The Drive Part 2: Pennsylvania

Alright, before I start, I have two disclaimers: (1) even though this post is titled Pennslyvania, I will briefly touch on my time in Ohio, and (2) this post will not have any new photos of me. I stated in my last post that while I was driving, I just didn't really have a lot of time to take photos. In retrospect, I regret it, because it leaves these posts pretty visually bare, but it is what it is. With all that in mind, lets begin!

After literally driving all day Sunday, and ending up in Indianapolis, I decided to take it a little easy on Monday. I only ended up driving to Columbus, Ohio. No offense to any hardcore Ohio lovers, but to be frank, I wasn't a fan. Granted, I only spent one day there, but for lack of a better term, the whole city just felt dirty. For example, when I arrived at the YMCA, I was shocked to find the smallest YMCA I have seen during the entirety of my trip. I have been to some pretty small towns with some pretty small YMCAs, so I was astonished that Columbus of all cities had such a small one. Additionally, none of the parks were super well maintained. I spent the majority of my time at Wolfe's park and was disappointed at it's facilities. The parking lot was gravel, the only bathroom was a porta potty, and the tennis courts had seen better days. My final-and most obnoxious-gripe with Ohio was the inconsistent smell. One second I would be running past a tree that smelled like it has been drenched in cologne, and then another second I would run past a series of bushes that smelled like feces and had trash in them. I know I seem down on Columbus, Ohio and to be clear, I didn't have a terrible time. The city has it's flaws, sure, but I still managed to make lunch and dinner, workout, go for a run, and find a safe place to sleep.

Now is the part you've been waiting for: the part where I talk about Pennsylvania. Overall, I spent three days in Pennslyvania and rather than just go through my day-to-day experience, I think it would be much more fun to share two stories that capture my feelings during my stay.

Have you ever been to an Aldi's? Well I hadn't... Until Tuesday, October 7th. I think it's fair to say it's the strangest grocery shopping experience I've ever had. As I approached the store, I was taken aback by it's unusually small size. I was honestly impressed at the prospect of fitting an entire grocery store in such a small space. However, my optimism would turn to shock as I entered. The first thing that seemed off to me was the shopping carts. They were all chained together and in order to release one, you had to put a quarter into the small mechanism that held the chain. Luckily a few of the carts were already unlocked, so I didn't have to give up a quarter, but the whole notion was pretty bonkers to me. I then noticed another peculiarity-all the grocery items, from produce to canned goods, were all still in the corrugated trays. It was very similar to how Costco presents its products, expect literally everything was in these same cardboard boxes. However, what really tipped me off the edge was the complete lack of variety. Since the building was so small, they literally only had one brand of every single item-not to mention all the items they just didn't have. By the time I realized this, I had already grabbed a couple produce items, but at that point, I put everything back where I got it and went to another grocery store. I have not gone to another Aldi since this day, and to be clear, I don't think they are all like this. The picture below is the exact Aldi's I went to (in Altoona, PA). As you can see, it's size is not common. In fact, after driving around in Pennslyvania a little more, I've seen Aldi's that are much bigger-and probably function like a normal grocery store. However, that doesn't negate the strangeness at this one.

The dreaded Altoona Aldi

As I've been traveling for the past 3 months, I've only really felt unwelcome once, and that was at St. Anthony's Memorial Park outside of Scranton, PA. St. Anthony's is a quaint little park tucked into a neighborhood with a playground and picnic tables. After looking for a park to make lunch at, I eventually decided on this one. I had gotten some bad vibes from people when I arrived-such as multiple people driving into the park, pointing their vehicles straight at me and never leaving said vehicles-but I didn't think too much of it and proceeded to set up my lunch set. About ten minutes into frying up some hot dogs, an older fellow pulled up in his vehicle near my own, got out, and approached me. He greeted me with "Hello, what are you doing her?" Now the way he said it-his inflection-was not hostile, but the contents of his words and his directness were not friendly. I informed him that I was just making some lunch and he responded with "I've just never seen anyone do that." Again, his inflection wasn't mean, but it certainly wasn't friendly or sociable either. When I asked him why he had inquired, he told me he lived in the neighborhood and was essentially the neighborhood watch. Someone had complained about my presence and asked him to come check me out. Keep in mind, I was in a public park, wearing perfectly normal clothes, exhibiting totally normal human behavior, and making lunch at a picnic table-literally what picnic tables are made for. Suffice to say, I did not feel welcome. THe only reason I was at the park was because every other park closed around 6 pm and I needed a place to make dinner later.

He left after that last comment and I finished my lunch in peace. However, I definitely did not return for dinner. I instead went to the other park that was open late, Olendike park, which is also completely exposed in the middle of a neighborhood. Luckily, no one gave me grief there. Scranton wasn't entirely unfriendly, though. When I went to the YMCA later that day, I met a good natured older fellow who exchanged some good conversation with me between workout sets. With all this in mind, I definitely won't ever return to St. Anthony's Memorial Park.

St. Anthony's Memorial Park

Overall, my time in Pennslyvania was pretty strange. I never would have predicted I'd have such a strange grocery shopping experience and I definitely never thought I'd be inspected at a park when I was exhibiting such normal behavior. However, I guess that's just the way the cookie crumbles. I was bound to have a few wacky experiences on my trip and I guess these were it. Maybe it was just preparing me for the most exciting part of my trip so far: The Hunter Exam.