Day 7.066: A slight slip-up

Here's another picture from the "Rug City + marbles" session last weekend. It has nothing to do with the rest of this post.

On Saturday afternoon, I arrived at my hotel more than 30 minutes before the wedding was due to start. The wedding venue was less than 15 minutes away. I did a quick bag drop in my room then asked the hotel to call me a taxi. So far so good. A few minutes later a taxi arrived. Even better.

This is when it started to go less well. The taxi was not for me. I waited. I waited some more. They called the taxi company again (he'll be right there). More waiting. Even more waiting. The taxi company called the hotel (not a good sign). They would be twenty minutes. It was now 5 minutes before the ceremony was due to start. They called another taxi company - they said ten minutes (at least I might make it by the end). Then a couple of minutes later the first taxi company's taxi showed up. I got in.

It doesn't get better yet.

The driver confirmed the address with me - then spent what felt like ten minutes typing the address into his ancient Garmin GPS. Then we were off - down to the road and make a right turn. I wasn't sure of the route, but that didn't feel right. I tried to see the Garmin, but it didn't seem to be saying anything. A few minutes later it woke up - Recalculating - continue for 0.1 miles and make a U-turn. Great. Just great. I may have muttered something under my breath. The driver pulled over just before a blind turn on the 55 mph one-lane-each-way-with-double-lines, let a car go past us and went for the U-turn. He didn't make it. We were now doing a 3-point turn. By a blind bend. On a fast narrow road.

Then, as we were side-on blocking the whole road, a car came round the blind bend.

We survived that moment of excitement and a few minutes later, we were driving back past the hotel - some 40 minutes after I'd called for the taxi. We eventually arrived at the church. I was too rushed/happy-to-be-alive to be upset by then. I walked in just in turn to hear the end of a song and them being declared husband and wife - well that was the point I suppose.

The rest of the day was - happily - a vast improvement and I wasn't the last to arrive at the church - my friends walked in a couple of minutes behind me (for less dramatic reasons) only in time to hear the bagpiper lead the recessional.

Day 7.065: CT & run (for ME)

So this was my day: I woke up at 8-ish realising that drinking about 3 times my normal blow-out night of two beers and going to bed two hours later than my normal up-late time of 10 pm was not going to pass unnoticed. Actually I was fine, once I was up and about - what a lightweight I've become!

I had a shower and went to breakfast where I was lucky enough to chat to some people who I thought had driven home last night without my having much chance to catch up with them.

After that I hit the road. Two stops - one for a quick Facetime chat with my parents and the other for a very slow and still only OK lunch at Friendly's (I know! I know! but I'm a hopeful kind of guy).

I made it back just before 4 pm in time to hit the road again - this time for my longest run of the week (only 14 miles because it's a cutback week).

Then I Skyped the family, got a bit chilled, warmed up in the shower and then watched Nebraska since Exile #2 had rented and watched it last night. It's rather good.

Anyway, back to normal tomorrow. But it was all more than worth it thanks to, you know, this:

Day 7.052: I'll get it in the spring

This is one of two (or maybe three) bicycles I've seen completely swallowed by snow banks this winter. This one looks almost ready to be rescued, but I suspect it's still quite well held by the icy snow.

It does make me wonder how this happened - did someone ride it to work one day and then leave it when the snow closed in later that day and just think, "I'll get it in the spring"?

Day 7.040: Our daily snowstorm

Yesterday it was an amazingly quick 8 inches of fluffy snow between 3pm and 11pm, today it was a quick couple of inches of wet sticky snow - also around the evening commute. Still, it did make everything look pretty again!

Day 7.037: Adventure run

I did my run yesterday on the treadmill (for the first time in a year or so) and I didn't run today, but my previous run was in exciting post-storm conditions on Friday.

Well, I say post-storm, the snow had transitioned to freezing rain which had glazed the trees nicely:

but there was still a lot of snow, and it was recent enough that the trails that are normally cleared had not been touched yet.  This was not the worst of it, but still a few inches of fresh snow with an ankle-scraping layer of ice on top:

It was nice to leave the first marks on it:

Although they would have been erased a few moments later when this went by:

But the worst part (not pictured, but illustrated by this picture) was the puddles.  See how the wet road (where the red lights are reflecting) looks the same as the section in the foreground?

