Welcome to the beautiful, tranquil Triangle Area.

[Sugar Smack]

Please enjoy your stay.:sarcasm:

[no name no slogan]

1. So THAT's what's in store for me next weekend

Oh, well, as long as I can spend it with you I have nothing to complain about. ;)

I took some more pictures this week-- I still have to photobucket them, though. :D

[Sugar Smack]

2. I'll load up the car like they do in Minnesota

for our drive to my apartment from the airport. B-)

[no name no slogan]

3. Yah. Will do.

That reminds me, should I wear my spring parka or my summer parka? :P

[Phillycat]

4. Where is Triangle?

[Sugar Smack]

6. It's in NC, baby!

That's what we call Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill.

Which at present is bogged down with pylons.:hi:

[Phillycat]

7. Ooh, okay!

I've been wanting to get to Raleigh for a while now, I have a good friend who is a TV producer there. I hear good things about the music scene, too.

Sorry about the construction. :( Why must they always start construction right at the beginning of the season when everyone is driving?? x(

[Sugar Smack]

9. Oh, today's construction is from about four years ago.

I have no way of knowing when or if it will ever be finished. :o But once you actually get to your destination, it can be nice! Raleigh really does have a good music scene; there are so many places to go. Chapel Hill's is a bit smaller, but still good.

You should come visit NC! After you get back from Ireland, of course!

[ScreamingMeemie]

5. In Michigan, we have but two seasons...Winter and Construction.

Sometimes there is a subseason called Muck...but it usually collides with Construction. :hug: It sucks. I am sorry Sugar!

:loveya:

[Sugar Smack]

8. Bwaha! Heh, I know what you mean!

"muck" Thanks for making me smile, MrsGrumpy.

:D :loveya: I love to hear stories from you & nnns about the seasons up north. We had 3 in NC- Summer, Fall, and Spring.

[no name no slogan]

10. Sounds like Minnesota

Winter and Road Construction. Except for that brief interlude in July when the ice goes off the lakes for a couple weeks. :D

[Shine]

11. LOL! Those would be great pix for my 6th grdr's math project

he's supposed to bring in pix of "geometry around us" for his math class. :D

[Sugar Smack]

16. "geometry, color and impatience around us"

is what our project is here.;-)

[Shine]

26. hehehe. Patience is definitely NOT one of my virtues....

:hug:

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

12. And I'll bet the bastards are blocking the entrance to Bojangle's

One good thing about the Triangle :D

[Sugar Smack]

15. OK-

You just gave me my first really big laugh of the day!:spray: Thank you for that.

Those bastards! :D

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

17. It's noon there and you just had your first good laugh?

wake up slowly today? :loveya:

[Sugar Smack]

20. Yeah, and I thank you for it.

Pure gold.:D :loveya:

[Elidor]

13. Reminds me of Atlanta

I think there's an ordinance that says that after they tear up a road, they have to let it sit unrepaired for at least 6 months before they can begin to fix it. Norcross used to embellish the effect by putting up signs that said, "Your tax dollars at work." They really had someone with an evil sense of humor in charge.

[Sugar Smack]

19. Oh, nice- and I'll bet the orange pylons were all the rage.

I THINK that I remember a time you could drive ten or so miles in any direction without seeing them. They're like- dare I say it- kudzu.:scared:

[In_The_Wind]

14. I always enjoy my stay!

cause I'm only there when I'm visiting you

[Sugar Smack]

18. Oh, Joani! I'm still waiting to hear whether it'll be next

week or the week after- my job ending, I mean. You are the best!

:bounce: :toast:

[no name no slogan]

21. Does that mean

I can drag your butt up here for a dose of Minnesota Summer? If we time it right, you could be here in that two weeks where there isn't ice on the lakes.

