Road Trip, Days 5 and 6

Day 5 was an easy day, but sad in that I was leaving beautiful northern Michigan and starting the long trip back home.

The first two or three hours of the drive were peaceful and easy, with little traffic and great scenery. The rest of the day was spent in much heavier traffic on the way to Northwood, OH (next to Toledo). My destination for the night was based on a desire to revisit one of my favorite brewpubs from last summer’s trip, Maumee Bay Brewing. It didn’t disappoint this year, either!

Day 6 began with a two-hour backtrack north to East Lansing for a wonderful, two-hour visit (over brunch) with my friend from grad school, Beth. I haven’t seen her since 2002, so this was a long-overdue visit. We were able to get caught up on things, and I probably shared much more than I should have with her, but she’s served as a sounding board for my thoughts over the years and I know I can trust her with anything (and she won’t judge me no matter what I say).

By 1:30 or so, I was back in Toledo and headed for Corning, NY! Fortunately, traffic was, by and large, light all day; that was fortunate, as the total travel distance was around 630 miles. Unfortunately, my main reason in going as far as Corning was to have a late dinner at Market Street Brewing. I arrived there at 8:15 to find that there was an estimated minimum wait time of 30 minutes for a table, and no seats at the bar! I was too tired and hungry to hold out, so I went across the street and got one of the last seats at The Gaffer, a second-rate establishment with inflated prices. Oh well.

My plan for tomorrow, the last day of the trip, is to take my time leaving in the morning (it’s late and I’m tired!) and get home sometime before dinner time. I have Sunday off (no church to play for, hooray!), but Monday it’s back to work, alas.

Such a great week this has been. I only wish I had the nerve to say what I wish I could say, but I don’t. I can’t accept the risk. Maybe a year from now, but it may be too late by then.