AN UNEXPECTED TRIP TO THE OLD HOMETOWN

SCHENECTADY
AND BEYOND!

Another one of those great mysterious was the location of my Aunt Alice and Uncle Larry's house.  In the far off land of Amsterdam, New York (a mere twenty miles), I was always used to being shuttled back and both by both my grandparents and parents along the same route: passing the glow of the giant General Electric sign in Schenectady, along the Mohawk River, with Lock Number Nine, old train bridges, and an ominous factory with four imposing smokestacks rising from the wooded and darkly lit roads.  

Of course, the trip back was even more ominous, usually well after dark, sometimes in my pajamas, and with the river the right, you'd be afforded glimpses of the river between the trees with the decaying power plants, train tracks and bridges peeking out through the brush by the side of the road.  Of course, I'm older now, and while I can drive to Amsterdam alone without error, I have scant clues as to which direction I'm heading and for how long, besides instinctively knowing when to turn.

There was actually a couple trips out to Amsterdam on this voyage, one was to eat some fine Italian food at Russo's.  In typical fashion, my relatives quickly assumed control of the restaurant and fashioned a banquet table out of about four tables in the middle of this misshapen hole in the wall on the right side of the tracks.  In short order, pitchers of beer were on the table and the pizza was ordered.  I was delighted to see rectangular pizzas again, and nearly fell over at having to make the decision between a corner or a side once again in my life.  Bless Texas for a lot of things, especially BBQ and Mexican food, but damn I miss Italian cooking.  I believe I nearly teared up and quickly accepted a corner piece.  The pizza was great, the joking continued and spilled over to a challenge between my Aunt and my mom over who made the better meatloaf.  

CLICK FOR THE MEATLOAF CHALLENGE

After spending the day running errands throughout the Capital District, sorting through some of my old toys and games from childhood at my cousin's house, I built up quite an appetite.  Fortunately for me, my mom and Aunt Alice had the foresight to drive around with ten pounds of steak sandwiches and a kielbasa in the trunk of the car.  When we arrived at Aunt Alice's, she started to cook up the steaks with Mom, and I got to sneak away with Uncle Larry and partake in one of the finer family traditions in recent years: his homemade wine.  This exquisite hobby has blossomed into an award winning pastime that has benefited my relatives and their friends for a while now.  I checked out his cellar with a sea of empty bottles, large jugs filled to the brim and tasted some fresh.  A couple glasses got me tipsy and ready for dinner, another delectable homemade meal served on a checkered tablecloth. 

And so it was.  I learned about how my Uncle's brother used some good old fashioned American ingenuity and took advantage of the US Mint's problems and ended up with a nice windfall.  We swapped computing stories as I tried to find buyers on craigslist for some old Cabbage Patch dolls and Tonka toys.  When my trip was over, I was revved up, well fed, and ready for action.

My mom and aunt made plans to have my uncle pick me up.  But instead of driving all the way out to Amsterdam, they decided to meet halfway.  With the phrase 'the cow flies at midnight', I would be transferred and on my way back to Schenectady, easy as that.

And so when it was time for my stay in Amsterdam to end, I was whisked away into my Aunt's car, my mom and aunt continuing to tell stories and laugh heartily as we pulled out from the driveway.  I was merely a pawn in their plans, as I was to be dropped off at a Stewart's across from the bridge along the Mohawk River.  fortunately, there was a second half to this plan, one that, I must mention, went off without a hitch: my Uncle picked me up, as my delirious aunt and mom drove off in tears from laughing so much. 

Click here to continue on to Troy, New York 

-