Special Shout Out
A lot has happened the last week or so, but I'll keep the most substantial update for the end of the week. Until then, I'll share a story from my drive up to NY for the Jewish New Year.
I left DC on Friday at around 11am, but didn't really get on the road until 12:20pm. I took I-495N to I-95N- not the usual way, but I started driving from the ARC in Falls Church, and the entrance to the highway was right there. Traffic was moving very well...until 1:40 or so, when I hit a stand-still 3 or 4 miles from the Millard E. Tydings Memorial Bridge. Those who make the drive between DC and NY know it for its wonderful view of the Susquehanna River. I turned off my engine, as the highway was a literal parking lot. I turned off my iPod, rolled down my window, and asked the guy sitting next to me in the left lane if he knew what's going on. A few minutes later, a woman walked down the left shoulder with her dog and told us that there was a bad accident and someone needed to be medivac'd off the bridge. Should be 45 minutes to an hour's wait.
Crap, I think. Waiting one hour will put me at 3pm before any movement, which doesn't bode well if I need to get to northern New Jersey by 6:21pm for candle lighting. Thankfully, I have a friend who knows the roads and at a flip of a switch, and can give me at least one or two other routes to get where I need to go. The only problem here is that I'm 4 miles before the Susquehanna River and there is only one or two other ways to get across if you get off of I-95.
So I called Matt and, after giving him my precise location (mile marker 90 in the middle lane of northbound I-95) in 2 minutes, he found a different route. And thankfully enough, I was situated perfectly in the middle lane, with enough space behind me and to my left, so I was able to turn my car around, drive on the shoulder, and get on the southbound lanes, which were completely empty (traffic was stopped in both directions before the bridge).
20 minutes and a $5 toll later, I drove over the Susquehanna River and found myself back on I-95N- but this time, the entire highway was deserted. The bridge was still closed and I had the highway all to myself (and the other lucky ones who knew what Matt knew).
As it turns out, I was very lucky to have taken I-495N in the beginning, instead of taking DC-295N, like I normally do until Baltimore. 15 minutes into my drive, I heard on the radio about a bad accident near the NASA-Goddard exit that shut down a lane and was causing massive delays northbound. Ironically enough, it was Matt the night before who solidified my decision to take I-495.
So- here's a public thank you to Matt. Because of your help, I was able to avoid getting stuck in a Grauman-esque pre-Shabbat/pre-chag situation.
A more contemplative and serious change-of-status post to come by next Friday.
Now, off to sleep.
I left DC on Friday at around 11am, but didn't really get on the road until 12:20pm. I took I-495N to I-95N- not the usual way, but I started driving from the ARC in Falls Church, and the entrance to the highway was right there. Traffic was moving very well...until 1:40 or so, when I hit a stand-still 3 or 4 miles from the Millard E. Tydings Memorial Bridge. Those who make the drive between DC and NY know it for its wonderful view of the Susquehanna River. I turned off my engine, as the highway was a literal parking lot. I turned off my iPod, rolled down my window, and asked the guy sitting next to me in the left lane if he knew what's going on. A few minutes later, a woman walked down the left shoulder with her dog and told us that there was a bad accident and someone needed to be medivac'd off the bridge. Should be 45 minutes to an hour's wait.
Crap, I think. Waiting one hour will put me at 3pm before any movement, which doesn't bode well if I need to get to northern New Jersey by 6:21pm for candle lighting. Thankfully, I have a friend who knows the roads and at a flip of a switch, and can give me at least one or two other routes to get where I need to go. The only problem here is that I'm 4 miles before the Susquehanna River and there is only one or two other ways to get across if you get off of I-95.
So I called Matt and, after giving him my precise location (mile marker 90 in the middle lane of northbound I-95) in 2 minutes, he found a different route. And thankfully enough, I was situated perfectly in the middle lane, with enough space behind me and to my left, so I was able to turn my car around, drive on the shoulder, and get on the southbound lanes, which were completely empty (traffic was stopped in both directions before the bridge).
20 minutes and a $5 toll later, I drove over the Susquehanna River and found myself back on I-95N- but this time, the entire highway was deserted. The bridge was still closed and I had the highway all to myself (and the other lucky ones who knew what Matt knew).
As it turns out, I was very lucky to have taken I-495N in the beginning, instead of taking DC-295N, like I normally do until Baltimore. 15 minutes into my drive, I heard on the radio about a bad accident near the NASA-Goddard exit that shut down a lane and was causing massive delays northbound. Ironically enough, it was Matt the night before who solidified my decision to take I-495.
So- here's a public thank you to Matt. Because of your help, I was able to avoid getting stuck in a Grauman-esque pre-Shabbat/pre-chag situation.
A more contemplative and serious change-of-status post to come by next Friday.
Now, off to sleep.
posted by elanit | 11:42 PM
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