SamSaid!

VACATION

     I have just returned from a 10 vacation  …….vacation, that is, if driving 2100 miles in ten days qualifies as a vacation. In my case, it did. Driving vacations generally involve a lot of sight seeing, and this one was no different. But this one was special for the things I did NOT see rather than the touristy sights one might expect. For example, I did NOT see long lines of automobiles or traffic congestion, and I did NOT see throngs of people pushing and shoving each other in an effort to be “first'. Instead, I saw the wide open spaces. Perhaps the highlight of the trip was contentedly dozing in the passenger seat while my wife drove at 80 mph – in cruise control- for an hour or two at a time. There were stretches of highway where an oncoming car was sort of an event. Great way to travel!

     The “wide open spaces” has become a cliche of sorts, but it is doubtful that a lot of Americans really know what the term means. City dwellers and easterners probably think “open spaces” means room to pass on the interstate. Not so with US 95 and US 26 in Nevada, Oregon and Idaho. No clouds, full sun, no cars and vistas on all directions. Even the sagebrush looked pretty good  ..  and the roads are in surprisingly good condition.

    Then reality set in. As we got closer and closer to the Bay Area, civilization reared its ugly head again. Here we were at 75 mph in multi lane traffic watching out for the lane-changing hotshots and trying to maintain a safe distance on both sides. In looking at the drivers of these speeding vehicles, I was reminded of the assortment of humans one normally sees while strolling thru a big mall. Not very reassuring. It is a sobering thought that just 5 feet away on either side there are dimwits who could convert me into roadkill in a matter of seconds.

     We are at home, and all is well. But I keep thinking about those stretches where we owned the entire highway  –  both directions. That's worth vacation time to me. You can keep Manhattan, the Loop or LA.