Blog Master G

Kinderhook, N.Y. – We made it. Not all the way to our new home in Saratoga Springs just yet, but we’re essentially there. We’re at Jen’s parents’ house in upstate New York, about an hour and change south of Saratoga. We rolled into town around 10pm Eastern Time tonight. It’s certainly surreal: Being here on a more permanent basis than we usually are. We’re no strangers to this town or this house, but our presence here is different this time. Different because this region of the country is now our home. It hasn’t quite sunk in for either Jen or me, I think, but certain physical clues solidify the situation and make it somehow more real. There’s the fact that we drove into town, rather than flying here, and my car sits in the driveway outside my in-laws’ house; and then there’s the fact that our dogs are here. In Kinderhook. That’s probably the strangest part. They even met Daisy May (one at a time). And no blood was shed. A few growls and flared hackles.

There’s no flight to catch back to California this time. Until the first vacation, anyway.

Today was another long day, though not too bad. We set no alarm in Pittsburgh at our final La Quinta stay across America. We woke up around 10am and made plans to meet Johnny as we passed through Buffalo.

So we hit the road and left Pennsylvania behind, cruised briefly through a corner of West Virginia, and north into New York. Around 4pm we arrived in Buffalo and had a great time hanging out with Johnny at an early supper. We made arrangements for him to visit us as soon as we’re settled in Saratoga Springs. It’s a good feeling to have so many great friends on this side of the country, too. I’ve reflected on that quite a bit lately: That we’re fortunate enough to have such wonderful, close friends on both coasts. I feel very lucky.

The drive time passed quickly for the most part today, listening to most of the audio book we started yesterday (or day before?), The Life of Pi. The story started out to be really good but has taken a turn for the worse and is just plain bad at the point where we stopped listening tonight (we had had enough). It’s a tale of a castaway Indian boy who, following a shipwreck, is stranded at sea on a lifeboat with a tiger and other animals from his father’s zoo. It was not the best pick in audio book to listen to while driving across the country with two dogs since the story is essentially about a long, hellish journey without end in the company of wild beasts. Apparently there’s some kind of twist at the end, though, according to Johnny, so we’ll have to make it through the painful final two CDs (of nine total). It’s a pretty stressful story, not quite as light-hearted as the previous audio book we heard (Big Bad Wolf).

A couple hours before we were due to arrive in Albany, the dogs must’ve gotten the sense that we were close to our destination. Happy decided he’d had enough of riding in close quarters in the way back of the Scoob with his sister for eight straight days. The space is cozy for them, but not much bigger than their overall dog-volume. So I really couldn’t blame Happy when he decided to climb over the rear headrests and into the backseat stacked to the ceiling with luggage and other belongings we didn’t want to send with the movers. It was hilarious seeing him wiggle his little Border Collie body over the seat and weave this way and that to find a comfortable perch among our suitcases. It made for perfect rearview mirror entertainment and provided Jen and me with a fit of much-needed laughing.

And then we arrived. It was over just as suddenly as it had begun. Eight days on the road. The journey is nearly over, but the real one is about to begin. A new town and a new year await. A future of infinite possibilities is on the horizon.

Tomorrow we’ll take a New Year’s Eve breather here in Kinderhook before heading up to Saratoga Springs on Thursday to bring our trip to an official close, sign our lease, and begin to settle in as we wait for our stuff to arrive.