gazillions of patterns available free on the internet along with beautiful and enticing pictures.  The main problem there is that we don't have a printer in the truck and never really have access to one.  If you can't print off the beautiful and wonderful patterns, you can't create with them.  So, I sit and think about crochet projects almost as much as I get to actually tie knots with yarn and hook.

I have finished a couple of things:

an eyeglasses case

a case for my iPod nano

2 neck warmers (these are really wonderful)

this fellow

Isn't he cute!  

He is actually larger than most amigurumis.  

I am going to tackle some food items next - maybe a cupcake.

I'm working on a bed jacket/shawl thingy to put

 on when I wake up and want something on my shoulders and arms.  I have one side of it done and will probably get the other side finished today if we end up hanging around Pasco much longer.

Well,  Pasco did redeem itself.  We found the good grocery store.  This one is REALLY good.  Might even rival the mecca of grocery stores in North Bend, Washington.  All I needed was yogurt (I am smitten with Rachel's yogurt...more on that later), but I managed to find my favorite snacks there as well.  I guess I could do some photos of my favorite foods for the road.

Anyway, we are all set and happy and waiting for the next adventure!

Oh yea - I forgot . . .  go check out MOCHEEF - I have to say I'm biased, but  I think it is good.  What do you think?

Going to Canada

We are making our second trip into Canada.  Snuck the first one by ya . . . huh?  Actually, we went in for the first time just a week or so ago.  That time, we went in from Seattle and made a delivery in Vancouver, BC.  The streets were more narrow than we are used to and Tony had a very difficult dock to maneuver into for the unload.  (I was really really glad it was his shift - that place was NOT made for our large truck!).  We were back out that afternoon and on our merry way.

This time, we will be going into Canada from Detroit and making a delivery 250'ish miles away in a suburb of Toronto.  When we make that delivery, we will go on the board there in Canada and could end up coming back out through Detroit or going the shorter route out through Buffalo, New York.  I'm hoping for Buffalo, no real reason, just like that part of the world.  I'd love to stop and see Niagara Falls, but have no idea whether we'll have the time or not.

The leaves are changing as we drive around the country.  What a beautiful sight.  I have a wonderful picture of the perfectly colored autumn tree, but the camera is in the truck and Tony is sleeping.  I'll post it next time.

We did get the chains out and sorted and re-bagged for the coming Winter.  I, of course, was busy doing other things and totally forgot to take pictures.  It is pretty cool to see them all laid out.  If you are lucky (and we are not), I'll take some photos the first time we have to put them on the truck.

I am spending some time in the Taylor, Michigan terminal.  Here is a list of the things I can do while loitering in a terminal:

shower (as opposed to my normal hit/miss in public bathrooms)

laundry (even washed Leo's bed, carseat cover and harness)

downloaded some podcasts (we have become fans of a number of audio and video podcasts)

re-synched our iPods with the above podcasts

cleaned out several months of e-mail inbox clutter

caught up on all the Brad/Angelina gossip as well as weird plastic surgery pictures

mapped out our route to the border and on into Ontario (I DO actually work sometimes!)

re-arranged my playlists on iTunes.  Currently I have Jana's Groove Mix and Jana's Drive Mix on my iPod.  I'm waiting until the middle of November before succumbing to my All Christmas All the Time playlist

I also walk around the lot - it is wonderfully brisk tonight and I'll make several more turns around it on my way back to the truck.

So, there it is...my life at the moment