Family Road Trips 2.0

This blog is gaining viewer ship to the point that I've actually recommended it to a few people.

"You should check out my blog"

I was talking to a co-worker the other day about his upcoming trip which got me thinking about the trips my family used to take. First off in my family we rarely flew anywhere. A family trip for us usually involved the whole family packing into our stuffy station wagon and travelling marathon distances across the country with little to no air conditioning and a bunch of whining children in the back seat.

"I dare you to ask if we are there yet"

The interior of the car was not in anyway safe for children the seat-belts were all made out of metal that reached scorching hot temperatures in the mid summer and caused 1st degree burns while attempting to buckle up. The seats themselves were imitation leather which when combined with our sweaty backs caused us all to stick to the seats. To keep cool we'd take blankets and roll  them up in the windows for much needed shade or my mom would recommend we soak washcloths in the cooler and wrap them around our necks.

Air conditioner? Just stick your head out the window.

It's amazing after all these years I rarely remember the destination but vividly remember all the car trips, probably because the car trips were the destination. I swear we just got in the car and drove for a week straight. To keep ourselves occupied in the back seat we usually blew in each others ears or burped in each others faces when we spotted road kill.

After a couple bags of beef jerky....the realism was there.

For auditory pleasure we  never had the foresight to bring multiple CD's (as we called them back then). This usually meant we played one CD the entire trip.

To this day this soundtrack plays in my head any time California is mentioned.

For the trips I was too young to remember, it isn't a big deal because my father filmed them. I know what you're thinking, "oh he filmed the highlights of the trip"....no he actually filmed the trip as in him driving holding a camera filming.

"Honey get the camera there's some salt flats up ahead!

I really do miss these trips in our old stuffy station wagon that wreaked of diesel fumes and had doors that would randomly open while we were driving. The kids would all fight for the middle seat in back which was known as "the bump." Our parents probably thought it was for the elevated view but in reality it was because of the perils of sitting near a door. Obviously, if the parents picked you for the bump seat you were the favorite.

It was usually me

Overall these trips hold a special place in my life and are something I will most likely put my own children through because they built character. Have a good weekend.