Red Ball Sun … or the best-laid plans

So today was supposed to start my annual Shakespeare diet at Ashland. The drive normally takes between 5 1/2 and 6 hours depending on how many breaks I take. I had planned to get up to Ashland, get settled in, pick up my tickets, then attend a play in the evening. However, when I got within 100 miles of Ashland, they abruptly closed down I-5 due to a fire that was threatening to jump the highway. I was close to the front of the pack when they shut it down, so if I had skipped lunch, I probably would have made it through. When I was blocked, I was 30 to 40 miles north of Redding, and I had already navigated through a lot of construction so I felt like I was on the last leg of the trip. Then the Highway Patrol shunted the traffic off an exit, but no indication as to why. I followed some trucks, but the way we went just went to a cafe that was on a dead end. In talking to some people, we finally figured out that it was a fire, and after a while I went back and asked the CHP and he said the best way, rather than wait was to go back to Redding, across 299, and back on 89, which I finally figured out would take me back to I-5 north of the fire. Traffic was a mess because everyone seemed to be gong this way, and I didn’t get back onto I-5 till 5 hours later. Lots of stress and anxiety, but I finally became resolved to the situation and decided to try and enjoy the “scenic route”. As I was making my way back westward, the setting sun appeared very striking as a big round red ball. Once back on I-5 I pulled off on the first Rest Area (nearly 8:00), and called the OSF box office, and they were very understanding and helpful, and I managed to switch my ticket to another night so I didn’t have to lose it. I finally made it up to Ashland 11 hours after I left. I guess there are always new adventures even on well trod pathways.