Day 9: Binghamton, New York

We left Bangor this morning for Binghamton, New York and it rained for probably 500 of the 543 miles. We stopped at one point for a potty break, gas and a Dr. Pepper, but for some unknown reason, the station didn't have "public" restrooms. We bought nothing and headed across the street to the BP in search of oil balls. None to be found in this market. They did have restrooms there, but you had to buy something and request the key. What happened there that they are so potty protective? My hypothesis is that a travelling circus passed through town and the monkeys escaped and flung poo. It's entirely plausible. What else could it have been?

We finally got into Binghamton, while it was still pouring and checked into what we believe to be a retirement community and NOT a Fairfield Inn. We checked the Mets website, which said that the game was still on. We were going regardless to make a chicken spiedie sandwich purchase. So we headed over to NYSEG Stadium in search of the holy grail of chicken sandwich joy.

Not my photo. I ate it too fast to even think about a photo.

A spiedie is defined by Wikipedia as follows: "Spiedie consists of cubes of chicken or pork, but it may also be made from lamb, veal, venison or beef. The meat cubes are marinated overnight or longer (sometimes for as long as two weeks under a controlled environment) in a special marinade, then grilled carefully on spits (if steel skewers are used, they are called "spiedie rods") over a charcoal pit.

The freshly prepared cubes are served on soft Italian bread or a submarine  roll, skewer and all, and sometimes drizzled with fresh marinade. The bread is used as an oven glove to grip the meat while the skewer is removed. Spiedie meat cubes can also be eaten straight off the skewer or can be served in salads, stir fries, and a number of other dishes. The marinade recipe varies, usually involving olive oil, vinegar, and a variety of Italian spices and fresh mint." Click HERE for more spiedie info.

We love Binghamton for the spiedie, the baseball and stadium and its people. The local folks who come out for the games never disappoint. I love them. One and all. There's something to be said for "the freaks come out at night." Enjoy the photos.

Departure time: 8:25 a.m. EST (from Bangor, Maine)
Arrival time: 5:30 p.m. EST (to Binghamton, New York).
Today's mileage: 543 miles
Total mileage: 3,495 miles
Tolls paid: $4 (still a total of $67.70) Needless to say, tolls annoy me to now end.
iPod Playlist: Songs That Make Dave Happy (594 tracks present and accounted for) and then Sirius 80s on 8.
Playlist and Sirius highlights:

• White Room - Cream
• Fame '90 - David Bowie with Queen Latifah
• Istanbul (Not Constantinople) - They Might Be Giants
• Why Don't You Get a Job - The Offspring
• Fix You - Barenaked Statues
• Chicken Fried - Zac Brown Band
• Superfunkycalifragisexy - Prince
• Suspicious Minds - Elvis Presley
• Telephone - Lady Gaga with Beyonce
• Breathe and Stop - Q-Tip
• Drive My Car - The Beatles
• Superstition - Stevie Wonder (end of playlist)
• Oh Sherrie - Steve Perry
• Don't You Forget About Me - Simple Minds
• Manic Monday - The Bangles
• Obsession - Animotion

Number of Times Bono has mocked us with a U2 song: 28 from the playlist with more to come on Sirius, I'm sure.

Fun Photo of the Day:

Worth 1,000 words.

To see the rest of the photos from Day 9, click HERE.

Next Stop: Day 10 takes us into Dayton, Ohio for a Dragons game and then on to Indianapolis for the night. Then we're home on Sunday.