I awoke this morning wondering what shall I DO NEW today. I had a client scheduled for 2:00pm so I relaxed knowing that I had time to think, but when we decided to meet 2.5 hours earlier I had to think fast. I was going to be heading to Walpole. The first thing that came to my mind was the WALPOLE STATE PRISON aka CEDAR (not Petticoat) JUNCTION. This is where they put the very, very BAD BOYS in Massachusetts. I had never been by there so I googled the directions. It turns out that the prison is very close to the BAY STATE CORRECTIONAL CENTER, a lower level security center. It is hard to believe that it is less secure with all the barbed wire on the fences. These two facilities are about a mile from one another. I guess it is easier to put all the BAD BOYS in the same neighborhood.
When I got to Bay State it was forbidden to take any photos. I also figured that there wasn't a guided tour. People seemed a bit grumpy. I decided not to try to get an interview. Cedar Junction looked much more welcoming but I opted not to park. Large signs read that all vehicles were subject to search. Ok. Time to look for an additional NEW DO for the day. What's nearby?
OCEAN STATE CRANBERRIES. At one end of Patriot's Place on RT 1 by the Gillette Stadium there are cranberry bogs and a trail open to the public. It is a lovely path with self guided tour information all about the tart little red berry, its history and cultivation. The bog is so peaceful. I spotted several large birds, perhaps a type of vulture, as they hunted over the berry plants.
Back in the car I did my third DO NEW for the day. I have been researching GPSs as I would like to have one for my road bike so that I don't have to stop, put on my reading glasses and look at a map. Sunday a GEEK SQUAD fellow at BEST BUY spent about 20 minutes educating me on devices. I went back to the house and researched GPSs for bikes. I didn't like any of them. I also don't need many of the features. I just want someone to tell me out loud where to turn so that I don't have to stop pedaling. Memorial Day (yesterday) as I pulled out of the drive I thought, "Patt, Comparing how much time you drive your car to how much time that you ride your bike, isn't it just better to get one for the car and adapt it to the bike when necessary?" I then proceeded to drive to Rhode Island and get LOST. Yup.......
Today I explained to my client that I was researching GPSs so she gave
me hers to play with for a few days. After the cranberry bogs I turned
the GPS on and coded it with the address of the house. I left RT 1 and
it kept RECALCULATING as I refused to go where it was telling me. Each
time I went past where I was to turn (the wrong way in my opinion) it
recalculated and steered me back to RT 1. "Turn here." NO ! This
dialogue went on for several miles and was wasting my gas until the
yellow indicator light came on. I was ready to go back to the prison
and ask a corrections officer if I could borrow his gun and shoot the
darn thing. I have been living in Argentina without a car for several
years. This was my first time coding a GPS. I thought maybe, it was
possible, that I pushed a wrong button. Perhaps I pushed a button for
an address that was pre-coded into the device, some place south on RT
1. I got off the road, started from square button pushing one and... no
more arguments. :) I am so SMAHT.The day is not over yet. What DO NEW sounds good to YOU? Do you need some ideas or have some ideas to inspire others? Leave a comment.
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