The driving is exhausting. Period. And while the thrill of passing through one place to the next and having a new adventure each day is really great, I’m tired!
Most of each day is spent driving, only to arrive at a place in the evening, grab something to eat, and find a place to sleep. Then it’s early to rise, pack in the sightseeing, and get on the road and drive. Then drive, drive, and drive some more. It would be one thing if we were passing by beautiful scenery and coming across great stopping points for photo-ops, or cute roadside cafés, but we are not. Instead, we are driving on roads where all you can see to either side of you is nothing (or red rocks in the Southwest).
The cars on the road are fairly sparse and you are usually sandwiched between a truck or three. And to make matters worse, when driving at night, everyone wants to play the bright lights game. Now, this is a very delicate matter. You must turn off your bright lights at precisely the right moment or else you are in trouble. Accidentally forget to turn them off, and the driver will flash you repeatedly with blindingly bright lights. Turn them off too late and you may still get flashed. Turn them off too early and the oncoming driver might think you never turned them off because your regular lights are bright enough, and flash you anyway! We spent the better part of the drive trying to find just the right time to turn off the bright lights and were met with flashes, honks, and only the occasional polite driver that did nothing. It seems the best bet is to turn them off just as you see your opponent turn off their own. Oh the things you learn on a road trip.
And the music has run out. You would think between two ipods filled with songs, that you could get pretty far without hearing much twice. But 2,400 miles later, I am hearing repeats. I have actually had moments of longing for my old cd collection, just to get a little variety.
Some days the food is really tasty and I am saddened that I must leave it behind, and some days we eat nasty pre-made burgers from gas station cafés if we don’t get the timing right. My camera dies on a regular basis and I am forced to post blogs if and whenever I can because in these desolate dead zones, I have no idea when my next internet fix will be. And sometimes when I am faced with the option of going out on the town after a long day of driving/sightseeing/driving, I almost, just almost, want to say no, curl up in my pajamas, and close my eyes.
But this is the greatest adventure. I have seen more of my own country in the last three days than I have seen in the last three years–or really ever. I have experienced a million wonderful (and strange) things that I would never otherwise be discovering. So, I will take my copious amounts of driving, various nasty burgers, and severe lack of sleep any day. I can sleep when I get home. Or maybe on the beach in Florida…
