Pioneer Weather

This morning we're having the kind of weather that, when I'm out in it, I think of as pioneer weather. That's because being out in this weather is the closest I ever get to being a pioneer.

It's pouring down rain, with thunder and lighting. So there's no telling when a road will be blocked by a downed limb or when you'll come across a new stream you will have to ford. When this weather is happening on the way to work, I feel like I have to try to keep dry, so I get to explore ways around the new creeks.

Then today I was also wondering about the wisdom of standing under a metal roof at the bus stop. Which was next to a pay phone that had a wire coming down from the nearest telephone pole. I don't know enough about electricity to know if that's inviting lightning to strike me. Or would it be better to be away from that structure, being a shorter target, but still holding my umbrella, with its metal rod, but also making sure my hand doesn't slip off the little plastic handle. In the end, I decided to wait under the eaves of a large brick building nearby. The lightning was getting closer and closer, but the bus arrived before the lightning did.

Learning about Vermont

Michael Hurley is touring in Vermont at the end of May, so Robin's decided we should try to pick up his shows in Montpelier, St. Albans, Bradford, and maybe Burlington. We'll fly in and rent a car and follow the band from town to town. Sounds like a hoot.

And also a vacation. We should go exploring during the day, and maybe spend a couple of extra days out there. So I've been thinking to myself, what do I know about Vermont? Virtually nothing. I lived in Boston for three years once, but I didn't have a car, so I didn't explore the area properly. I don't think I've ever been north of Massachusetts on the east coast. (My apologies in advance to any readers who know and love this area. Just try to be amused by what you are about to read. And feel free to correct me. In great detail.)

I knew that Vermont is one of those itty-bitty New England states. (Where I live, it's an eight-hour drive on straight flat freeways to get to Big Bend National Park, which is still inside my same state.) Since it's so far north, it must be cold, but by the end of May it should be merely cool. I confuse Vermont with New Hampshire--they're both about the same size and shape, but I forget which one is on the coast (New Hampshire).

So then I played around on the web and learned that all the cities on the music tour are in northern Vermont. And that Vermont is one of those maple syrup places. And they have skiing. And mountains. And dog sledding. And Ben and Jerry's ice cream. And Cabot cheese. And a lack of wi-fi connections. And it's just south of Montreal, Canada. And it borders Lake Champlain, which I've heard of. (Alright, so most of the details I "know" are from the Austin Lounge Lizard song "Acid Rain.")

So now I don't even know if the state is small enough that you could go anywhere in the state, and maybe several places in adjoining states and provinces in an easy day trip, or whether the mountains and maybe road conditions make traveling take much, much longer than I would ever guess.

Then yesterday I spent part of my lunch hour in the university library quickly looking through tour books that I couldn't check out because I don't have a library card. I decided the thing I most want to do with my extra time is to go hiking in the mountains somewhere. I might also like to tour some factories (ice cream? cheese? maple syrup? glass? marble?). And there's a village with marble sidewalks.

Robin might also be interested in some lake activities. They have ferries, cruise ships, with brunch cruises. You can bicycle or inline skate along the lake.

I also learned that the Berkshires are just south of where we will be, in western Massachusetts. I've heard of the Berkshires, but know nothing about this. They have a Shaker village and a model railroad museum that I thought might interest Robin and which it turns out he thinks he visited and loved as a child. So is that a close drive, or just craziness? I'm not a big fan of spending large amounts of vacation time driving.

Today I did a tiny bit more web surfing and learned that Burlington, the largest city in Vermont, has a population of 39,000. So all these towns are tiny!

I love this part of vacations, where you plan things and learn things (I don't think I'll ever get confused again about which state is Vermont and which is New Hampshire, for example). And afterwards, sometimes the actual vacation is pretty nice, too.

Site of the day - "Online Reading" by greenstreetbks. This is a review of The Diary of Samuel Pepys, which has been put online as if he's writing a LiveJournal. "We're in 1663 right now (correct day of March, too) and he's been keeping the journal for several years already. One thing we learn is Sam is a mad womanizer: he uses his position as a Navy clerk to score with chicks (they're trying to get their husbands out of conscription -- or in some cases INTO conscription), and he uses his position in society to score with the wives of his friends."