Spindle items
JESSICA FINCH Associate Editor

• NOT SO EASY - The day before Thanksgiving was a miserable day to be on the road. It wasn't by choice, but I had to trek on the Thruway to deal with a family problem. My trip home was three people heavier - my nieces. Between the pouring rain that afternoon, a crying 1-month-old and her two sisters trying to calm her, the ride was stressful. Add the holiday traffic, and it was treacherous. As we approached the Lackawanna toll, I was grateful to know I was in the home stretch. I was sure there was a green "X" in the lane I chose, but when I got to the window it was empty and the EZ-Pass sign was telling me to "call EZ-Pass." I had no choice but to drive through, ticket and $1.50 still in hand.

I was worried about what my mistake might cost me. My brother's girlfriend told me it once cost her aunt more than $70. A friend told me he thought it was like a parking ticket, about $30. Both sounded outrageous, so I went to the source. The nice customer service agent at EZ-Pass told me I would receive a notice in which I would be charged the amount of the toll AND an administration fee, along the lines of $20. Thankfully, I learned that if I write a letter explaining what happened, and since it was my first offense, the fee could be dropped.

I am hoping that the fact it was the busiest travel day of the year, the weather was horrible - making visibility poor - and I had three children under the age of 6 in the car, the New York State Thruway will allow me a pass.

What is a bit ironic about the story is, years ago, my mom was driving members of my church's youth group to a convention in Troy, and in the busy capital region traffic, with a van full of teens, made the same mistake. I remember thinking, "How could she have made that mistake?" I now know; add unfavorable conditions and being responsible for someone else's children, and the answer becomes obvious. Making a last-minute, unsafe lane change could be a lot more costly.

• MITTEN TREE - It is the time of year to bring new hats, gloves, scarves and mittens to the Amherst Museum to decorate the mitten tree. In return for donations, a complimentary admission to visit the museum will be given. All contributions will be donated to the children at Buffalo School No. 45. This year the museum will also be collecting books for the library at School 45. Books suitable for children in kindergarten through eighth grade, or cash contributions, can be left at the mitten tree. The staff of the museum will deliver all contributions to the school after Dec. 31. The Amherst Museum is located at 3755 Tonawanda Creek Road, corner of New Road, in Amherst. Visit the museum at www. amherstmuseum. org.

• HONOR ROLL POLICY - The Amherst Bee has implemented a new honor roll policy. We will publish lists of only the highest level of achievement, for example, honor rolls and not merit rolls. The actual name of this level of distinction will be as determined by each school. We will publish these lists only for grades 5 through 12. The lists run as provided by each school. We will not reprint any lists because of errors. Our goal is to standardize how we publish these lists. While there is no guarantee on how soon they will be published after we receive them, it is our hope that this policy will streamline the process.