Thank You, Kindly!

I guess there are police in southern Ohio. :( To use P&G-speak, I had a "joinup" with a highway patrol officer late this afternoon on I-71 North, with a large piece of furniture in my car from Pier 1, while hunting for the Sonic Burger. Bad things happen when you search for Sonics -- typically because they're located in hard-to-reach places. This one was no exception. But I found it...and was disappointed. Even now, I can feel the reverse osmosis taking place in my stomach as the intensely salty wittels absorb ALL of the liquid in my body. Chicken soup for the digestive system, I suppose.

But back to the speeding ticket. The officer, heartily impressed with the car (and its cargo space) was more interested in knowing where I bought it and what year it was than in prosecuting the ticket. Yet withal, I suppose he had to meet his quota... and ultimately did give me a ticket. A good object lesson for me, no doubt, as I'm sure I would have pursued wreckless speeds on that corridor had I gone on assuming that it was lightly-patroled. The process was altogether much more civil and jolly than ticket-issuing on the East Coast. He seemed to be having a great time and was genuinely concerned about wasting my time and accusing me of going altogether TOO fast. If only I had wated to re-register my car, then they could only fine me and not otherwise penalize me with points and other perturbations, I think?

Columbus: The Center

Coming from New York, where exits are numbered willy nilly, it's quite a shock to behold the splendor of Ohio's precise mileage-based exit numbering. Not only does each exit correspond to a specific mile marker, but the state capital, Columbus, seems to be at the precise center of the state. From virtually any direction, on any highway, the city is located at exit 100.

Amazing!!!

Buckification

It happened! I've become Buckeye, consumer of corn!

Roadtrip with Mom!

"and we're livin' here in Allentown. And it's hard to keep a good man down."



"Look, Ma! Route 202!" (in the vicinity of the King of Prussia Mall)



Mom drove across much of PA (a very long state -- over 300 mi!)



The Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-76) is actually not so hot -- 2 lanes across most of the state. :(



But actually, that makes a good deal of sense. There's really NOTHING in a good deal of southern PA, except for many through-mountain tunnels.

CleanPass!

You may have noticed some extra information on the LIE HOV Lane Regulations signs just before Lakeville Road and before Glen Cove Road. The HOV program has been expanded to include clean vehicles. If you drive a hybrid, you can ride in the HOV lane, regardless of how many occupants are in your vehicle.

What a concept!

State press releases referring to the "40 continuous miles of HOV lanes in both the eastbound and westbound directions along the length of the Long Island Expressway from Medford in the Town of Brookhaven, Suffolk County, to the Queens border," tend to wax poetic about the HOV achievement.

Officials expect the program to reduce "6,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions and [save] in excess of 500,000 gallons of gasoline."