December 31, 2009

I spent the last day of 2009 on the NJ turnpike, which always reminds me of Simon & Garfunkel's song America....
"Kathy, I'm lost," I said, though I knew she was sleeping
I'm empty and aching and I don't know why
Counting the cars on the New Jersey Turnpike
They've all gone to look for America
All gone to look for America.....

We weren't supposed to be on the New Jersey turnpike. We left Gilbertsville, NY after breakfast and soon found ourselves in big trouble. There was a little snow on the roads and a few flurries in the air. Not enough to cause trouble for the average driver in the average car. But we weren't in an average car. We were in road hog. A car designed to eat up the asphalt at high speeds, to take curves without slowing down, to dominate the road. We had low profile-run-flat-high-performance tires designed for speeds in excess of 100mph on dry roads. We got stuck on a hill and some friendly university kids pushed us. We got stuck in the middle lane trying to get to the interstate. The big car fishtailed and swayed and slid and spit snow. The wheels took turns spinning as the on-board computer sent frantic messages around trying to remedy the situation. When we finally finagled our way onto the highway my husband thought he was home free and pushed the speed up to 50mph only to find himself fighting to regain control of a skid. I suppose it's testimony to his driving ability and the engineering of his dream car that he was able to drive out of it. It was a thrilling ride. Not one I'm looking to make again