[Magdalen] Frustration

[Kristin Rollins]

Sorry about that. Adjusting to a new-to-me mail client and the quoting was not as clear as I expected, so simple paragraph separation wasn’t enough to make my comments appear separate from Roger’s.

My comments:

Heather and I love 460 because it is a reasonably fast alternative with a
lot less traffic than the Interstate. Most trips to Richmond and points
west, we take 460 between here and Petersburg.

...

It’s been a few years since we visited the museum, but what has impressed
me most has been Fort Monroe itself. It is a very beautiful place and I
wish it was just a tiny bit easier to get to from here. I have been there
once since it was turned over from the military to the state and the park
service. And it was so wonderful to walk around, and felt so peaceful
despite how close we were to the Interstate: close enough that it’s easy to
get there, but not close enough to be noticeable once you’re there. It’s
one of those places that I want to get there more often than I do, but is
just [missing words: just a bit more awkward to get there from here than I'd like]

...

And I am sorry about that. It was much too late when I realized that the
tolling was added recently enough that your GPS might not know it yet. And
yes, traffic flow is the big reason, because the tunnel crossings are very
busy during rush hour. And there’s also a space issue with the Downtown
Tunnel, because on one side, there are exits almost immediately after
exiting the tunnel on both sides, so there isn’t a good spot to set up toll
booths. If it is any consolation, I have visited that museum and was very
underwhelmed, and I rarely feel that with museums. And at least we got to
share dinner Tuesday night.

Kristin

> On Oct 30, 2014, at 4:32 PM, James Oppenheimer-Crawford <oppenheimerjw at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Alas, while I can read the repeat of Roger's note, I'm not sure if anything
> else is included.
> 
> 
> James W. Oppenheimer-Crawford
> *“If you have a chance to accomplish something that will make things better
> for people coming behind you, and you don’t do it, you're wasting your time
> on this Earth.”  -- *Roberto Clemente
> 
> On Thu, Oct 30, 2014 at 7:30 AM, Kristin Rollins <kristin at verumsolum.com>
> wrote:
> 
>> 
>>> On Oct 29, 2014, at 8:15 PM, ROGER STOKES <roger.stokes65 at btinternet.com>
>> wrote:
>>> 
>>> Monday may have brought a sense of success in seeing fall foliage but
>> today brought a double dose of frustration.  Yesterday I checked out of my
>> room in Lynchburg to head towards the coast.  On my way I stopped in
>> Petersburg, and in particular the old town which I swauntered (combination
>> of sweltered and sauntered) for a bit in the heat of the day. Leaving the
>> parking lot my route took me over some cobbled streets to a very elegant
>> colonial style building - the local rail station.  I can't claim to have
>> seen most, let alone all, of the Amtrak stations but this must be among the
>> neatest on the network.
>>> 
>>> Most of my route was on US 460 rather than Interstate highways so I got
>> more of a view of small town America, which was certainly worth getting.  I
>> duly arrived at my hotel in Chesapeake and then went for dinner with
>> Kristin and Heather at a diner they chose.  It's part of a local chain and
>> met the requirements of being not too far for me to go and easy to find -
>> insofar as any individual outlet is easy to find in a shopping center
>> spread round a communal parking lot. We had a good chat, including
>> mentioning some folks who used to post but seem to have disappeared over
>> the years with ni news of what happened to them.
>> 
>> Heather and I love 460 because it is a reasonably fast alternative with a
>> lot less traffic than the Interstate. Most trips to Richmond and points
>> west, we take 460 between here and Petersburg.
>> 
>>> This morning, following a recommendation, I headed for the Hampton Roads
>> bridge-tunnel.  Arriving at the other side it was almost as if the clock
>> had been turned back a century as the place might not have changed in that
>> time, apart from paving the streets and the traffic lights. Since I had
>> arrived at Fort Monroe before the Casemate Museum opened I spent a bit of
>> time wandering around, taking in the atmosphere. This showed clearly why
>> the Confederate Army could not have taken it during the Civil War while the
>> location enable it to be a crucial Union base in Confederate territory.
>> When the museum opened I was invited to tag along with what I took to be a
>> group of students being given a guided tour.
>>> 
>>> That was helpful in understanding the significance of some of the events
>> that took place and helped shape American history, including in the
>> abolition of slavery as slaves went there to claim their freedom, thus
>> denuding the Confederate forces of a significant source of labour.
>> Informative as the labels on various exhibits were the guide strung them
>> together into a coherent story.
>> 
>> It’s been a few years since we visited the museum, but what has impressed
>> me most has been Fort Monroe itself. It is a very beautiful place and I
>> wish it was just a tiny bit easier to get to from here. I have been there
>> once since it was turned over from the military to the state and the park
>> service. And it was so wonderful to walk around, and felt so peaceful
>> despite how close we were to the Interstate: close enough that it’s easy to
>> get there, but not close enough to be noticeable once you’re there. It’s
>> one of those places that I want to get there more often than I do, but is
>> just
>> 
>>> After that is when the frustration started.  I had hoped to visit the
>> Museum of American Transportation but this is in an active Army base.  My
>> lack of US issued ID meant that the guards could not check whether I was on
>> a watch list so I was turned back and decided to make my way to Virginia
>> Beach.  The beach itself is superb and it looks as if in the season it
>> should be a vibrant and fun holiday resort.  There was a distinct breeze
>> but it still felt relatively warm.  The trouble was that it is off-season
>> so (as in most resorts) most of it was shut up so I did not stay there long.
>>> 
>>> At the Visitor Center I had picked up a flyer about the Navy Museum in
>> Portsmouth so I thought I might try that before joining Kristin and Heatehr
>> for Eucharist at their church. I had set my GPS preferences to "no tolls"
>> but clearly the local authority have increased the number of river
>> crossings where tolls are charged. Unlike a lot of other toll crossings you
>> cannot pay cash (presumably to speed traffic flow) but need either a EZPass
>> transponder or to have a "Pay by Plate" account.  Being in a rental car
>> neither of these was really an option for me so whenever I saw the word
>> "Toll" on a sign I had to turn off to another road.  This frustration at
>> not being able to get through to Portsmouth meant eventually I had had
>> enough and simply came back to the hotel.
>> 
>> And I am sorry about that. It was much too late when I realized that the
>> tolling was added recently enough that your GPS might not know it yet. And
>> yes, traffic flow is the big reason, because the tunnel crossings are very
>> busy during rush hour. And there’s also a space issue with the Downtown
>> Tunnel, because on one side, there are exits almost immediately after
>> exiting the tunnel on both sides, so there isn’t a good spot to set up toll
>> booths. If it is any consolation, I have visited that museum and was very
>> underwhelmed, and I rarely feel that with museums. And at least we got to
>> share dinner Tuesday night.
>> 
>> Kristin