Tonight we are in Indianapolis.  Driving west today out of Shadyside we took I-70, known 100 plus years ago as the National Road, built to facilitate westward movement of a growing nation. John’s paternal great grandmother used to tell about traveling west in a covered wagon from Belmont County Ohio to Red Cloud, Nebraska.  I imagine that today we covered much of the same ground.  Fortunately we did it in a car with airconditioning.  Because today was hot.  Very hot. Grandma Workman was made from sturdier stock than I.

The most striking part of today’s drive was how the land opened up and became flat as far as the eye could see once we got west of Columbus.  Either side of the road was planted in corn, not measured in acres, but in miles.  And it was green.  Really green.  Well, all except for the deep gray thunderheads that filled the sky behind us.  John is anxious to see a serious thunderstorm on the plains.  That makes one of us….Tonight in Indianapolis we have severe storm warnings.  In the year since Buddy and John have been parted, John has apparently forgotten what a coward Buddy becomes at the first rumble of thunder.

One of my goals on this trip has been to try local foods in local restaurants.  To experience what the people in each area enjoys as their specialties.  Today’s local offerings were frogs and brain sandwiches.  I passed.  Even MY culinary curiosity has limits.

Tomorrow we plan to get on the road early.  We have a deadline as we must get Diana at the airport in Omaha, NE. tomorrow night.  Our route will take us through the rest of Indiana, across Illinois, into Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and finally into Nebraska. It will be an ambitious day of driving.

When my children were little I used to tell them to go live in places where I wanted to visit.  Of course I also told them to get jobs that were good enough that they could afford the therapy they would need to undo all the mistakes I made as a mother.  Of course, as a mother, you never know how closely your children are listening….

But then the first one moves away, then the second, followed closely by the third. And they all landed in wonderful places.  Places that I love visiting.  My daughter is in Raleigh, NC, my oldest son is in Charleston, SC and my youngest, John,….well, every move he has made has taken him to another wonderful place.  But each subsequent move has taken him further away.  Charleston, SC for college, Columbia, SC for medical school, Atlanta, GA for residency, and Dallas, TX for fellowship. Now he is making the biggest move of all – the San Francisco Bay area.  He would be hard pressed to move further away from his East Coast roots. Perhaps he really loves his new job there as a surgeon.  Or perhaps he also listened to my advice about the therapy…. 

The Proposal

While John has been in Texas for his fellowship, his wife, Diana, has been in Chicago working on her MBA. Neither of them was in a position to care for their dog Buddy during this time.  So Buddy came home to live with me for a year.  Along with Diana’s car.

Shortly after John interviewed for the job in California he proposed a road trip at the end of his fellowship.  He’d fly East, pick up the car and dog and we’d get reacquainted and see the country together driving West.  It didn’t seem practical at the time.  I was caring for my elderly mother and that seemed as good an excuse as any to beg off.  I mean, THREE weeks in a car?  With a dog?  Really? Did he not take my advice about therapy seriously?

The Decision

Mother died in March. As an only child, all the grief and all the decisions surrounding her death fell squarely upon my shoulders.  At times it’s been overwhelming. And all that was followed closely by a Milestone Birthday.  Running away from home was beginning to sound like a very good idea….Maybe John’s plan wasn’t so crazy after all….It isn’t everyday that a grown child WANTS to spend three weeks in a car with his mother.

I reminded John that there might be a reason some species eat their young.  He reminded me that it was HIS car and he could put me out of it at any airport along the way.

And so it was decided.

We leave early on Monday, June 24^th with the idea of reaching his new home about July 10^th.

This is the trip that everyone always says they want to take, but never do. When I have related foreign travels to some, they comment that they haven’t “seen America” yet. So, be warned….the next person who says that to me will be answered with “But I have!”

I’m off to see America.

Preparing to Launch

The car is small.  John said to pack light. In the past I looked at “packing light” as a very relative term.  That meant only ONE suitcase for shoes.  This time it means one duffel bag INCLUDING shoes. This could be a challenge. But I was up for it.  Because it also meant an opportunity to shop.  I mean, what woman isn’t dying to buy 4 new pairs of black shorts? Everything I bought and packed is in black and/or white. Very color coordinated. Or very no-color coordinated. Depending on your perspective. Boring.  But practical.  Because it means if we slow down long enough to visit a coin laundry along the way, I only have to wash TWO loads.

The car is washed. I took it for servicing yesterday and filled the tank with gas.  I bought  a car top carrier, trip snacks, food for the dog and drafted a houseplant sitter (thank-you, Marcia – I didn’t really mean it when I said I’d hurt you if they died…).

Tomorrow John flies home.  Sunday we load the car.  And Monday we hit the road. I hope if you’re still reading this you’ll want to follow along on our Most Excellent Adventure as we see America. Through MY eyes.  And since I am the one writing this blog, they are the only eyes that count!