“Remoted – Hybrid” – Day 944 (Monday) – eye candy

Being Monday and Finnish Class, of course there was rain. It wasn’t rainy when I left the house for work and there was a failure in comprehending the forecast when the temperature was checked before dressing for work.

The rain coat was left home in favor of a leather jacket and the umbrella was left on the kitchen table. During the day, the clouds gathered and became darker, and there were varying degrees of precipitation. Luckily, it diminished to a light drizzle as I left the office, race walking the quarter-mile to the garage. The speed was to minimize the rain on the hair which tends to get wavy and fuzzy with moisture. Plus, it was a bit cold and raw.

Road eye candy.

Sometimes the Waze app really is my best friend and tonight after work was one of those times. I know the way to class, but I use Waze regularly to monitor the traffic delays. The “Police reported ahead” alerts are also helpful.

For reasons completely unexplored by me, Waze mapped a totally different route to Fitchburg today. The route bypassed University Bridge and Fletcher Street, which were throbbing red lines of glorious Lowell traffic on the screen. The idea of avoiding routes 495 and 2 and the road rage they inspire was worth following the suggested route.

It was the Rourke Bridge to cross the Merrimack River, which was a bit nerve jangling, but after that it was routes 40, 225, and 2A. The speed limits were lower than the Interstate, traffic was light, and the foliage was beautiful. There was one spot which wasn't the most fabulous eye candy color, but mine was the only car on the road and I was able to stop and grab a picture of the road ahead.

At Saima.

For most of the drive, I had no idea where I was, and just trusted the lady in the phone as she guided me along the way. In Lunenburg, street names became familiar, and when I crossed into Fitchburg, there was some of the "hey I didn't know that road came out here" joy of discovery. The arrival at Saima featured more colorful trees on the approach to the parking lot. 

If every journey could be like today’s trip to Fitchburg, commandeering a motor vehicle might fall off the “don’t like it and do it because I have to” list and move to the “it might be fun to do this more often” list.

Hooray for traffic apps, minimal traffic, and pretty leaves.