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Friday, August 9, 1996
It's actually Saturday morning, but hey, who's counting?
We got back yesterday from an incredible 8-day road trip through New England. I wish I'd kept a daily journal, because I know I won't remember everything now.
Last Thursday, Aug. 1, we drove up to Cooperstown, NY. It's a nice drive, scenic even. The terrain gets hillier as you go, until your driving along the edge of the Poconos and the Catskills.
I had been driving since we stopped for lunch in Binghamton. Rick got confused and sent me off in the wrong direction after we hit Cooperstown. After driving almost 10 to 15 minutes in the wrong direction, it finally occurred to me that we should turn around. Rick wrested the controls for me, at that point, and never relinquished them thereafter, claiming that I drove "slower than old people fuck." At least I can read a map.
After we finally got to the motel and checked in, we went back to Cooperstown and found the Baseball Hall of Fame. Rick entered grudgingly, only to find himself enjoying it as we went through. It was amazing. The second floor had a thorough review of the history of the game—its development, lore, major players, etc.—with exhibits. It was like Ken Burns' Baseball summarized as a museum exhibit. There were exhibits on baseball in movies, baseball journalism, women in baseball, the Negro Leagues, different ballparks, uniforms, baseball cards, and baseball songs. There was an umpire exhibit. There was an exhibit about each existing team, what its former names (if any) were, retired numbers, etc., etc. it was really amazing.
Cooperstown is an interesting place. It obviously revolves around the game of baseball, because the game's influence is everywhere. We ate dinner at the Doubleday Cafe. Baseball knickknacks are sold everywhere. There's Doubleday Field, where games are occasionally played. Even the McDonald's in Cooperstown has workers in baseball uniforms and pictures of boy and girl baseball players on the restroom doors.
Our motel was outside Cooperstown, on Lake Otsego. We didn't really get to enjoy Upstate New York much. We only spent one night. The motel had been rated 2-diamond, but deserved less. The faucets were screwed up on the sink and bath, and Rick and I kept getting alternately frozen and scalded as we took our shower. We did walk down to the lake's edge that evening. It was a nice peaceful view of lake and surrounding hills, though we got a bit bitten by bugs. A prelude to what was to come while camping, as it turned out.
The next morning, we left for New Hampshire, hopeful that the good weather would hold out. It did. More tomorrow.
O's lost tonight in the 10th. Arrghh! To Chicago—they need to beat those guys.
Monday, August 12, 1996
The story continues.
When we left Cooperstown, after breakfast at the aforementioned McDonald's, we hit the interstate going north, then U.S. 4, which took us through Vermont into New Hampshire. The terrain was hilly, with lots of trees, especially birch and pine. The weather continued to be good. The good weather seemed to clear a path before us as we traveled. We followed the river on the Vermont-New Hampshire border for a while, before crossing into New Hampshire.
