I have mentioned that I like driving long distances, right? This road trip has not made my love of driving any less, but it has made me completely exhausted.
Let me explain.
Three weeks ago a friend of the family, Doc, offered me what I consider to be an absolute godsend. He knew about my unsuccessful attempts to get a job within an ambulance company and my unsuccessful attempts to get into a CNA or RN program around San Diego, so when he came to visit, he offered me a job at his dental office, a room at his house, and offered to pay for my nursing school tuition. Naturally I jumped at the opportunity, but, because the world hates me, there is a big setback.
Doc lives in Virginia. I lived in California. All of my worldly possessions were in California.
Thus began the epic quest of packing and driving across the entire country.
Day 1 I spent driving to Lake Havasu to pick up my travel buddy, Sibling #5, while the family was out there on vacation. Day 2 was spent hanging out with all my younger siblings for the last time until Christmas. We went to the movies to watch Cars 2 and had a good time. Also had to take an extra look at the radiator just to make sure that the damn thing wasn't still leaking.
Day 3 was spent driving a stretch of Route 66 along the 40 in northern Arizona. When you think Arizona, what do you think about? Desert, right? Wrong. There are forests there. Forests! I never knew about them! And before we got back on the 40, we stopped at a Roadkill Cafe. Those actually exist! I always thought that it was just a joke on a t-shirt, but sure enough, they do exist. And the food is grand. Once we reached Flagstaff we headed south to Florence to visit my friends K and Sergeant, and we stayed the night there.
Day 4 was mostly spent driving out of Arizona, because we decided to be adventurous and take the scenic route up the 60. Driving through New Mexico sucked, because there were storms everywhere. I haven't quite recovered from my last journey through storms that bad, so Sibling #5 drove while I remained stiff and tried not to scream. Finally we reached our hotel in Amarillo around midnight and we passed out.
Day 5 we were late getting on the road due to a mortal injury. As I was putting my things in the car, my suitcase, which maybe weighs about 60-75 pounds, swung with enough force to rip my left big toenail up without ripping it off. The sucker was sticking straight up while my toe was bleeding like crazy and I was howling in pain. Sibling #5 actually helped me push it back into place, which hurt even more. And it didn't help that he put it back crooked. (Not like he meant it, it just happened that way.) Luckily I'm a medic and remembered I had a first aid kit in my car and was able to clean it with hydrogen peroxide before wrapping it. Unluckily hydrogen peroxide stings like a bitch. After that we drove through Oklahoma to Missouri, which cost us $8 because of the tolls, and stayed with family.
Days 6 and 7 were spent in Illinois with more family, an aunt and uncle in one town and a set of cousins in another. It was fun, for the most part, and rather relaxing, except for the fact that I still had a hurt toe. It's funny how the smaller parts of us hurt the most, especially the toes.
Day 8 is today, and we made it to West Virginia, where I'm sitting in a Best Western taking a break. Technically we could have gone the 14 hours from Illinois to Virginia in one go, but Sibling #5 and I have been in close quarters for a week now and we're getting on each other's nerves. Just today I've been snapping at him and he's been growling at me, so this is better for the both of us.
Tomorrow, Day 9, the road trip ends and I get to unpack my car. Hooray for me.
All in all the whole experience has been quite an adventure, because I cannot go anywhere without something exciting happening.. My radiator hasn't been giving me too much trouble, thankfully, and the only real trouble I've been having is my toe, which is making me hobble horrendously.
As summer draws to a close, I hope everyone out there makes it home from vacation safe. As for me, this is a new and exciting leaf I'm turning. LPN school starts next month.
Warm Regards,
Liz
