travel by car

Road trips can be educational.
They can make you delusional as well.

Educational in the sense that we can stop along the route and get out and view historical sites and see the scenic overlooks around each bend in the road.

Delusional in the sense that driving is such a great idea compared to flying.

Driving  hour upon hour, staring at the blacktopped, seemingly endless road in front of us, our eyes becoming hypnotized by the yellow stripes passing by second after second.  
No longer is the food in the cooler sounding palatable.  It is going to be a long ride home.

It's about 1/2 an hour into the drive, and we get bored.  So we eat.  The crackers are stale and the pop is warm.
The nearest exit baits us with the fast food picks.
The original recipe grabs us and we order all things abominable for our nutritional intake,  complete with the colossal soft drink.
With utensils in tow, we do the unthinkable...eat in the car!
Spills ensue, along with food crumbs falling between the seats, but we are saving time by not eating inside!
The delusion continues..

It doesn't take long and the colossal soft drink has worked through the pipes and it is time to find a rest stop.  The sign blinks rest stop in 2 miles.  Whew!  We can wait 2 miles.  Upon reaching the coveted stop, the signs reads...REST STOP CLOSED.
Closed?  Yep.  The delusion lingers!
Bemoaning our dilemma, we look ahead and see a gigantic sign...TRUCK STOP.
We wonder..should we?  could we?

The drive is now in its about 5th hour.  The car is now a fast food pit, complete with smells and uneaten french fries.
We have played all the games, including looking for the license plate from farthest away;  guessing what is in the fields...  arguing over whether it is beans or barley;
Counting the deer; memorizing the names of all the gas stations and fast food places that can be found on an interstate.
We resort to laughing at the traffic that is backed up for miles on the other side of the road, only to eat those words as traffic snarls in front of us.
We take turns about every 1/2 hour driving, as the nod of the head is our clue we can't stay awake!
We vow to never drive this far again...ever...again.
Hmmmm....time will tell.