The Road, and the end of it.

Six am. That's what time Sarah arrived to pick me up this morning. I was ready, and we got on the road. It was an uneventful trip overall. At lunchtime, we were somewhere in Pennsylvania, just approaching Interstate 80, when I consulted the GPS.

"Look, there's a Denny's, just about two miles off the highway," I said.

"Great!" Sarah followed the directions.

We found ourselves in a residential neighborhood. The GPS said, "Recalculating," as we missed our turn.

I looked at all the run-down, wood-sided houses in need of a good paint job. "This doesn't look like a place where they'd build a Denny's.". Sure enough, there was a Denny's. But not the chain restaurant.





It was a biker joint. And pretty full for 11:30 on a Saturday. We decided to risk it. Good sandwiches, friendly service. A million choices of appetizers. What more could you ask for?


By 3:30 we were here. We met the infamous Roger, who we've been chatting with on the discussion board for weeks. He directed us to where we could leave our bags, and we headed inside for a brief orientation. Then, packed book bags in hand, we went to park the car. After a longish walk to the Chautauqua Inn, we're having a rest while we wait for the luggage to arrive. I hope it gets here soon. We want to leave for the Opening Banquet in about an hour. Meanwhile, I'm sitting on the balcony outside our room, enjoying the breeze. This is what it looks like from where I sit.