Traveling back "home"

View from my U-Haul when we drove to Ohio

Today will be a long day in the car. I am picking my daughter up at school this afternoon and we are driving 9 hours to visit family and friends back home. I have been told, many times, that it is not fun to take long car trips with me. I have never liked to stop along the way between my departure and my destination. Could be 5 hours could be 15, it makes no difference, I only stop for fuel so if you want something to eat or have to pee it must happen during a scheduled fuel stop. I pack snacks and water and occasionally indulge in a Starbucks if it is conveniently located near a gas station. The introduction of GPS has only made me worse because now I can prove that a 15 minute stop will add at least 30 minutes to your arrival time!

This side of me I find vexing. I am the one who gets stuck in traffic and makes the most of it, I sing, seat dance and enjoy looking at the cars around me. If I get stuck in a long line at the grocery store I use the time to practice deep breathing or pick up and peruse a magazine I would never actually purchase. If I am flying I am never flustered by long lines or delays. My mantra is "it is a travel day, you have no control so there is no complaining". Even my daughter has the flying mantra down and she has been a joy to fly with since she was two.

Maybe it is my competitive nature that makes long car trips with me unbearable. Although I have no idea who I am competing with, other travelers on the highway? Or it might be that I am driving to see family and friends or sleep in my own bed and that makes me want to arrive as soon as possible. Whatever it is I am working on it each time I buckle in and head out on a long trip.

My mother is the best at long trips, she reads about each town we pass and I would bet she could pull off the highway, just about anywhere, and remember something we should stop and see. This is why a 9 hour drive for me is an 14 hour drive and an overnight hotel stop for my parents.

I will try and remember to enjoy the journey today but I know a part of me really wants to arrive before 10 p.m.

I usually bring a small cooler with ice packs these are some of the food items I like to pack:

• baby carrots
• cheese sticks (organic)
• snap or snow peas
• baby cucumbers
• fruit (apples, bananas, pears, grapes)
• almonds or walnuts
• wraps or sandwiches
• hard boiled eggs (pre-peeled)
• popcorn
• jerky (no nitrates)
• water
• iced tea