Thinking Out Loud Online
Travel
One for My Nephew
Jan 7th
I drove 380 miles in one direction just so that I could see a baby boy’s dazzling smile. An invitation extended by my brother Mike, in a not completely lucid moment, led to a road-trip that I needed more than he probably knew. The calendar had flipped from 2008 to 2009, ending what had been a tumultuous year for me physically, mentally, and emotionally. While there was plenty of good among the considerable amount of bad, the net result had left me drained. The new year required a renewal of perspective. What better way to do it than to see the world through an infant’s eyes? Thus, I was off to see my nephew Owen.
Gone to Meet My Nephew
Aug 15th
I had been anticipating this trip for quite a while. The feeling started growing the moment my brother and his wife told me they were expecting and continued right through the three months following the baby’s arrival. So, it’s not entirely surprising that when I finally hit the road I arrived here in Washington, PA in record time.
From just about every conceivable angle, this trip could not have come at a much better time. More >
The Long and Winding Road
Nov 21st
Six hours, three hundred eighty miles, one very large coffee, and a tank and a half of gas later, I find myself at the home of my brother and sister-in-law in Washington, PA. For reference, Washington is probably about 30 miles south-southwest of Pittsburgh, close to the southwest corner of Pennsylvania.
This is my third trip out here since my first Thanksgiving trip a year ago with three of the four trips being by car. I flew out here in August to dog/cat/bunny/goldfish watch while my brother and his wife went on their honeymoon. It’s a pretty safe bet that I’ll never do that again. From the time I had left my apartment in August to get to the airport, got on the plane, flew here, got my bags, and my brother had driven us back to the house, I’d have arrived by car about the same time. I’m not even going to talk about the horror show that was my flight back.