8:00am - I wake up begrudgingly, propelled only by my excitement at sleeping in a bed & not on an air mattress later that evening.
8:22 - Showered & ready to be ready, I say my final goodbye to Jason, my roommate & one of my best friends. While reading the eloquent goodbye card he wrote me, I let approx three tears fall, as I know more will squeeze their way out throughout the day.
9:53 - After loading the rest of my stuff into the massive cargo van my mom rented, we're ready to leave. I wave & cry another goodbye to my other roommate, Gavi, & sob as we make our way up Connecticut Avenue. Sometime in the early 10 o'clock hour, my mom makes me stop at Firehook in Cleveland Park for breakfast; I cry through my bacon & egg sandwich.
8:22 - Showered & ready to be ready, I say my final goodbye to Jason, my roommate & one of my best friends. While reading the eloquent goodbye card he wrote me, I let approx three tears fall, as I know more will squeeze their way out throughout the day.
9:53 - After loading the rest of my stuff into the massive cargo van my mom rented, we're ready to leave. I wave & cry another goodbye to my other roommate, Gavi, & sob as we make our way up Connecticut Avenue. Sometime in the early 10 o'clock hour, my mom makes me stop at Firehook in Cleveland Park for breakfast; I cry through my bacon & egg sandwich.
11:01 - Our first roadtrip discussion: an argument about the merits of credit unions (I can't find any).
11:29 - My chai latte sets in, & we take a break at a Sheetz. Ladies: If you leave pee around the entire perimeter of the seat, you're doing it wrong.
12:06pm - Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" comes on. I car-dance a bit & promptly burst into tears, reminded of my DC BFF. Whinegrumblesigh.
12:14 - Outlet malls remind me why I love suburbs.
12:30 - I broach an important subject with my mother: "What TV shows do you watch? This is a serious question." I plot out our DVR schedule; we pass a hitchhiker waving an American flag & wearing a bald eagle vest.
12:35 - A political discussion arises. "Tom Ganley is a sleazebag!" my mom proclaims. I agree. This conversation foreshadows my decision to volunteer with Rep. Betty Sutton's campaign for reelection upon my return home.
12:57 - "Love Song" comes on. I cry a little behind my sunglasses as I'm reminded of yet another D.C. friend.
1:00 - My mom asks me if I'd like to move to Pittsburgh. Let's finish one move first, OK?
1:03 - We pass through Breezewood, the Mecca of rest areas, but don't stop, to my dismay (I love their 50 States Gift Shop). Having hit the almost-halfway mark, The Fray's "You Found Me" comes on; I'm about to cry when "Margaritaville" comes on, making it a little tougher to embrace sentimentality.
1:04 - I fall fast asleep.
1:21 - Freezing, I awaken & contemplate digging my Snuggie out of my luggage.
1:57 - We pull into a rest stop in North Somerset, Penn., where I spot a John Deere sticker on a pick-up truck, hear a man speaking in a bona fide Tracy Jordan voice, & am annoyed to see that a rest stop in North Somerset, Penn., sells D.C. postcards. My mom & I nap in the parking lot until 2:18.
2:21 - I receive a voicemail from Gavi that goes like this:
"There's a picture of a fish in one of the paintings. Fish scare me, so I'm gonna turn it over now. Let me know what to do with it. K byyyye."3:18 - The cargo van is rattly. So rattly that it wakes me up from yet another peaceful vehicular slumber.
3:23 - We pass a cattle truck. "There's something alive in there!" my mom announces as a calf eyeballs us through the gates of its moving pen.
3:42 - I spy my first haunted house billboard, a key sign of the Midwest.
4:01 - I spy my first fireworks factory billboard, a key sign of the Midwest.
3:42 - I spy my first haunted house billboard, a key sign of the Midwest.
4:01 - I spy my first fireworks factory billboard, a key sign of the Midwest.
4:02 - Going through a toll booth, I drop my phone in the abyss of our giant van.
4:19 - "Walkin' in Memphis" comes on. I cry a little behind my sunglasses.
4:23 - "Teenage Dream" comes on. Again. I cry a little behind my sunglasses. Reprise!
4:29 - While flipping through radio stations, I nearly settle on a Nickelback song. Ashamed of my momentary lapse in taste, I settle instead on Train.
5:03 - How did I never notice that there's a butter factory two towns over from my hometown?
5:11 - We pass a trailer parked in someone's front yard with a sign on the front: "4H is for you!" No. No, it isn't.
Sometime shortly thereafter, we arrive home; I have no idea when because I'm too exhausted & emotional to notice. I spend the next hour unloading our abductor van & canceling my plans for the evening in favor of wearing flannel pajama pants & eating oatmeal. Because relaxation? Looks the same in any state.
8 comments:
haha loved your recap of the trip!
congrats on finally being back in the OH! I do miss the fall weather there.
Yay for being in Ohio! (Yay, right? Maybe not yay?) I love the trip recap, but I would admit that my roadtrips with my mom are not as epic, lol. Mainly just a lot of reading, a few discussions, and the old "License Plate ABC's" game because apparently I'm still 10.
Have fun unpacking!
I love traveling in the Midwest. I didn't realize that billboards for "Osceola Cheese Factory" and "Buy 1 Get 3 Free" fireworks places were a Midwest thing. I guess I only road-trip in the Midwest? Glad to hear you're home and happy.
loved this post. original content rules.
xo,
kate
That sounds like a nice trip with mom and my room looked far worse when I arrived. :)
Glad you made it back to Ohio safe! Also, a butter factory? I'm not sure if that would be terrifying or fascinating.
I know I'm behind on this, but glad you made it there safe and sound! Can't wait to hear more about your buckeye adventures!
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