I don’t have the bandwidth to write extensively about every little thing seen and done on this trip. But I still want to share some of the missives along the way. Without further adieu, late Tuesday night from my campsite inside Quechee Gorge State Park, Vermont:
- Small town America is without a doubt dominated by Family Dollar, not for the better but for the worse, in my opinion. Or Dollar General. Or Dollar Tree. Pick your poison. I read last week that Sears closed its last store in Illinois – its home state. Sad. I did have a rare Rite Aid sighting outside Gettysburg. It’s owned by Walgreens, so it’s just a matter of time. (NOTE: Another key feature of small town USA is the coin-operated laundromat)
- Would any state but New Jersey offer power line-obstructed Manhattan views from one of their scenic hikes? Although a bit ridiculous, the Pyramid Mountain hike overlook is still pretty cool. You can almost see the entire length of the island. And you also can see the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge.
- My Gettysburg guide lives near the Flight 93 National Memorial. As an aside, he says debris has been found all over the area – like, a large piece of fuselage at the bottom of a pond more than 4 miles from the impact site. Which leads to speculation the plane may have been downed by US F-15s that were scrambled minutes after the World Trade Center towers were hit. Flight 93 was only 18 minutes from the US Capitol, where Congress was in session. Regardless of what he or anyone says, it’s irrefutable what the passengers and crew did on board. They fought back. And without a doubt saved countless lives. Heroes. Full stop.
- This may already have been said millions of times, but drivers in and around New York and New Jersey are so senselessly and incredibly aggressive. They would try to go 100 mph through a jam at a toll booth, if they could find a way. They tailgate. Cut you off. Make turns across three lanes. All while honking, texting and cursing their mothers. So imagine my chagrin at the sight of an informal road rally on the narrow, rolling two-lane roads around Boonton. About a dozen hot rods, sports cars and souped-up jalopies racing around Sunday morning. Ooooops. Someone missed a turn. So, just he just stops – in the middle of one of those country roads with lines of traffic going in either direction – and does a U turn. I kid you not. I have lots of ideas where aggression originates, amid the hyper competitive who only live to make money. It’s a never ending saga of one-upmanships. A rat race origin story. So happy to live in the midwest.
- The sweet, masked Thai woman who served us a 3 pm lunch at Thai Ping, in downtown Boonton, New Jersey, said the menus she gave us were “no good” because “prices so up.” She said, “Chicken up $3! Pork up $4. EVERYTHING SO UP!!!” I asked, “So, what are we supposed to do? None of these menu prices are correct? Does my green curry cost $100?” I know, what a smart ass. But I was a little miffed. She said they didn’t serve crab Rangoon (crab meat and cream cheese in a deep fried wonton) – my favorite. I think this was the first Thai restaurant I’ve ever patronized that didn’t offer crab Rangoon. Luckily, the answer was no, my green curry would not cost $100. Just $16.95 instead of $12.95. The topper? My friend said the women’s restroom smelled like wacky weed. There was only one other worker in the restaurant, also a sweet, masked Thai woman. Whooping it up on a Sunday afternoon.
- The townsfolk in Lakeville (pop. 1,040, 2019), a subset of Salisbury, Connecticut, are up in arms. The Salisbury Fall Festival, set for 9-11 October, has been canceled. “All the other towns had their festivals. It’s not right,” said one employee at On the Run Coffee Shop. Apparently, the town’s first selectman (that’s the equivalent of mayor) made this decision on his own. But the scuttlebutt says he is under the influence of some rich New Yorkers, who, like the Californians and the Chicagoans, have invaded small town America during the pandemic.
- When I’m on the road and people learn I’m from Chicago, the conversation inevitably turns to gun violence. Of course I can recite all the weekend shooting statistics, which are published every Monday in both the Sun-Times and the Tribune. Even in South America, say “Chicago” and people literally respond – almost Pavlovian-like – “Bang! Bang! Al Capone!” I’m not kidding. So imagine my shock when an elderly couple on the Lion’s Head Trail in Salisbury, Connecticut asks, “What’s happening in Chicago – with climate change?” I really didn’t know how to respond. The only thing I could think of was the up and down water levels of Lake Michigan, to which they nodded knowingly.
- In case you were wondering, it’s 50 cents for a five-minute shower at the Quechee Gorge State Park campground. I feel so much better now.
