Friday Fog

The thick fog that covers the land makes it quite difficult for me to get to work on time. Traffic on the highway slows this morning to about 40 mph. It is just past the point of the morning when the day begins, but clouds make it difficult for the sunlight to stream through so many layers of the dust and moisture. On the highway, it is difficult to see how many vehicles are preceding mine, but from time to time a get a glimpse of a very long line of taillights, and then the light quickly fades. We move together, in and out of the clouds that are hanging, clinging, permeating the blacktop and surrounding landscape. Our caravan, in our brief moment out of the cloud, view a vision of trees that are off to either side of the roadway. The trees are thickly frosted, and have a promise of a radiance of their own if only the light would send a stream of energy their way. They seem to be wanting the fog to lift as much as I do. We drive into the next fog bank.  I can barely see the small truck that is directly in front of me. The outline of the tailgate brightens and dims over and over as the traffic changes the pace of travel throughout the drive. I look at the clock on my dashboard thinking that the trip is taking longer than the extra five minutes I had allowed. I reset my iPod so I am listening to some upbeat music as the twenty minute podcast has ended and left the air hanging quietly. It is too silent until the selection is made. The familiar rhythm of an old favorite brings a smile to my face and soon our entourage melds into the traffic of town as we join local traffic. The fog thins, but is still a frame of all that I can see. I pull into my parking spot, and the fog tries to follow me into the building. I push it farther behind me as I walk into the glow of florescent lighting and smiles of favorite people. The fog evaporates and is left outside to battle the sun for dominance of the day.

Catch Up Day

I always like to plan a buffer day between when I return from a trip and when I have to jump back into the world at work. It doesn't matter if it is a long trip or a shorter one, I need a day to get my head back into the routines of life. It is a good thing that I do not travel for my job, although I love to travel. I just would need time to stabilize my footing after each return.

Today is no different. I am just returned from a short trip (5-6 hours in the van each, there and back again) and had to reconnect with e-mail and internet networks. Then I start to prepare for tomorrow. What will I wear? What will we eat? What is on my schedule? Then I can chill out a bit before reporting in. Once back into the thick of the days to come I can start planning my next trip. Now where am I headed next time?

On the Road Again

What is more fun about a summer trip...the planning, the packing or the traveling?

I love the anticipation and planning for our trips. Going online to order brochures, reading through other peoples travel blogs looking for that place we may have missed otherwise, trying to decide on our specific destinations and this year we even had an evening of watching a DVD about the areas attractions for our general destination. I had everyone go through the brochures and pick places or activities and that was our starting point.

Packing is a bit of a chore, but when it is happening, I know that we will be leaving soon. I try to pack all that I anticipate we will need, but I also realize that there is a Wal-Mart that would have about anything we needed or simply forgot. I have a novel, a couple of magazines and Tetris for Game Boy to take the edge off of any possible boredom for me. The kids also have a bag of amusements for the road trip and a few snacks as well.

Traveling can be very exciting, but at times can be boring or sometimes even stressful. I enjoy road trips. Getting out and seeing different places, or familiar places that are not close to home, is interesting and enjoyable. We have often taken trips on back highways to be able to travel through towns that are not on the interstate or major highways just to get a scenic view. It is fun to try out new things, and enjoy each others company without any of the interruptions of home. Although I have a fear of heights I have ridden on ski lifts up mountainsides, spent time on the edge of canyons and even dangled over gorges in a cable car. Living in Kansas means that if we want to head west, we are destined to see a lot of plains, rolling hills, and some long stretches of highway with not a lot to catch our attention. I have been known to nod off during parts of that part of the ride. And then there are the natural disasters that seem to appear over many of our trips: forest fires, earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricanes. We even had a fire on our RV on one trip. And we've been stuck a few times with tire trouble on the RV and brake problems in the mountains in the van last year (good thing Joe is handy with repairs). While one such repair was taking place we sat in the shade on a very hot desert day. Miles down the road Joe decided we needed something more substantial done, and my mom and I walked to a quilt store and bought fabric for Raymond's quilt he is now snuggling under at night. Several years ago Joe gave us a scare with a kidney stone (I am glad it was quick to pass - LOL). Even with moments of boredom and some stressful times too, overall our family trips have been great at rejuvenating our energy and putting a positive perspective on our lives.

On this particular trip we are not going to our first choice of destinations. Last summer we took a wonderful trip to the Grand Canyon with many other stops on the way. Then we planned a trip for all of the boys to go with us on our next excursion and no sooner had we rolled into the driveway after our family trip in October to Minneapolis, and we were talking about traveling to see family in Washington state and a trip through Yellowstone National Park on the way for this summer. We had to make a budget compromise so we are not going as far as we had originally planned, nor for as long. I am disappointed that we will not be seeing our family in the Northwest. But I am sure that we will enjoy the trip we do have planned. I am still going to see the mountains. The boys will still have a swimming pool and many family activities to enjoy. And we are going to one of my favorite places to visit, Colorado Springs. I don't care that it is a bit touristy. In fact, that just makes it that much more accommodating to me and my family.

So now the planning and packing are complete, and I am ready to hit the road. Mountain air...here we come.