Here we are half way through Super Tuesday and there are some follow-up questions I have for all of you who stepped out of your house/apartment/condo to vote today!

Okay readers, I want to know how many of you waited in a line on Super Tuesday to cast your ballot. If you did, where and how long? What was the feeling of those who surrounded you? How many of you were eager to cast your vote?  

I want to hear about your whole voting experience. I on the other hand will not get to my polling place until the bell rings at 5 p.m.

Send me you comments about this election!

Aimee Henderson

138 College Street – Suite B

South Hadley, MA 01075

ahenderson@turley.com

Although a recent editorial I wrote outlined why detours aren’t always a bad thing, when you run into three in one drive – that can be a little ridiculous.

I can’t say I wasn’t warned on two of the detours, one being the Route 47 bridge in South Hadley, which I followed closely for a story in the Town Reminder. I knew almost each step of the construction process, and when the signs were finally uncovered I took it for what it was.
The second detour warning couldn’t be missed either. For weeks a giant flashing safety sign on Bridge Road in Northampton warned me of the “expected delays” and “possible detours” beginning on Aug. 13. Well, like the sign promised I was greeted with that detour on Wednesday, and will see it for the next few weeks.

The third detour couldn’t have been planned though. Florence Street in Leeds was closed for a few days and traffic was detoured due to a water main break and a giant portion of the road collapsing in. My drive to work on Wednesday included those three detours, but surprisingly I didn’t even realize it until later in the day when detours were brought up in conversation. One detour, well that can be something new. Two detours, a little more annoying. But three detours, that’s just ridiculous.

Although I tried to look upon the detour(s) as something new, which would bring some change to my morning trek to work – Wednesday changed everything. I got stuck behind motorists who were clearly lost and confused by being sent on the less traveled way through the city, and I completely forgot about the first detour on my trip and had to turn around at the dilapidated DPW blockade on Florence Street.

As I explained to my husband about the three detours I encountered on my way to work, he tried to tell me the first detour didn’t count, because traffic wasn’t backed up and no one was lost. Well, I beg to differ. I was detoured a different route, thus making a detour. Right? Even with the three detours my trip only ended up taking an extra five minutes or so, so I can’t complain too much.

Two of the detours were planned to make repairs to roadways and a bridge and one was to repair serious damage to a roadway. This situation only reminds me of the horrible conditions that many roads in the state are in. Unfortunately, for the necessary repairs to be made – the detours must exist.

I invite readers of this blog to share online your own frustrations with local roads and bridges. Did you lose a chasse on one? Is that crumbling bridge a disaster in the making? Did that pothole jar loose your latest dental work? Has your detour caused undue angst?

We all have traffic woes and roads to avoid. By sharing our collective frustrations, perhaps those charged with selecting which roads are repaired each year during ever-dwindling Chapter 90 budget times will at least listen.

Let’s drive our problematic local roads together.

Even though the latest and greatest craze is to save money by staying home with a “staycation,” my husband and I decided to splurge this summer. Our so-called “family vacation” was the first we’ve taken without imposing on my in-laws or parents for a place to stay. I thought the subject would be a great first for the start of this brand new Editor’s Blog.

First, a few brief blog rules. I moderate and approve all online postings to keep them within our legal standards. Read our letters policy for guidelines.

Okay, back to the family vacation. We packed up the mini van, spent the $70 to fill the tank and headed north to Weir’s Beach, New Hampshire for an extended weekend trip with our two children. Have any of you ever stayed up there?

Although most of our time was spent on the tiny lakeside beach we had close to our even tinier cabin, my son, 3, begged and pleaded each day to visit “the games” – meaning the arcades along the boardwalk. Wow, was that a fight to pry his little hands off the steering wheel of the racecar games and jet ski game. The arcade visit became a nightly visit for the rest of the weekend, and $40 later we were left with a hacky sack, plastic toy lion, two beaded bracelets (which broke only 10 minutes later) and an imitation match box car. Do you have any arcade horror stories?

Aside from a couple whiny moments here and there, our vacation went a lot more smoothly than expected, especially having a 3 year old and an 18 month old.

One of the funnier moments was when my son was eating a freeze pop and dropped some in the sand. He picked it up and continued to eat it. Well, the little boy he had made friends with came running toward me to tell me that my son had eaten something from the ground. My response was, “That’s okay, it’s just sand.” He said to me, “But it’s full of diseases.” My husband and I couldn’t stop laughing after that one, and somehow that phrase carried with us for the rest of the weekend.

I’m sure you all have memories similar to ours as well. What are some of the funniest moments from your family vacations?

Although I could go on and on about all the little moments here and there from our trip, I’m sure it would bore you after a while. But there is one more great moment from our trip I have to share.

We stopped at a supermarket to stock up on all the necessities for a weekend (which is unbelievable when you have kids), and when we were trying to find a parking space it was like musical chairs.

Well, we finally saw someone backing out from their spot behind us. I quickly told my husband, “Put on your blinker! There’s a spot!” Just then another car came up and went to pull in the spot. They saw us and stopped. We couldn’t really tell who was there first, but they conceded and we got the spot. But that’s not all. They pulled up to our van, rolled down their window and apologized for trying to take the spot. It left us feeling kind of guilty, but almost wanting to move to New Hampshire. Apparently people are much nicer up there. I’ve never had a moment like that around here, have you?

Perhaps these thoughts will jar some memories free for you. Share them with us. Aimee Henderson is editor of The SUN and Town Reminder. Email her at ahenderson@turley.com.

Editor’s blog added to The SUN/TOWN REMINDER Web sites

 

Bet those 1745 Englishmen who settled in the “Ireland Parish” never envisioned this! A new blog managed and moderated by Editor Aimee M. Henderson  has been designed at www.holyokesunonline.com and www.townreminderonline.com to build our sense of community, honor history, celebrate resources, and innovate our future.

Unlike some media blogs, this will be a true reflection of your communities, not solely of controversy. While some serious topics previously reported on our news pages may be presented by the editor for moderated discussion, the bulk of our blog chats will offer good news.

All postings will be filtered through the editor before going live. The blog will follow the same journalistic standards as our letters to the editor policy. No anonymous responses will be allowed. All entries must be based in fact and not defamatory or libelous in any way.

Readers are encouraged to suggest a factual blog discussion to the editor.

Each week, we will print highlights of the previous blog discussion on this page, and preview what’s ahead for the next issue.

If no chats occur, the editor will take poetic license and blog about her own experiences, what she’s heard in and around our towns, present breaking news, and discuss the paper in general.

Readers can access the new feature by clicking on the “Editor’s Blog” icon at the lower right hand of the main page. We hope you enjoy this new feature and new way of conducting blogs.