We could go crazy out der at da lake, y'know

[Sugar Smack]

24. That would be really super!

Damn, you know I look forward to that!:bounce:

[In_The_Wind]

25. I'll be traveling soon after the NYC weekend.

one way
or
another
:loveya: no rush, we'll get our plans worked out


BTW How did the roll of snapshots I took of you turn out?

[Sugar Smack]

29. Oooh! I'm going to pick them up with my meds today!!

I had a *serious* panic attack last time I was in CVS.

Oh, yeah I will have a LOT of time after this *eee!* :bounce: :loveya:

[leeroysphitz]

22. let me guess... At least ONE of those pics is of 15-501?

I'll be shocked if you say otherwise. When I lived in Chapel Hill in the 90's 15-501 was ALWAYS under construction.

[Sugar Smack]

23. 15-501. I-40. 54. U name it!

I-40 is the worst now, though, especially toward Greensborro. It's like a funnel of about twenty miles that can jam up for hours. 15-501 is a very close second.

[marions ghost]

27. you got it --this is no exaggeration

horrendous road construction going on for years. They did the concrete work wrong and had to do it all over again. Beltways and overpasses defying logic. A friend from Australia considering moving to the area decided against it based on the traffic issues. The DOT just cannot get it right.

First Elizabeth Dull was for the mass transit system, but that was before she was against it. If you want to see urban sprawl in all it's greed infested, negligent glory, visit the Triangle.

[Sugar Smack]

28. Thank you for that, marions ghost. I really wish it were an

exaggeration. Ten years ago the prediction was that it would be six years' work on the highways. I believe this is one of the worst transitions we've ever seen. Naturally, I like to take all the back roads to work, but they're becoming stopped up with such nonsense as well.

[marions ghost]

30. yep

there oughta be a support group--Roadwork Sufferers Anonymous, except you'd have no time to spare for it, being stuck in traffic all the time. Maybe the support group would consist of rants by cell phone.
People who were not driving would say soothing things to them like..."Don't worry, you'll get there...I promise..."

My only hope is that RTP and other businesses will suffer, and then something will be done perhaps. That "something" being mass transit, carpool efforts, buses whatever they can come up with to alleviate this, because by the time these roads are finished (ha) --it'll be time to build more roads :banghead:

good post...this is no joke --it's hell behind chained to a vehicle in this area--I would LOVE to ride a train.

[Sugar Smack]

33. If ONLY. I could not have put it better myself.

finished (ha) is accurate. You'll never guess what I saw on the way to the airport last time- someone being trained to turn the "stop" and "slow" sign. Naturally I got to watch about 3 demonstrations of this, because traffic had stopped.

[Digit]

45. Try finding someone who knows how to cut hair!

No wonder the highways are a mess!

[ncrainbowgrrl]

31. BWAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!

Thanks for my first real laugh of the day!

:hi:

[Sugar Smack]

32. We should call it the Bermuda Triangle Area. More fitting-

and I am SO with you there, rainbowgrrl. :hi:

[ncrainbowgrrl]

46. No- that's Durham/Raleigh/RTP.

Out by Chapel Hill, things get a little more "sane?"

Streetwise- I meant...

[Sugar Smack]

47. Oh, lord no. We have traffic clusterfucks everywhere in CH.

Too, we should have a pylon as our mascot- Panthers and rams be damned. :hug: :loveya: :toast:

[WCGreen]

34. Oh, I thought you were talking about the OTHER triangle....

[Sugar Smack]

35. Stop dirtying up my thread with your ellipses, Chris!

}( ;-)

[no name no slogan]

36. HEY YOU!!!

Hang up-- I'm trying to call you!!!! :evilgrin:

[WCGreen]

37. See, I bring up the triangle and the man calls......

Priceless.....

[no name no slogan]

38. yeah, but where'd she go?

she isn't replying to us?

[WCGreen]

39. Stuck in traffic......

[no name no slogan]

40. ...

:spray:

found her! She was hiding under a giant orange cone.

[Sugar Smack]

42. *heheeeee*!

