To the East and Back

This is another example of lots to write about/no time to write it. We left the Starbucks in Newtown, PA this morning at 7:30 and pulled into our driveway a little after 6:30 this evening. Not bad, considering a stop at Cracker Barrel for lunch and thick, can't-use-the-cruise-control traffic for a hundred miles east of Columbus till we got to I-270.  This post is going to be more pictures than words.

We saw snow on the ground at the higher elevations on the PA Turnpike today, but none on the roads, and the sun was shining by the time we got to Columbus.
To recap the week:
We arrived at Newtown Tuesday evening and spent Wednesday morning exploring the little shops in the village. Wednesday afternoon we visited and ran errands with Jennifer, and Evelyn did some food prep for the next day. Then we went with Jen and Matt to a diner for dinner Wednesday evening.
We returned from our hotel to Matt and Jen's place Thursday morning to watch the Macy's parade on television and await Miles and Nina's arrival from their mom's place at noon. Geoff and Lisa (and Frankie!) arrived about 1:30, and we enjoyed a walk with the dogs through the fine neighborhood next to the church. Dinner was about 4:00, and it was a sumptuous feast. My pictures give only a hint of how tasty and abundant was the food. I did not get a picture of the spatchcocked turkey! It was as good to eat as it was fun to say!

Miles and Matt and Geoff and I played Settlers of Catan after dessert (Lisa made the cherry pie pictured above as well as a wonderful pumpkin pie.) The ladies watched the dog show Jen had recorded earlier in the day.
Friday Jen and Matt and Evelyn and I took the train to New York and the subway to Long Island City  for 24 hours in the city with the New York Taylors. It was a great time. We walked down to the East River to see the expanding park along the riverfront and enjoy the always captivating views of the city.

Soon we took the subway to Tribeca and enjoyed a wonderful dinner and then took cabs to the movie theater to see a sold-out showing of Lincoln. I started with a head cold on Thanksgiving evening and was feeling a little ragged by Friday evening, and I'm afraid I even dozed off a couple of times during the movie. It is a bit wordy, but maybe I'll watch it again when it's available on DVD.
We stayed in Long Island City that night and enjoyed a gourmet brunch at Geoff and Lisa's favorite Long Island City breakfast spot, Cafe Henri. After 1:00 we took the train back to New Jersey and then drove back to Levittown. Matt had church work to do in the afternoon. I checked into our hotel, ran to the grocery store, and then took a nap on Jen's couch. We ate yummy Thanksgiving  leftovers for supper, and had a nice visit before we headed back to rest up before an early departure this morning.

Just 10 Hours

What can you do in 10 hours?
If I ever had 10 hours straight to work in the yard, I could mow the grass, do the edging, trim the bushes, clean the gutters, get rid of weeds, sweep the walks, and enjoy several breaks for big glasses of cold water.
At work I could proofread one whole 68-page issue of the Christian Standard in its new monthly format, proofread one weekly issue of The Lookout, enjoy a lunch out of the office with a colleague, handle some correspondence, and waste some time checking Facebook.
In 10 hours I could pull out and test the Christmas lights, go to the store to replace the strands not working, string 'em around the bushes in my front yard, come back inside to unpack and assemble our prelit living room tree, hang the ornaments, and take a few breaks to find my favorite Christmas CD's to enjoy while I'm decorating.

Obviously, I didn't drive every minute.
I couldn't resist playing with the camera
on my computer while Evelyn was driving.

In 10 hours I could drive to the airport, check bags, go through security, and fly to Europe with time to spare.

And in 10 hours, or maybe a little more, I can drive from 7056 Darcie Drive in Liberty Township, Ohio to the Brick Hotel in Newtown, Pennsylvania, having stopped three times: once for gas, once for a late lunch at Eat 'n Park, and once more to visit the restroom and snag a tall decaf mocha at a Service Plaza on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

We had a good trip yesterday. Left exactly at 9:00 a.m. as planned. Enjoyed perfect weather (off and on sunshine and clouds and 50+ degrees), reasonable traffic except for one stretch on I-276 toward the end of the trip, and a nice assortment of classical music and NPR news on the radio, mixed with two editions of "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" I had downloaded to my computer from iTunes.

We checked in to the hotel and then got to Jen and Matt's by about 8:00 for a nice visit along with pumpkin cheesecake and decaf. We oooed and ahhhed over their latest round of renovations (a professional tile job on the kitchen floor by Matt, the amateur, and an amateur paint job in the living room and dining room by some workmen, the professionals) and visited till past 11:00.

This morning we're taking our time with showers, breakfast at the hotel, catching up on e-mails and some other work, and hopefully browsing the little shops in Newtown before heading over to Jen's by noon or so to run errands, start cooking for tomorrow, and enjoy more relaxing and reading.

Ten hours is a small investment for the chance to enjoy time with our family (Geoff and Lisa will be here tomorrow!).