Are we there yet?
Last week, I spent just over 19 hours driving to and from Denver...alone. Yep, roughly 9 hours each way. By myself. Alone. In the car. 9 solid hours on I-70. Each way. Alone.
Synopsis of the trip out:
Hour 1: excited as hell; essential roadtrip munchies strategically placed within easy reach; due to an email received just before leaving, the refrain of Eddie Rabbitt's "I Love a Rainy Night" is stuck in my head; extreme care spent choosing the right CD to provide perfect cruising soundtrack (heated debate with self: Counting Crows Greatest Hits or Garden State Soundtrack...but in a surprising turn of events, a dark horse entry, The Killers' Hot Fuss, came from behind to win it all); forgot to go the the ATM, start hoping I have $2 in change for the toll.
Hour 2: still excited; lost Eddie Rabbitt somewhere before reaching Lawrence; steered with left knee while using both hands to open BBQ Corn Nuts; 5 minutes, teeth usage, and one unintended lane change later, the bag split down the middle and it hailed Corn Nuts somewhere west of Topeka; can't help but notice the rental car is running weird, feels like it needs to shift to a higher gear.
Hours 3-5: excitement starting to level off; tap into lead foot genes passed down from maternal side of the family, set cruise control for 80 in a 70 zone; out of nowhere "windshield wipers slappin' out of tempo" caught up with me; decided to slay the Rabbitt once and for all with my ultimate roadtrip CD, Bob Seger's Greatest Hits; able to open a small bag of Peanut M&M's without incident; as always, noticed how different crops each had their own shade of green; pit stop at Grandad's for dinner and catching up; reminded several times by Uncle Harry that in farm-speak, 'supper,' not 'dinner,' is the evening meal; reminded Uncle Harry that I am a city girl and in city-speak 'dinner' meant 'supper;' he blamed my mom for my lack of country education; mentioned the lack of shifting on the car and Grandad checked it out; discovered Drive and 3rd gear were on the same spot as you shifted into gear, one click left you were in 3rd, one click right you were in Drive; guess where I had it for the first 4 hours of the trip; was glad it was a rental.
Hours 5-9: excitement? What excitement? Whose idea was this anyway? Was surprised by bright yellow acres of sunflowers; tired of CDs now and searching limited radio stations; found myself wondering why country stations are always crystal clear, regardless of where you are; somewhere between Hays, KS and the Colorado border, I discovered something disturbing about myself: I was purposely seeking out country stations; oddly, though, it wasn't newer country I was looking for, but the good ol' down home Haggard-Jones-Cash-Lynn-Jennings-Twitty-Wynette-Parton-Nelson music of my childhood (I blame my mother); found several and loudly sang along; eagerly watched as the mountains slowly grew larger; excitement level higher than ever.
Synopsis of the trip home:
Hours 1-9: Holy fuck, this is a long drive!!!!!!!!!!!
Synopsis of the trip out:
Hour 1: excited as hell; essential roadtrip munchies strategically placed within easy reach; due to an email received just before leaving, the refrain of Eddie Rabbitt's "I Love a Rainy Night" is stuck in my head; extreme care spent choosing the right CD to provide perfect cruising soundtrack (heated debate with self: Counting Crows Greatest Hits or Garden State Soundtrack...but in a surprising turn of events, a dark horse entry, The Killers' Hot Fuss, came from behind to win it all); forgot to go the the ATM, start hoping I have $2 in change for the toll.
Hour 2: still excited; lost Eddie Rabbitt somewhere before reaching Lawrence; steered with left knee while using both hands to open BBQ Corn Nuts; 5 minutes, teeth usage, and one unintended lane change later, the bag split down the middle and it hailed Corn Nuts somewhere west of Topeka; can't help but notice the rental car is running weird, feels like it needs to shift to a higher gear.
Hours 3-5: excitement starting to level off; tap into lead foot genes passed down from maternal side of the family, set cruise control for 80 in a 70 zone; out of nowhere "windshield wipers slappin' out of tempo" caught up with me; decided to slay the Rabbitt once and for all with my ultimate roadtrip CD, Bob Seger's Greatest Hits; able to open a small bag of Peanut M&M's without incident; as always, noticed how different crops each had their own shade of green; pit stop at Grandad's for dinner and catching up; reminded several times by Uncle Harry that in farm-speak, 'supper,' not 'dinner,' is the evening meal; reminded Uncle Harry that I am a city girl and in city-speak 'dinner' meant 'supper;' he blamed my mom for my lack of country education; mentioned the lack of shifting on the car and Grandad checked it out; discovered Drive and 3rd gear were on the same spot as you shifted into gear, one click left you were in 3rd, one click right you were in Drive; guess where I had it for the first 4 hours of the trip; was glad it was a rental.
Hours 5-9: excitement? What excitement? Whose idea was this anyway? Was surprised by bright yellow acres of sunflowers; tired of CDs now and searching limited radio stations; found myself wondering why country stations are always crystal clear, regardless of where you are; somewhere between Hays, KS and the Colorado border, I discovered something disturbing about myself: I was purposely seeking out country stations; oddly, though, it wasn't newer country I was looking for, but the good ol' down home Haggard-Jones-Cash-Lynn-Jennings-Twitty-Wynette-Parton-Nelson music of my childhood (I blame my mother); found several and loudly sang along; eagerly watched as the mountains slowly grew larger; excitement level higher than ever.
Synopsis of the trip home:
Hours 1-9: Holy fuck, this is a long drive!!!!!!!!!!!
posted by kcterrilynn at 1:00 PM
5 Comments:
I love road trips....and old time country music is a must if one is all alone on a long drive...nothing better than Hank Williams...singing "I'm so lonesome I could cry."
road trips can be fun...there are great when you have a co-pilot to assist in the journey. oh, your taste in music was fantastic...i'm a huge fan of counting crows AND the killers. i've heard that Hot Fuss album is great. you should have stopped in lawrence and said hello to Bill Self.
Holy god, I feel that way when I drive to Sioux Falls and it's only 3.5 hours. I kill boredom by smoking incessantly. I can smoke a whole pack in 3 hours. Wait...should I be proud of that?
Road Trips are awesome when your with someone. Alone. Sucks. When I moved to TN I drove 13 hours - alone. Glad you made it safely though! :)
i am laughing so hard at you right now! especially your 1-9 synopsis on your way back! i always wonder why the spanish stations are the ones that come in crystal clear!
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