Once more on the road

Terry and I drove out to PA today. We had a few things we needed to put into storage and needed to go tot the bank to sign some papers. We also picked up the mail, visited the property and then met with Don to pick up yet more papers that need signing. (No further progress has been made on site, although Don says they will be pouring the footings later this week.)

It was a beautiful day for a drive and we had a good trip. I did make two observations that I would like to pass on:

1) It amazes me how quickly the minutes of daylight mount just after the equinox. The shortest day of the year falls on December 20 or 21. After that date the minutes of daylight are supposedly increasing, yet they do so at a painstakingly (and infuriatingly) slow rate. Then comes the first day of spring and the daylight just piles on in heaps. You need no watch to note the increase in light, your eyes can see the difference. It is recorded in the number of singing birds, the greenness of the grass and the bursting buds of maple and oak. When you rise with the sun and are on the road within 15 minutes of rising, you really notice the difference in the morning. A couple of weeks ago we traveled the same route at 5:30 AM and were in the dark for an hour. Today it was light when we began.

2) Our roundtrip required 7+ hours to drive approximately 450 miles. In between we did all our little errands and stopped for lunch at the local pizzeria. (Their pie was acceptable and certainly better than either Domino’s or Pizza Hut, both of which are also in town.) Driving my truck 450 miles is not tiring. What does tire me is driving the other five vehicles around me and all those I can see ahead of me or in my rearview mirror. That’s what tires me. Anticipating the actions of the other drivers, making adjustments to my speed and lane position to accommodated the vehicles entering the highway or the disabled vehicle on the shoulder keeps you constantly alert.