:D

[swag]

41. No peepin' in the Pelt Room, Pecker!

[WCGreen]

44. But the peeps are all over the place.....

[AirmensMom]

43. Sugar Smack ...

peaceful
untroubled by conflict, agitation, or commotion

tranquil
free from disturbance or turmoil <a tranquil scene>


Sorry that's not what it is. :hug:

[Sugar Smack]

49. Hi, sweet stuff-

You gave me an idea. I'm going to design the next brochure for leisure activity in the Triangle Area. What could be more leisurely than sitting behind a steering wheel in traffic, doing practically nothing? :evilgrin:

[In_The_Wind]

48. Can I bring my trike to play in the traffic?

[Sugar Smack]

50. YEA! You better!

I can see us now, waving at the poor slobs trapped inside closed vehicles, waving and weaving around in traffic. GOOD times!

:yourock: :yourock: :yourock: :yourock: :yourock: :yourock:

[In_The_Wind]

51. I'm working out plans

to fly down to Florida before AirmensMom moves to Tennessee. I'm going to spend a week in the Keys with Phil!

[Sugar Smack]

53. Yes-

YES!! You bring to mind the Sheryl Crow song "All I want to do is have some fun". :bounce: That's one of my favorites.

[In_The_Wind]

54. I love that Sheryl Crow song!

But I've never had a beer buzz in the morning. Am I missing out on something?

[Sugar Smack]

57. I had one once, when I was locked out of my dorm room in college.

I had a nightmare roommate. She had her boyfriend over and knew I didn't have my key. One of the girls in the hall saw me dozing in the lobby. She said, "Aww, your roommate sucks. Come on up and I'll set you up in the spare bed."

She was very sweet. It was 8 am, and she stuck a beer on the bedside table and put a bendy-straw in it. I sipped it and went to sleep. :hug:

[In_The_Wind]

59. But I thought you couldn't drink beer through a straw.

That's what everybody said. more missed opportunities for fun
Did they lie to me?

[Sugar Smack]

60. I managed somehow. It wasn't in public, so

I felt like I was getting away with something. *LOL*

[fleabert]

52. We've got Devil's Slide to deal with!

People who live on one side and work on the other have seen their commute go from 15 minutes to 1.5-2 hours! It sucks. I luckily am off of the last street before the slide and don't need to go past it except for leisure.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devil's_Slide
http://www.smdailyjournal.com/article_preview.php?id=56877

previous slide/closure 1983


current situation


construction sucks. nothing ever gets finished in San Antonio either, there is always highway construction there (where I grew up)

[Sugar Smack]

55. Wow, look at that! Thank you for the pics.

I would never want to be stuck on that road during construction. The thing about living here is that we get things like pot holes, or nothing at all- and the road crews set up shop. I'm glad you don't really need to use that road for your commute. :D

[fleabert]

56. I'm glad too. It's basically a turn around situation.

no one shall pass! The tunnel bypass isn't going to be finished until 2011, if it stays on schedule. Hwy 1 at Devil's Slide should be closed for at least three months. It's destroying businesses south of Pacifica (Montara and Half Moon Bay) and hurting Pacifica business that rely on the traffic from the south. Tourism is big, and it ain't coming anytime soon.

[Sugar Smack]

58. I wonder why it takes SO long to do road work.

This is how out-of-the-loop I am, apparently. And yours won't be finished til 2011?!

When I saw that the Triangle area was growing, I didn't anticipate how long the transition was going to be. It's so weird to see your home town changing around you.

[fleabert]

61. this one will take so long because they have to blow a hole thru a

mountain! The Slide has fallen apart many times (see wiki link) and is very dangerous to work on- three months is a conservative estimate imo.

San Antonio sounds like your area- there are parts of town that used to be desolate and beautiful that are now bustling suburbia-hell. The I10 corridor is horrific. and the loops around the city (410 and 1604) are ALWAYS under construction somewhere. The traffic has worsened considerably in the last ten years. :-(