We recently hit the road with great intentions of seeing wonderful sights and visiting with special people.  There are also the moments you never forget.

The final leg of the journey returning home, often turns into a quest no matter how much your body is screaming for a bed.  We vowed to make a few more stops on our way home, because we looked like old people when we arrived at my sisters. By the time we reached our daughters, we probably looked like we needed a hospital bed, rather than the comfy one they provided us.  I’m not saying we’re getting old, but we are!

My husband has proven to be a true road warrior.  He loves driving – especially when the road is clear and the pace has been set.  Having the eyes of an artist, he notices things that I never see. constantly taking mental pictures for future reference, while I struggle to capture moving objects on my phone camera. Having the desire to push on, leaves little room for sightseeing, but we did manage to see a restoration of an Appalachian village.  We go stretched our weary legs, but I quickly ran out of breath, so it was back to the air conditioned vehicle and watching the beauty of the countryside as we whizzed by.

The mountains were majestic, the trees lavish and tightly knit into massive forests, the road kill was abundant.  There were dead possums, birds, porcupines, deer and thousands of dead tires which could probably be recycled into flip flops.  We witnessed a few accidents, many speeders and lots of cone storage.  I’m sure you’ve seen it.  When they have no room for those bright orange barriers, they line them up on the highway to annoy drivers..

Mr. Road Warrior was on a roll as we rolled into Kentucky.  It was still early, so he decided we could make a few more hours of driving.  When we pulled into Indiana, we realized it was Memorial Day weekend and the Indianapolis 500 would take place the next day, so finding a motel was impossible.  So we hit the road again and wound up in a town on the border into Illinois. It was next to impossible to find a room and those available were way out of our range.  We found a motel that seemed devoid of cars.  A broken down restaurant sat beside it.  In the front stood four Roman statues, beckoning visitors. The motel was encrusted with broken down plaster exterior, plastic bottles and other refuse floating through the parking lot and I expected the manager to look like Norman.

We entered the room, which had no light switches, so we groped around for a lamp. I rushed to the bathroom, to discover a toilet that was not functioning and a shower that was consistent with the Bates Motel.  After calling the manager, we were told someone would come to take a look at it.  I was sure Norman would show up with a plunger and some sharp instrument in his hand.  Eventually we were sent to another room, which proved acceptable.  At least the bed was huge and the toilet worked.

We had a wonderful vacation and we’re still talking to each other.  We’re already talking about our next trip.