Checking in from Pattersonville rest stop, I-90
I’m 200.5 miles into my Boston-to-Austin drive. I left the house at 6:45 this morning, just early enough to beat the morning rush-hour traffic driving into Boston, where I hopped onto I-90 West.
Of the 2,500 or so miles that I’ll cover between now and Monday evening, this initial stretch is the part that I was least looking forward to. The drive from Boston to Syracuse is one I’m all too familiar with, having done it at least 30 times during my time as a student at Syracuse University (Class of 1998!) and my three years working for the Office of International Education at SUNY Oswego.
I didn’t get as much sleep as I would have liked last night (was up packing until just after midnight), so I’m sluggish this morning. But don’t worry: I’m being smart and taking lots of short breaks. I just likely won’t make it as far as my intended destination of Cincinnati — but I do have a backup plan.
No ATM Card
An unfortunate wrinkle was thrown into the trip a couple of hours ago when I stopped for gas and discovered that my ATM card was nowhere to be found. The cash I already had in my wallet and credit cards will cover me, but I will probably need to make an unscheduled stop at a Citizens Bank (here’s hoping there is one somewhere near Syracuse or Buffalo) a little later to order a new card.
Heading to my alma mater
I’m going to swing through the campus of Syracuse U in a couple of hours. I’m interested to see how much the place has changed since my last visit to the Hill in May 2001.
I’ll check in again here later today.
