Let It Rain

Let It Rain                            1716

Thursday, September 15, 2005-5:30 P.M.

Well, Hurricane Ophelia is definitely no Katrina, that's for sure.  I'm in Washington, North Carolina, just a few miles from Greenville, and all it's doing down here is raining.  I thought for sure I was heading into a hurricane zone like I was Geraldo Rivera, but Joel Pace at the Comedy Zone assured me Ophelia was pushing out to sea.  Thankfully, that was the case.

After doing some shopping and setting Pamela up for the weekend, I hit the road about 10:00 P.M. last night and drove overnight to NC.  I wanted to make sure I didn't have to drive through D.C. traffic.  I wound up hitting D.C. by 4:30 A.M., and route 95 wound up having a major detour, and I lost about half an hour winding around I-495, but I beat the traffic just the same.  At 5:30 A.M., the traffic coming into our nation's capital was four lanes of cars not moving at all, which I don't understand...every car heading north or south on I-95, one of the busiest highways in the country, has to go through D.C., and it's always a mess....they need an express skyway over the city, I think, or a bypass or something.

I hit Richmond, Virginia by 8:00 A.M. and had no problems at all.  For a big city, it's a piece of cake to navigate, and they do have a bypass route, which I always used to take.  Lately though, I've driven right through the city, just to see what it's all about, and I can tell you that if you stay left, you can cruise right through.  Isn't that the way it should be?  I think so.

I pulled into Washington, NC about an hour and a half too early to check in, so I grabbed a little McDonald's breakfast and napped in the car.  Once I checked in to my luxurious suite in the Holiday Inn Express (mini fridge in the room....ooooooh), I crashed out for about five hours and dreamt about hurricane survivors...somehow, I empathize with them, because I feel displaced, I'm tired and I need a shower.

Tonight, the gig's at a restaurant, so I'm going to head over a little early and grab a bite before the show.  I'm much funnier on a full stomach, and right now, my belly's growling.  Tomorrow, I have my exciting trip back into the D.C. area, and if I'm lucky, I can get in during the middle of the day and beat the drive in-drive out commutes.

Peace and blessings to you all!

Ralph Tetta

Rochester, NY