We were supposed to fly SouthWest into Buffalo on the 26th of December. Found out on Christmas morning (& not from SouthWest) that the airport there was closed and not expected to reopen anytime soon. A quick review of the air transport system (& our options) wasn't very reassuring so...we drove it. Threw out the in-laws after Christmas dinner(!) and packed up our 5-year old crossover Mazda (which nobody but me liked before this trip) and hit the road a little after 6PM here. Got on I-70 East of Denver and took it all the way to Columbus, Ohio. From there up to Erie and then the "Lower Tier Expressway" to Salamanca, NY, dropping into Pennsylvania from there. Three drivers and 23 hours of straight driving (not for the faint of heart). We actually got there about when we would have otherwise if we'd have flown. I did fine until we visited a little bar & grill the following evening where my now-deceased brother-in-law's oldest daughter was working and saw his photograph on the wall of "Local Heros" (the establishment is owned by a former LEO as well). Change is hard, eh? No bird hunting or fishing this trip, just lots of little visits with what remains of my other friends and associates from my past-life there. The driving tour across the country was an interesting view of current conditions "on the ground" for several states (Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, New York, and of course Pennsylvania. I can report that the "infrastructure" that the politicians like to talk about, all the way across the country... is looking pretty shopworn (St. Louis seemed to be the worst). I have remarked to my family (for many years now....something of a broken-record I fear) how bad things looked to me in at-least my part of Pennsylvania, but the rest of the country we crossed was looking pretty tough to me too. Another thing that I had noticed back there in the last few years was how, even in what was historically the more-remote areas, there were people now trying to scratch out an existence. Many (if not most) of my old coverts back there now have houses (or trailers) on them. I guess I'm not sure if I'm just-another angry old white guy or if I'm really seeing something unfold?

Last edited by Lloyd3; 01/03/23 02:41 PM.