From Here To Kalamazoo
In hopes of saving money I decided to drive down to Chicago for the Thanksgiving long weekend (at least for us Canucks). I'm used to driving to Montreal (which is about 4 hours depending on how heavy your foot is) and I've enjoyed driving to New Hampshire and New York City. So it made sense to try Chicago. The trip is supposed to be 8 hours and some change but I thought I would be more cautious and give it 10 hours. Besides if I made it there in less than 10 then it would feel like an acomplishment.
I left work early and was on the road by 2 pm. There was traffic getting out of the city but I made it to the Michigan border within 3 hours. The interesting stories begin in Michigan. The only "land mark" I came across was the infamous 8 Mile Road. For those unfamiliar, 8 Mile is a loaded phrase. It means more than the street that marks the northern edge of Detroit. 8 Mile Road divides city from suburb, blacks from whites, lower class from middle class. The east-west artery has been emblematic of the hostility and social ills that beset the city three decades ago — and later cities across the country — and that still linger along pockets of the eight-lane road. More recently it was made famous by Eminem who made a movie about growing up there. I didn't stop to take in the scenery but I passed by it definitely had to give my "big-ups" when passing.
Being in a car for a long period of time your mind starts to wander. I tend to notice all the rude and bad drivers. So I call them jerks. I just think the word is funny sounding especially towards the women drivers as the word jerk has a masculine association. There was however one "king of all the jerks". The left hand lane of the 3 lane highway was ending due to construction a good mile up ahead. The car in front of me was slowing down even stopping. I looked ahead and saw no cars in front of him. He was stopping traffic so no one could "cut" in front of him to merge to the next lane as there was a large semi truck beside us. I drove on the shoulder and proceeded to look at him in disbelief. I watched him in my rearview mirror for the entire time and he continued to do this right until the end of the lane. Really, what was this guy thinking? Ugh.
The rest of the drive was uneventful save for me belting out tunes along with what was playing on the CD player. I did pass two towns in Michigan of interest. One was Climax, and the other was Kalamazoo. I knew that Kalamazoo existed but it just sounds made up like Chatanuga or Walawala.
So now I'm in Chicago on this very cold weekend. Have a great weekend y'all.
I left work early and was on the road by 2 pm. There was traffic getting out of the city but I made it to the Michigan border within 3 hours. The interesting stories begin in Michigan. The only "land mark" I came across was the infamous 8 Mile Road. For those unfamiliar, 8 Mile is a loaded phrase. It means more than the street that marks the northern edge of Detroit. 8 Mile Road divides city from suburb, blacks from whites, lower class from middle class. The east-west artery has been emblematic of the hostility and social ills that beset the city three decades ago — and later cities across the country — and that still linger along pockets of the eight-lane road. More recently it was made famous by Eminem who made a movie about growing up there. I didn't stop to take in the scenery but I passed by it definitely had to give my "big-ups" when passing.
Being in a car for a long period of time your mind starts to wander. I tend to notice all the rude and bad drivers. So I call them jerks. I just think the word is funny sounding especially towards the women drivers as the word jerk has a masculine association. There was however one "king of all the jerks". The left hand lane of the 3 lane highway was ending due to construction a good mile up ahead. The car in front of me was slowing down even stopping. I looked ahead and saw no cars in front of him. He was stopping traffic so no one could "cut" in front of him to merge to the next lane as there was a large semi truck beside us. I drove on the shoulder and proceeded to look at him in disbelief. I watched him in my rearview mirror for the entire time and he continued to do this right until the end of the lane. Really, what was this guy thinking? Ugh.
The rest of the drive was uneventful save for me belting out tunes along with what was playing on the CD player. I did pass two towns in Michigan of interest. One was Climax, and the other was Kalamazoo. I knew that Kalamazoo existed but it just sounds made up like Chatanuga or Walawala.
So now I'm in Chicago on this very cold weekend. Have a great weekend y'all.
2 Comments:
"Kalamazoo is a real place...just like Chattanooga!"
Fun Fact:
Derek Jeter of the Yankees and Justin Stoltman, a heroin addict I used to work with at the Lusty, are both from Kalamazoo!
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