Adventures in Camden

[skcin]

I know how much you all love my reviews, in all their rambling/pointless unrelated info/sarcastic glory. So here ya go.

For those of you who hadn't read about my panic in other threads, I was afraid that I wouldn't make the show in time. That fear was unfounded. Hubby & I left Buffalo around 10:30am & made it to friend's house in York, PA by 4pm as planned. Friend was already home from work awaiting our arrival, but friend's wife was not. I take a deep breath, open up a beer & try not to panic. I freshen up & change clothes, brush my hair, etc. while waiting. The show started at 8pm, so I knew Stevie wouldn't go on until at least 9pm. Mapquest gave me an estimate of 2 hours, but I've heard about the nightmarish traffic, so I hoped 3 - 4 hours was enough. Friend calls wife at 4:30pm & she hasn't even left work yet. Again, trying not to panic.

She arrives home at around 4:50pm, and I'm like "hey, great to see you, now go get ready!" To her credit, she's ready in 10 minutes. There was some discussion about the need to stop at the bank (I almost hit her) but it was determined it would be easier to take $ from her husband. We stop & get gas ($2.89 a gallon - that's a bargain for me!) and kid's meals from the drive-thru @ Burger King. She ordered a hamburger, they gave her a cheeseburger. She hates American cheese. I half-heartedly offer to go back, and I don't know if she felt my panic about being late, or if laser beams shot out of my eyes when I offered, but she sucked it up & took one for the team, eating the vile cheeseburger. Somehow, she survived.

The traffic was, compared to Buffalo, horrendous. See, in Buffalo, even a 10 minute traffic jam is rare. Because nobody lives her anymore, so there's planty of room for everyone. It took us at least 40 minutes just to get out of York. Oh, did I mention I ended up driving? Being the control freak that I am, her husband & I thought it was best. I read the directions 15 times before we left so she didn't f*ck them up (a very real possibility, since she couldn't follow my directions about navigating a website the day before.)

The whole drive out, I was nervous, but not in a tizzy. I drove calmly & didn't cut anyone off or tailgate....too badly. I felt so much better when I saw this:

That sign made everything better somehow.


The only time I truly knew we were OK was when we got on the Ben Franklin Bridge (which I knew was almost at our destination) & it was wide open. It was also only 7:20pm. Arriving in Camden was....um....well.... Anyone recall when I complained that Cleveland was a pit after the time carrie & I almost got carjakced? Yeah, Camden reminded me of that. So, not exactly a desireable vacation destination. We were stuck in the middle of the flow of traffic, and I was not about to try to turn around, so we went tot eh pay lot & forked over the $15. Slightly annoying, but I didn't think it was worth the hassle of trying to get somewhere else. Besides, since I drove, I made her pay.