April 10, 2004

Empire State

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY - Well, this last 36 hours hasn't been the best part of the trip. Not bad, exactly, but not quite living up to the rest of it.

Yesterday I drove and drove and drove. I-79 north out of Pittsburgh, then I got off at the Sagertown exit, with ill-placed confidence in my ability to sniff out an Arby's or some other fast-food joint. Instead I got to see the back end of various tractors and pickups as they moseyed into the greater Erie area. Finally I found some grub right where the back roads met up with I-90.

At first, I-90 was interesting; off to the left was the giant blue presence of Lake Erie (not near the part where Cleveland almost set it on fire). But then -- and this is basically true for the entire length of the N.Y. State Thruway -- it turned into a flat, featureless, charmless stretch of drudgery. An exit every 15 miles, a rest stop every 50 miles (I only missed one, since my weary legs cried out every time one approached), and no cheap motels in greater Syracuse.

So I pressed on to spend the night in Utica (cue my Mom singing the old Utica Club beer jingle), and this morning made my way through country roads to Cooperstown. It's somewhere every baseball fan HAS to go to (I've been several times, naturally), but the Museum itself is under some pretty substantial renovations. Some exhibits were closed, but the Hall itself was open (and apparently also open to crying babies. Folks, this is like a cathedral to some of us. Take Junior outside 'till he's old enough to appreciate it) and I got to see the plaques of some of the newer inductees. Molitor and Eckersley get in later this year, if you're interested. Greenwell won't, which is borderline-outrageous.

Then I made sort of a snap decision (though it had been in the back of my mind) to head up north to Lake George. We used to go there for a week every couple of summers when I was a kid, and I wanted to see if it lived up to my memories. I'll have to let you know about that another time; most everything was closed. The steamboat tours - closed. The House of Frankenstein Wax Museum - closed. The Around the World/Around the US in 18 Holes mini-golf courses - closed. Very sad.

Now I have a decision to make. My discretionary trip spending limit is fast approaching, and I'm debating myself whether I'm going to try to make it home tonight to save on a hotel room, knowing that I'm headed back to CT tomorrow for Easter dinner. Decisions, decisions. For what it's worth, Yahoo Maps says it's 3 hours, 18 minutes. I think I may try it.

Comments

Just think, Michael, I get to drive that I-90 drudgery from Cleveland to Boston MULTIPLE times this month. 10 hours, and that's if I'm speeding...

Don't think I didn't notice your little Cleveland jab, too...for the record, it was the Cuyahoga River that caught on fire (hence the horrific R.E.M. song where Michael Stiple MANGLES the pronunciation of "Cuyahoga" repeatedly), not Erie. Although, where the river caught on fire is kind of near the lake...it's an industrial/shipyard type area. Technically, the river didn't burn, of course, it was debris floating on the river. Think Everett/Chelsea/behind Logan-y.

Posted by: shannon at April 12, 2004 12:01 AM

For the record, the lyrics are:

O brew me no beer
With artificial bubbles
Those carbonated beers of today
At Utica Club
We still take the trouble
To age beer the natural way
Utica Club
U.C.!

Posted by: greeniegirl at April 12, 2004 08:20 AM

As per that last paragraph and the almost constantly increasing price of gas, now you know why I wasn't letting you pay $6.75 for my Primanti's sandwich.

Posted by: Andy at April 12, 2004 08:42 AM

And while we're setting the record straight, musically:

There's a red moon a-rising
On the Cuyahoga River
Rolling into Cleveland, to the lake
{parts snipped out}
Cleveland, city of lights
City of magic
{parts snipped out}
...While the Cuyahoga River
Goes smoking through my dreams
Burn on, big river, burn on
Burn on, big river, burn on
Now the Lord can make you tumble
The Lord can make you turn
The Lord can make you overflow
The Lord can't make you burn
Burn on, big river, burn on

Posted by: michael at April 12, 2004 09:36 AM

You're as incompetent a traveler as I am. That's nice to see.

Posted by: Pete at April 29, 2004 01:12 PM

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