April 2025 – One Bold Crone

MA

The final day of the 2025 Eastbound OBC excursion dawned in a beautiful section of New York State known as the Southern Tier. This region shares a long border with northern Pennsylvania, as well as three sparkling rivers: the Susquehanna, Chemung, and Allegheny.

I woke on this Day 7 of seven in Olean, NY to the sound of geese. When I followed them outside, the full moon was setting over Saint Bonaventure University, auspiciously situated right across the street from our hotel.

I say auspicious because A) Bonaventure literally means good fortune, and B) it also is the name of a second mast, found on older ships, which enhances a vessel’s maneuverability.

Surely flexibility/maneuverability and good fortune make for a successful journey, and this one has been blessed by both.

A majestic morning, illuminating lofty ideals with the beauty of the natural world.

The caravan hit the road around 9 o’clock and clouds moved in after that. Hence for the first time during this trip, we encountered rain. But it was only a passing shower. The car got a much needed scrubbing, and then out came the sun.

Entering Massachusetts mid-afternoon, we hit another patch of light rain. It continued to sprinkle all the way to Northampton, where I picked up some groceries at the co-op, and it still was drizzling when we got to the house, but nobody minded because we were home.

Clyde, the Intrepid Traveler, free at last!

I’d like to express my gratitude to any and all who visited this blog, and especially to my core group of loyal readers who provided support with your likes and comments. Knowing you were there really helped motivate me to stay creative and positive during all those long hours on the road, not to mention all those long hours in between, for the entire past week. Thank you!!

I’m not sure when I’ll be back, but I will. Until then, sending you so much love…

OBC 🙏🏼💜🌵🦉💫

OH PA NY

What better place to wake up on the final morning of this 7-day journey than across the street from the University of Good Adventure?

Life is about three things. What happens outside of our control, the choices we make, and the stories we tell ourselves.

We can’t change what happens beyond our control, but we can decide how much of that we want to think about. We can choose where to focus our attention, and what frame or plot line works best for us.

This reminds me of that medieval TV series I loved so much, called The Last Kingdom. During the opening credits, the dashing lead character, Uthred son of Uthred, does a dramatic voiceover ending with the phrase “Destiny is All!” But in the voiceover for my show, One Bold Crone, narrative is all.

And now we return to our regularly scheduled program…

Day Six morning walk to Lowe’s Garden Center, across the street from Best Western, Richmond IN. Flowers feel like spring!

I also love a nice chestnut! Always thought of these as “horse chestnuts”, but I suppose the proper name is Buckeye. When I was growing up in New Rochelle, we had a huge tree in our backyard. All the kids in the neighborhood loved going out there and collecting fresh chestnuts in the fall. Breaking the spiny shell open, extracting the nut inside. So glossy and beautiful!

Ohio does a really nice job with their rest areas. I’ve visited the Very Hungry Caterpillar Storybook Trail on the westbound side of I-90 twice before. Now eastbound, we discovered this Snowy Day trail. (Looks like Dolly Parton had something to do with it, too. What a woman!)

The next rest area we visited, in Chautauqua New York, was even more spectacular!

The restrooms and vending machines are housed inside of this elegant information center. Completely unadvertised, and not visible from the highway. All it said on the sign was “text stop”. I’m so glad I drove in!

We arrived nice and early to our lovely little Microtel in Olean, NY. As always, Timi and Clyde were happy to get out of the car, and this window seat can’t be beat. Only six hours from home now! So close…

💜💙🌵🦉💫

IL IN

Between Rolla and Richmond lie two major cities, St. Louis and Indianapolis. I suppose it’s a good thing, getting them both crossed off the list and out of the way on the same day, which I have learned through experience to always schedule for a Sunday, giving the best chance of encountering only light traffic. (Reminds me of that old movie, “If It’s St. Louis, This Must Be Sunday.” Or was that Rome?)

Due to storms last week, the river near Clark, IN flooded, so my Maps app provided an alternate route, adding an hour to the drive.

I wasn’t too happy about having an hour added to the day’s trip for just possible flooding. However I chose the alternate route to be on the safe side. Luckily, in the end, the flood warning was lifted, Maps put me back on my original route, and the only hour I lost was from time change number three since Wednesday.

That said, I feel very grateful to my sister Katie in Florida for checking the weather when the warning first showed up, and to my friend Cat in Massachusetts who stayed in touch with me all the way through the potential danger zone, even finding interesting places for me to stop along the alternate route, such as the World’s Largest Catsup Bottle in Casey.

Instead of viewing the Catsup Bottle, we made a pit stop at Casey’s General Store in Greenup, IL where I bought some snacks, walked Timi, and took Clyde out of his crate for a cuddle.

Indianapolis was exhausting after all that, but at least the lane changes are not as rushed and drastic as in St. Louis. All I had to do in Indianapolis was keep left. And except for plenty of wind, the weather was fine for Day Five of seven. Phew! Getting there…

🙏🏼🌵🦉💫

MO

Wyndham Baymont Inn overlooking Blue Lake, Rolla MO. Right off the highway, and yet a world apart. 💙

So grateful for another beautiful weather day for the drive out of Oklahoma and into Missouri. Day Four of seven. Halfway there!

Day Four began with a sunrise walk on sacred buffalo land in Comancheria, aka Clinton OK.

Here is where buffalo quenched their thirst, along I-40, somewhere south of Oklahoma City.

Saw a lot of cows today. Most were out grazing on fresh grass, but this one was going somewhere…hopefully a new ranch, not the auction. 😥

It snowed today up in Western Massachusetts, our destination. But in SW Missouri, it looks and feels like April! So pretty. (Note: speed limit is a leisurely 70 MPH here on I-44, but it was up to 80 in Tulsa!)

As soon as we arrived, Clyde hopped right up on the windowsill to enjoy the fresh breeze and familiar view.

It’s only a ten minute walk around Blue Lake, so we did it twice, looking for the lone goose, who I’ve written about before. She or he was nowhere to be seen, but this little gosling was there! It’s like a fairy tale.

TX OK

Today was day three of seven on the road with the OBC caravan. We started off in Edgewood, New Mexico, headed east on the I-40, and per Siri continued straight “for about 395 miles”…

Hard to believe this is our sixth cross country sojourn, and the third time heading in this direction, which is to say, East, so in a way, Clyde and Timi know the drill, but that doesn’t mean it’s their favorite activity.

Me this morning after finishing my yoga practice and realizing Clyde is hiding under the bed, with no intention of coming out on his own. Maintenance men to the rescue!

Getting Clyde out from under the bed added about 15 minutes to our planned departure time, and then maybe half an hour in, we hit another delay due to an accident. Traffic stopped for several minutes before we all got to pass by the site, as workmen were sweeping up broken glass on the side. I hope everyone survived the crash. Scary.

From there on in, it was smooth sailing, though. 75 mph speed limit all the way. Surreal watching the landscape change at that speed.

Filled up in Tucumcari for $2.89 gallon near this mountain. Last stop in NM.

The western Texas panhandle is a high prairie full of wind farms and cattle ranches, with very little to see in the way of buildings, trees or even shrubs. But after Amarillo, TX, a Wild West metropolis of sorts, the terrain starts to change. Things get greener, less dry. Approaching the Oklahoma border you start to see some real trees on the side of the road, with thick trunks, and spreading branches. And then, just like that, you’re not out west anymore.