DIANE REZENDES
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Bay to Bay: a Cape Cod to San Francisco pop-up blog

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February 18th, 2022:  Chautauqua, NY - Chicago.    497 miles

2/18/2022

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We were surprised this morning to see our car and the road outside the inn covered in around 5" of fresh snow.  We were expecting a dusting.

We had to shovel out the car and de-ice the doors, which had frozen shut from the previous night's ice storm. So glad that Joe packed most of the car the night before! We didn't get going till after 10:30, so decided not to attempt any stops along the way, except for necessary things.


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Earlier I took Little Papi out for a walk in the snow, down to the lake where we saw people ice fishing in the distance, snow blowing around them, giving it kind of an ethereal quality. It was cold -- bracing and refreshing (but the wind was sharp!) 

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Chautauqua really looked like a winter wonderland this morning. That was the pretty part. The slush over ice on Rte. 394 was still to come...

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Route 86 and the famous lake effect snow, which we (enjoyed/endured, take your pick) for a little over 100 miles -- heavy snow, lowered visibility, but no accumulation --so not too bad to drive in. Much better than the first 40 miles out of Chautauqua-- though the road was plowed, changing lanes meant crossing slush-covered ice. Very exciting, though I sure hoped it wouldn't stay like that through the rest of Ohio and Indiana. Though I haven't driven real winter weather in a long time, I'm grateful I learned to drive on New England roads in winter!

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notice how my Apple's photo program IDs the image. 'snowbelt!' Wonder if that's a seasonal ID or the good people in Cupertino think all it does in upstate NY, PA, and Ohio is snow...

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After the snow subsided and the skies cleared, we saw the beauty of yesterday's ice storm, and were glad we hadn't tried to drive in it. Even more so when we passed three jack-knifed tractor-trailers on Rte. 90. Two were on the side of the road, facing the wrong way. A third was in the meridian. (We weren't quick enough to catch the shot, but this is what they looked like - all ended up facing the oncoming traffic.)
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18 degrees. it's a festival of salt and snow. If we were in New England year-round, there's no way the Dream Car would make it to 26 years and nearly 300,000 miles!

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Just a pretty barn by the side of the road. The roads were clear by now, but the winds had picked up -- mostly heavy sideways gusts. the good thing about a 26-year-old car is that it's relatively heavy. and all our stuff helps, too!

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Elwood: "It's 106 miles to Chicago, we've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark out, and we're wearing sunglasses." Jake: "Hit it."

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(did i mention i ended up driving the whole 497 miles today?)

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We are so brilliant with our trip planning. Arriving Chicago just in time to enjoy Friday rush hour. That's okay, it gave Joe time to place his order for curbside pizza pickup (sometimes it's Lou Malnati's; this time it was Giordano's).
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Day 2:  Chautauqua-Jamestown-Chautauqua                 (uh, 32 miles...)

2/17/2022

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Given the weather (yesterday's Chicago TV predicted 'treacherous' travel in the afternoon), we decided to stay put in Chautauqua for the day. We walked Papi in the rain, and visited the bookstore (terrific, almost overwhelming selection - reminds me of the old Harvard Coop bookstore), and of course we were thrilled to see our good friend and third-generation and lifelong Chautauquan Clint Wilder's book Clean Tech Nation on prominent display in the current events section.  And then we went to the National Comedy Center in Jamestown.


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the visit starts with a touch screen where you pick your favorite funny people.  that generates which comics you'll see in various interactive video exhibits.  Apparently I like the absurd and quirky. Who knew?
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Mark Twain, in his own hand. I love this stuff. Even more when it includes edits.

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From the Dick Van Dyke show and the inimitable Carl Reiner. Edits included. Years ago, Terry Gross interviewed Reiner on Fresh Air, and he made two points he believed were key to the longevity of the show. First, it was never mean-spirited (Everybody Loves Raymond, I'm talking to you). And it never used references to current events, or slang that would date it.

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I'm sure my parents can relate.

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Bob Hope's USO shirt, hat, and ID.

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This sign advising me that I'd already given them my release appears for the first time just before the gift shop at the end of the visit.
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Day 1: Harwich, MA - Chautauqua, NY.                                         619 miles

2/17/2022

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and so it begins...
we don't think we're going to hit the 300,000 mark on this trip. it'll probably be on a Costco run or something equally quotidian just a couple miles from the house.
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first stop, Landis Arboretum, Esperance, NY. One of three old-growth arboreta in eastern North America.

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It was icy, so our walk was very short. Snowshoes would have been ideal. I can't imagine adding them to our fully packed car!

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It seems dinosaurs are a requisite on any x-c drive. I just didn't expect one in the first four hours.

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Brothers Mark & Dave. Dave lives in Duanesberg, next town over. Mark just moved from Colorado. Dave's teaching Mark about tree identification.

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I asked Dave if Duanesberg was known for antiques. No, he said, it's more known for survivalists, with stores on either end of town. He adds sometimes it's tough for him as a progressive.

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Signs of the times. At least in Duanesberg.

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On the road to the arboretum. I don't know which looked more bleak to me: the weather or the flag.

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While Papi & I visited with Dave & Mark, Joe was hard at work on a zoom call.

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not pictured: the Meep.

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Di Rienzi in Binghamton. How can you not love an exterior like this?

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Third-generation owner Carmen DiRienzi is so proud of his Scali bread, that when Joe asked about it, he brought out two loaves from the back, and proclaimed, "Tomorrow's bread, today!" as he handed them to Joe.

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This is not Carmen. (Look closely and see the 'masks required' sign over his shoulder.)

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This label is branding genius.

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late day contrails over route 88. it runs from Albany to Binghamton (the highway one NY legislator managed to get built so he'd have a nice commute from his district to the state capital).

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We did not expect on arrival (after 619 miles) to have to walk across a sheet of ice to get in! We scrambled to get some rock salt and some tools, with help from the officer on duty, Angelo Giuffre over. He even insisted on helping Joe unload the car. We gave him one of our loaves of bread. Turns out he is from Italy, and we had a really nice visit. A potentially stressful arrival turned into a sweet moment.

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Little Papi settled in, even before we brought in our luggage!
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Feb. 14 - Valentine's Day...

2/14/2022

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almost our last full day on the Cape for awhile.. no more Wellfleet oysters till next season, and no more wintry windy walks by Buck's Pond for awhile. next time i'm back, it'll be on my kayak or bike!

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Forward>>

    from the little blue cottage to redwood city,

    Joe, Di, Little Papi and the Meep are taking the Dream Car and hitting the road back to the west coast. for awhile, anyway.

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