quote:Originally posted by Janice:
Cathy, there is no such thing as a "fairly easy drive" where you and Val are concerned. Getting out of a parking lot can be a challenge once the two of you get together 
But just so you don't feel so all alone, you'll have to get Jenney to tell you of her and Melissa's scenic route from Val's back to the Downtowner in the snow/freezing rain (the November 2002 gathering - I think it was 2002, wasn't it?) - if I remember correctly, Jenney was getting to the point where she almost decided to take the short cut across the lake. Needless to say, Melissa who isn't used to snow to begin with, was starting to think she would never see the light of another day 
Oh, NOW the truth comes out! Jenney must have made the left turn around the lake. Boy, that fits the song Long Way Back Home. I generally take a right right after the last house on the private road, just four or five houses from Val's, but I would not recommend that route, as it is quite confusing if you don't know the area. The easiest way to get to Saratoga Springs from Val's place is to drive straight out her road until you come to the red light. Then take a right down Rt. 9. Follow it until it turns into Main Street. It's a little longer than the back way, but a heck of a lot simpler.
I remember one time, I think this was on the drive to Torrington, our Mapquest directions instructed us to take the exit and turn right. No way. The road ended right after the exit. That one really put us into a tail spin.
When Val came to Maine, I was a little worried she'd get lost. It's really quite easy. You get off the Interstate in Houlton and take a left up Rt. 1. It forks into Rt. 1A in Mars Hill, and you just take a slight right turn around a small lake. From there, it's straight ahead to Limestone. Val did fine with the directions. When she got to Limestone, where the is no cellphone reception past the Catholic Church, she called me. I told her to drive to the bottom of the hill and I would be outside, standing on the sidewalk on the left side of the street. As soon as I said that, our reception died. I look up the street and here comes Val. And there she goes, right past me. I'm thinking, "Great. That's all I need. There is no way I'll find her if she gets lost in the wilds of Northern Maine." I watched her go to the other end of town (Main Street is only 3/4 miles long, and I was in the center of town). I guess she noticed that Main Street just kind of stopped... no more stores or houses. She turned and came back. That time I waved my arms and got her attention.
The first time we met, she was picking me up at my sisters condo in Wallingford CT. I gave her directions, and she had no problems finding the complex, but from there it was quite confusing. You know how it is with condos. They all look the same. I told her I'd go out on the upstairs deck and guide her in. I saw her coming down the street, a little too fast over the big speed bump (ouch) and I said, "Okay. I see you. Hang a left... right now!" She drove past my street and said, "I can't hang a left! There are rocks and trees and a big drop off to my left!" Me, "Oooops, I meant a right. Stop! Backup up 20 feet! Hang a right! Okay. See a woman on the deck in a yellow shirt waving her hands frantically? That's me!"
So, as you can see, I'm sure most of the problem stems from my navigational skills, because she does okay without me. Someone once made the comment that we should just throw the map out the window, because we always manage to get lost. Val said, "I'm keeping the map and throwing the navigator out the window!" Hey, I can navigate perfectly well... until she puts in a Lightfoot CD. From that point on, I lose all sense of direction.
Cathy
http://www.cathycowette.com