Well, the foreground is an ankle deep puddle, similar to the trail-wide and 15 foot long one that I had no choice but to paddle through about half-way around my run.  Yuck!

Oh, yes and remember the bridges with the snow-plow danger from above? Well here is an actual picture of the place - and you can see the sidewalk I run on had been completely cleared before the plow dumped a foot or so of compressed snow down onto it from above - I'm glad I wasn't under this lot when it came down!

Since I'm still at home, I think I might be back at the treadmill tomorrow morning, but after that it will be back to the wintery streets and trails of southern Maine.

Day 7.034: Oh - Deere!

This is why and how we have a mountain of snow at the end of the parking lot.

Day 7.031: Plow and scatter

We'd had two or three inches of fresh snow when I set out for my run this morning. It was still falling, but in the soft way you expect snow to fall, not in ninja attack mode. About a mile in, I was running on some recently-cleared sidewalk (although they are quick with that around here it was only about 15% of the whole run) when there was a patch of not just uncleared snow, but piled up compressed mess, soft but lumpy.  I was wondering what had happened when I realised I was by the highway bridge and that something like this must have recently happened:

Photo by Flickr user WSDOT (thanks!)

"Glad I wasn't here when that passed overhead!" I thought and carried on my way.

About an hour later I was passing that way again. I'd forgotten all about that thought during the miles. Just as I was emerging between the two roadways up above, I saw the snow pouring down across the road I was running beside - and coming my way.  I just had time to take a couple of steps back under the bridge as it landed with a thupuffuthwump where I'd just been passing.

What are the chances?!

Day 7.029: Icicle when I drive

This is my car, but it could have been any car in the parking lot at work on Thursday - some taller vehicles had even more impressive ones.

Today, I ran, slept and lazed around the apartment. Very nice and much needed, but not much to write about!

Day 7.017: Ice, shrink-wrap and a war memorial

My outing to photograph the loon wasn't quite that simple. Rather than drive to the park by the lighthouse, I drove to the next lighthouse along the coast and walked from one to the other.

The lighthouse I drove to was this one:

the four nouned, Spring Point Ledge Light. I set out to walk out to it, but was struck first by the icy wind and then by the questionable footing - ice combined with jumping from rock to rock:

and thought better of it.

Instead, I set out for the Bug Light, walking first through the campus of Southern Maine Community College and then into the adjacent marina.

Not surprisingly, there are no boats in the water - as you can see here they are not only brought up onto dry land, but most of them are shrink-wrapped too!

With the wind at my back and hurting the back of my head even through my winter hat, I was pleased to arrive at the other park after a short walk.

I'd run past this strange ship-sculpture a couple of times, but yesterday I could investigate.

It turned out to be a war memorial of sorts - nervously I wondered which war (finding revolutionary war or 1812 memorials is always strange given my nationality) but it was WWII.  It turns out that nearly 240 of the 2700 Liberty Ships - all built to the same design between 1941 and 1945 were built at a pair of shipyards near here.

Day 7.004: Rug city

Here are some more pictures of E5N1's rug city. Apart from bottom left (a shopping area including a kayak shop - entirely from his imagination as far as I know), they are all potentially recognisable parts of a certain city.

Thanks for yesterday's guesses - keep them coming!

Day 7.002: Railways of the UK and (not enough) space

Today was a day of two board games.

The first was played with the family in New York:

Ticket to Ride with the fan-produced and internet-downloaded UK edition board and tickets.

It turned out to be our most competitive (in terms of vying for certain lines) and was enjoyed by all (E5N1 was briefly teamed up with each of his sisters but then disappeared - it turns out for a much-needed nap on his bedroom floor!).

I'm now back in Maine and cracked open my Firefly game.  It's the same one we played with our friends on Day 6.353 - but now I have one of my very own.  It can be played solo, so I started a game a while ago:

It's taking up my entire table even with just me playing.  I've just been attacked by Reavers which is pretty much as bad as it gets so I'm taking a break (until tomorrow) before I find out just how serious the situation is for my crew.

Day 6.365: New year's eve

Today is the last day of the year numbered "6" of the Exile, which means that seven years ago today we were flying with our one-way tickets to start a new life in New York.  I didn't write a post on Day 0, but I did look back at it a year later on Day 365.

