as my weather app calls it, Norritown, Pennsylvania

I'm writing this from my college laptop - little trooper, who'd have thought it still worked?  My 2008 MacBook and I are in Pennsylvania, visiting Lauren and Ryan and their sweet puppy Piper.  We drove up from Occoquan, didn't leave til late, made a couple of stops, and still pulled in right after 5:00.  The drive started out nicely.  We drove along the Washington Parkway, which was lined with low stone walls and grass and trees, a nice change from 95.  I look forward to all the big name places I go: Baltimore, Delaware, you know.  These were both... somewhat disappointing.  I'm sure they have parts that are absolutely lovely - some of which I encountered, like a giant pile of junk that greeted me as soon as I got into Baltimore - but tolls?  Unimpressive cities?  Highway driving?  Not that cool.  BUT I will say that I drove over some nifty bridges.  The Baltimore Harbor Tunnel was slightly terrifying but I also felt like I was in a car chase scene in an action movie, so it might have been worth the $4 toll (speaking of, I need to get more cash, yikes).  The Delaware River was so wide it made me nervous.  That's a river?  That's not just a static body of water?  It goes somewhere?  I am accustomed to streams and creeks, and even things we call rivers down in the south, but dude whoa.

So after all that wonderful driving (eff you, I-95, eff you a lot) Lauren and Ryan also had cheese and crackers waiting for me.  Have I mentioned how I have the best friends?  It was a much quieter couple of days than DC was.  No crosswalks, pigeons, surprise water bowls, or parking garages, and more Netflix, lounging, and Thai food.  We did manage to walk a decent bit.  Once I decided not to do Philly, I slept in, and then Bix and I went for a run at Valley Forge Park in King of Prussia, PA (ACTUAL NAME OF TOWN).  It was such a gorgeous day, not as hot or humid as North Carolina but definitely sunshiny.  We ran-walked the five mile loop, which was mostly fields dotted with "authentic" soldiers' huts and a real live castle-turned-chapel.  We flopped down in the shade for a while, and I showed Bixby how to whistle an acorn top, and he showed me how to roll around in the grass, and then we drove home.  I took the last guaranteed normal shower I'll take for an indefinite amount of time (I haven't asked any of the farms about the shower sitch.  We can take any bad news as it comes.), finished up Orange is the New Black AND The Bachelorette (Team I'm Not Really Sure She Made The Right Choice), and ate a whoooole buncha popcorn while I packed up for the coming week.

Exciting news - I think I've nearly confirmed my next farm.  This one is in Indiana, and it looks really amazing.  Stars for days.  They've got a yellow lab too, and I'm hoping he can teach Bix some farm dog skillz.  Like not chasing chickens.  Or eating cats.