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I AM PROVIDENCE, part 1

As I write this, a big-bad snowstorm has descended upon the Mid-West and is swiftly making its way out here to the East Coast, which means no outdoor adventures this weekend. Instead, I'll recount highlights of a trip Wolfe (my partner-in-dev), Sarah, and I made in warmer times, back in November. (No wait, it was snowing then, too!)

On a last minute whim one Sunday afternoon, we departed from grimey Stamford, CT, for Providence, RI, the mortal home and immortal resting place of the master of cosmic horror (and my favorite author), H.P. Lovecraft. Like many a Cthulhu-phile, we hoped to find old Howard Phillip's grave and pay our respects.

The drive through eastern Connecticut was surprisingly bleak and devoid of human presence. As we wound our way along I-95 into Rhode Island, we began to feel the sinister draw of Lovecraft country. Forests of dark skeletal trees dressed in tattered rags of dead, autumn foliage closed in on either side of the road, punctuated periodically by gnarled fists of rocky hillside. It was hard not to imagine eldritch horrors lurking beneath each gnarled root and stone.

By late afternoon, heavier traffic signaled the approach of Providence city limits. As the taller buildings of the city loomed on the horizon, we passed an elderly red truck guttering a cloud of black exhaust and angry engine noises. The bed of the truck was covered by a black tarp, which bulged like a sack of dead St. Bernards. The vehicle could only have been travelling at about 40 mph, and we quickly overtook it. As we drove passed, I tried to catch a glimpse of the driver, but could only make out large floppy hat, a beard, and coveralls.

As we approached our exit, traffic came to a sudden halt. Only moments after stopping, we heard a familiar rumbling behind us. The exhaust-spewing red monster pulled up into the lane beside us, just a single car-length behind. Somehow the driver had caught up with us, despite the dozen or more cars that had been between him and us. Traffic began to lurch forward again, stop and start, stop and start. We inched closer to our exit, with the red truck right behind us. Just as I began to wonder if we would end our evening as a sacrifice to a hill-dwelling cultist's dark god, an SUV tail-gating the red truck misjudged its breaking distance and slammed into the rear end of the truck. Truck and SUV pulled to the side of the road, the pace of traffic picked up, and the strange spectacle disappeared from view. I wonder, do cultists have good collision coverage?

We exited the highway and entered Providence proper. After navigating through some twisting streets and crossing a canal, we reached our destination: College Hill. Using this tour as our guide, we explored the streets and alleys that both Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe used to call home. Here are some of Jason's pics :



The Cathedral of St. John. Lovecraft and Poe both liked to hang out in the graveyard behind. Wacky writers.



A view of the graveyard from the backyard of an adjoining house. Nice spot for a picnic. (Not my image, but you get the idea.)



Benefit-Dexter House. Lovecraft's funeral was held here. (Also not my image. Sorry!)



A strange sign posted on the front step of the Stephen Harris House, Lovecraft's inspiration for the story, "The Shunned House". We saw no sign of un chien, bizarre or otherwise.

As the sun began to set, we came upon the highlight of our trip: the Athenaeum.

Stay tuned for part 2: What's an Athenaeum?