Another Long Journey Thanks to Momma Nature

Few things get my blood pressure up like driving in foul weather. This is not, mind you, due to weather itself, but to the idiots driving in said foul weather. Yesterday we had another addition of Mother Nature's personal road rage with thunder, lightning, wind, and general chaos. I left New Ro a little early so I could pick up The Son, get my new contact lenses, and return my loaner car to the dealer where they were fixing "Charlie", the beloved Honda Accord (so-named by The Son). Grab your maps, folks and enjoy my excellent adventure.

It started by getting from Harrison St in New Rochelle to Interstate 95 at the Exit 16 entrance - standard stuff. Then I took 95 to I-287. I got off 287 at Exit 9 for the Hutch and turned right on Kenilworth Rd, then left on route 120 - which I took up to Manhattanville Road, and on to I-684 north. Again this is all standard as I often use this route to avoid backups on 287.

Then it got weird.

A Goldens Bridge fire chief vehicle raced past me near Armonk on 684, and that convinced me to bail off to route 22 south and get on 128 to go to Mount Kisco. Good idea, in theory. I moved along with little trouble until, to the south of Mount Kisco, there was a tree in the road. The tree had been cut in half, allowing one small lane of traffic to pass. So I got around that, but not before being told by a passing driver that another tree was down up ahead. I figured my back road knowledge was enough that I could survive. Sure enough I found the tree - just south of the village of Mount Kisco. Using my trusty Westchester County atlas, I saw that I could get around it.

So did everybody else. OK, no problem, I'll turn around.

So where was I? Oh yeah, route 128 - left on Horseshoe Road and a right on Daily Crossing Road, before I turned around at Kathleen Lane and went back on Daily Crossing to turn right on 128 where I thought I would outsmart everyone by turning left on Sheather Road and got to where Sheather reaches a fork with Harriman Road. At that point I saw a downed tree in front of me and a crew working on it, so I made the left on Harriman...which ALSO had a tree down. Time to turn around again - which meant taking Sheather back to 128 (left), passing the first downed tree, and returning to Armonk...where I now needed gas!

Now I got to sit in the parking lot of the gas station because apparently one cannot just gas up and go. Oh no - that's too easy. Gotta go inside to find the chips and soda and wait on line to pay with cash for the gas a pack of cigs. Ugh.

OK, I hope you're still with me. Also by now, I have called The Wife, who will bail me out by picking up The Son. Forget about the contact lenses, and now I have to pay the car dealer with a credit card over the phone, and make arrangements to get the car!

So leaving the gas station, I made a right on 128 north, then a right on Leisure Farm Road, and a left on High St, then back onto Sheather (at the other end) before I reached where the downed tree on Sheather had been removed...only to find that the tree on Harriman was still there. OK - turn around again and return to Sheather and make a left on Westwood Drive and a left on Sarles St. Straight across Byram Lake Rd (which has its own bit of infamy, thanks to a dying immigrants body being found there recently, and the police are suspected of foul play - good times in the northern suburbs, eh?). Continued straight on Sarles to route 172 (turned right) and made the next left on W Patent Road, then a quick left on McClain Street and an immediate right onto Springhurst Road. At the end I turned left on Bedford Center Road and, oh boy, this is where things got really bad. Bedford Center Road was backed up, so I turned right on Church St - which was closed - then went left Griffin Ave, and lefts through Depot Plaza, before I turned right on route 117, where I passed over the Saw Mill Parkway (Parking Lot is more like it). I hoped to pass through on Cherry Street to get to route 35.

HAH!

Cherry Street was closed, so I turned around immediately and went back to 117 (left) and continued to Harris Road, where 117 turned into its own parking lot. OK, make a right on Harris and instead of trying to take the 117 by-pass to the Saw Mill and 684, I decided to take Harris to Beaver Dam Road. As I turned left on Beaver Dam I saw - sing along folks! - a police car. I didn't even wait to see what he had to say. I just turned around, went back to Harris, initially made a left, then turned around (just for kicks!) and went back towards Katonah, where I got on...

the 117 by-pass to the Saw Mill Parkway and Interstate 684. I got off at Exit 6 and turned left at route 35 (now we're rolling). Traffic lights were out everywhere until I reached the Pepsico complex in Somers. I turned right on route 100 and rolled into downtown Somers, where I picked up US route 202 (which used to also carry route 100 as a multiplex, but enough road geek terminology for now). At Croton Falls, I turned left on Stoneleigh Avenue and headed for home, where I picked up The Family and we went and got our beloved Charlie.

Over two hours of fun. By the way, traffic reports in the northern suburbs stink. I want to buy my own radio station so that I can do a traffic and weather together on the fives (Exit 55 - get it?) for the 'burbs.

A little PS to all of this (if you're still with me, and I highly doubt that). I can't reveal too much, but I actually had a job interview this morning via telephone. All I can say is that we'll see. It might be far-fetched but it was nice to be asked to interview for something.

Happy Motoring!