I'm losing my sense of humor about this hurricane.
Friday night JD and I stayed in Rangeley. Saturday morning we had breakfast with my erstwhile companions, and then JD and I headed south. We stopped in Natick, Massachusetts to see Austin and Kristy, who were visiting family. After a little while I wandered out and sat on the porch watching rain come down. A month in the woods had not prepared me to be thrust into the middle of somebody else's family reunion. The porch was nice, though.
Around four we said goodbye and began driving again. Hurricane Irene was getting more insistent as time moved on. We had thought to stop around Newburgh, but by Hartford the road was getting a little treacherous so I called ahead to make a reservation in Danbury. Ruh roh. No openings for five days at the first place. Next I tried a motel which catered to business travelers and fortunately got a room. It was cheaper than the one in Rangeley, even.
After checking in we found an open restaurant on our third try. I ordered a fantastic layered salad that I would love to reproduce at home. It had chicken grilled in hoisin sauce and some sort of peanut buttery dressing. Definitely a win. After dinner we retreated to the motel and passed out (having alerted the various family members to our state of health and location.)
Before bed I dug out my headlamp and put it on the bedside table, and made sure my electronics were charged up. Sure enough, sometime in the early morning hours the motel lost power. I ate breakfast out of my camping supplies, and JD ate leftover bread from his trip to When Pigs Fly. I was satisfied, he wasn't. Between his sore back, headache, and hunger, he turned into a close imitation of an angry bear. The winds were still strong and it was still raining, but he wanted out. And he was surly about it. I decided that I wasn't up for an argument on the merits of staying put in a motel with no power. I started packing up.
We took the stairs down to the lobby and JD went out in the rain (having forgotten his raincoat at home) to get the car. The angel standing in the entryway with me told me of a diner two miles away with power and good food. Those few sentences salvaged my morning.
I directed JD to the diner and an omelet soothed my savage beast. We stopped across the street to fill the car's tank and set out. Stoplights were out but the roads seemed otherwise okay.
Shortly after we got on Sawmill Parkway we found a little bit of ponding on the road. Not so deep that the lane markings weren't clear, and we got through with ease. However, after a few miles the road was closed. JD turned the car around to go back the way we had come. Northbound, the water was deeper. We plowed into it and the car struggled and then stalled.
JD pushed the car out of the water (which only came up to his ankles) while I steered. The car wouldn't restart. A highway help truck stopped and tried to jumpstart us with no luck. He called us a tow and moved on.
It turns out that we had entered that section of road while they were in the act of closing it. No information about closures had been available because it wasn't closed when we left the motel. While we were getting stuck they were placing barriers across the entrances. Just a little too late for us.
A state policeman checked that we were okay and then yelled at us. "You should have stayed home!" yes, officer, I would LOVE to have been at home. Thanks.
The tow operator showed up after about an hour. He seemed competent but mute. He warmed up a little, which was fortunate because it took a long time to get us to a car dealership where we could leave the car. Road after road was blocked by fallen trees and wires or was flooded. We ended up redriving the area where we stalled (very slowly) and by then there was a definite current. We must have gotten there originally very soon after flooding started.
The tow truck driver had been working all night. He was exhausted. I felt for him. At least he lived nearby and would probably be able to go home when his shift ended. He dropped us off at a motel in the next town, as there wasn't one in the town with the dealership. Before dropping us off he got a call from a coworker who wondered if we were f*cking idiots. I couldn't really disagree with the assessment but our driver was embarrassed.
So tonight JD and I are safe and dry. The car has some problem which may or may not be a quick fix. If it can be fixed quickly, or we can rent a car, we still may not be able to drive home, as portions of roads throughout the area are closed, as are some bridges. And of course power is out here and there, which snarls traffic. Basically we have no idea what is going to happen, other than we are both going to miss work tomorrow, at a minimum. It is outside of our control.
We are fortunate to have good friends and neighbors who are keeping an eye on our property for us. Our beloved petsitter reports that all is well at the house, and all of the animals are fine. My stupid horse apparently spent the hurricane out in his field, grazing. Shelter? Who needs shelter.
Last but not least today we walked to a restaurant for dinner. The wind was enough to make me stumble on the way there and back. Upon reaching the motel again we found a fire truck and other emergency vehicles. The motel had been evacuated due to a power glitch. Luckily, power was on and people were allowed back in by the time we arrived.
I have my headlamp out again. With all the wind another glitch isn't out of the question. I will retire to bed with no idea if I can get home tomorrow. I'm afraid this doesn't seem like any fun to me. I prefer my adventures better planned. If we can't leave we at least have a safe place to stay, but right now I just want my life back. I want to go home, see my friends, and sleep in my own bed.
For somebody who just walked a couple hundred miles over treacherous terrain in all weather, you'd really think I'd deal with adversity better, wouldn't you?
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