Today was also a day of travelling west to New York for me. I'm home for a flying visit (not literally - I drove here!) from Maine.

And since none of that really results in anything photographic, here are some pictures of the wildlife at the feeders from our visit to Five Rivers just before most of the rest of the world celebrated the new year.

Day 6.357: Winter with a side of strange

That's the view outside my apartment this evening, but that car looks like mine did when I came out of work.

It had been snowing all day, but it's bitterly cold (-5°F now, that's -21°C) and windy so the snow is like the little polystyrene balls in old Hollywood movies and is just blowing around. The top of the car is clear - the front has as much snow as it can hold.

In fact we've probably had at least 6 inches - but there's nowhere in the normal outdoors where you could measure it accurately.  I wonder what the morning will bring!

Day 6.338: Snow night for a party

There were two things in the plan for this weekend - a holiday party this evening, and the kids' performances in their Christmas pageant in church tomorrow morning.

Both were threatened by the snow storm coming in this evening.

But our babysitter arrived through the first few inches of snow - on time - just before 7, so we ventured out and had an excellent evening. The car looked like this when we left the party:

But we made it safely home - and dug out our babysitter who made it safely home.

Now we wait to see what the morning will bring.

Day 6.337: Sweet home...Alabama?

I'm home for the weekend. But Google Maps' generally excellent turn by turn directions seem to have an issue with the Albany turn off the Thruway - it's got that last-thing-on-a-Friday vibe.  Not inappropriately on this occasion.

The audio says:
"Take Exit 'exit 23' for Alabama nine west toward Albany/Troy," and the display shows:

A couple of minutes later, "Alabama nine west" seems to have turned into good old US 9W.

Which is something of a relief because making the trek to Albany is quite far enough - Alabama is rather more than I'd reckoned with.

Day 6.336: Winter hat

I managed to get out and run for the second morning in a row today, but two days ago it was another story. I went out, came back for my Yaktrax, went out again and then decided that even with my Yaktrax running on sheet ice wouldn't be much fun and went back inside.

An hour or so later, I left for work and found the car coated in a nice layer of ice.

The beautiful ice-free car roof at the bottom was just a few minutes later when I arrived at work. The moment when the ice separated from the roof and flew off was dramatic for me - imagine the sound of the roof of the car being ripped off by a clumsy gorilla - and for the person behind me on the highway. Sorry - I feel bad but there was really nothing I could have done about it!

Day 6.335: Winter tires

I bought winter tires/tyres for my car yesterday - I've thought about it several times but this was the first year I got around to it.

I also used my winter running-tires this morning. Right now the nearest trails to my apartment are sheet ice (from a snow to freezing rain storm at the beginning of the week) with half an inch of snow on top (from yesterday). Not ideal for running, but with a combination of slowing down and the Yaktrax, I managed a four miler this morning.

I like to think that occasionally a fellow Yaktrax aficionado will spot my distinctive footprints. I kept a look out but didn't spot that anyone else who'd passed that way had been wearing any.

Day 6.304: Last day in Maine

We had another packed family day today. Tomorrow these four:

will be celebrating Veterans Day by making the long drive back home to New York, leaving me here to begin week two of my exile-from-exile. Maybe then I'll take the time to tell you about our weekend adventures!

Day 6.298: High flyer

I had a pretty good first day at work.  I have an office - an actual office with a door!

It's a bit bleak, but I put a few books on the shelf and fulfilled the commitment I made when I left my old job on Friday to display this:

It's an trophy made of a Concorde (apologies for the overexposure) mounted on a mask-plate holder. It was first awarded in 2000 and so, following Concorde's demise, it's a historical item in more ways than one!

Day 6.289: A karateka and many parties

The day started early - with a trip to the dojo for Exile #4's promotional test. She has attained her first kyu and will soon be wearing a white belt with a stripe. It was pretty cool to watch her.

The rest of the day was a crazy whirl of preparing the house for viewings tomorrow interspersed with taxi driving (Exile #4 had two birthday parties to attend and Exile #3 had one) and ended with a great party at Albaniana's house. We arrived in two groups (fresh from gathering the kids) and left in a different two groups - I think we're all home now!