Trucking

"Sorry folks, we're closed. The moose out front should have told you."

The art of the family vacation. The classic road trip in family truckster. The car games to pass the time. The kids repetitively asking, "How much longer?" or "Are we there yet?" The driver exerting superhuman energy to exercise patience. The bottle of Jack Daniels once you arrive at your destination. It's all a part of the family vacation experience.
I remember the trips I took as a kid. Even the solid hour to hour and a half trip to Nanny and Papa's seemed like an eternity. We had the classic, panelled, Ford station wagon. Car seats? Not likely. We could sprawl out in the way back and lay down. But of course we wanted to be entertained. Mom always tried to keep us occupied and pointed out the sites. The painted gas tanks in South Boston were always a major milestone. Then there was the tunnel (the now Tip O'Neil tunnel). I am sure Dad felt like the trip took forever. We usually played the licence plate game, trying to acquire all the letters of the alphabet.
Today, we have the SUV's and portable DVD's. The kids are strapped down to cars seats like a prisoner in a criminal psych ward. Of course we are smarter about safety now. But it was nice being a kid, lying about in the back. The portable DVD's are both blessing and curse. It is a good way to keep the kids occupied. But it takes aways from the family road trip experience. When we go to see the in-laws in NY, it is a solid 4 hour trip, without stopping. Factor in a few pit stops for the kids and Demi, plus the never ending construction in CT, the NY traffic, etc, and it can be a long day. The boys get to watch one movie. That's it. Otherwise, it is reading, drawing or playing games. We play I-Spy, or a couple initial games. I modified a college drinking game where you don't have to "drink while you think". You use famous people, or people we all know, since the kids have a limited repertoire. You have to used the letter in the last name, as the first letter of the name of the person you choose. A same letter first and last name like Mickey Mouse, reverses direction. The other initial game we use is just stating the initial and the rest have to guess the person. Sometimes it turns into 20 questions but it seems to work. That time is time well spent bonding. And it beats show tunes (the Sure Thing not withstanding).

Here's to the family truckster and the supermodels in Ferraris that follow them.