Florida Day 1

I have been demoted to the back seat of the car, at least until we reach the Pennsylvania border. It feels like G3 was in a car seat not all that long ago and now he is driving. His permit allows him to drive in New Jersey so he can only drive the first hour or so but it still feels somewhat unsettling. My baby is growing up. Kati hates being in the passenger seat. She likes to do all the driving so I’m sure this feels weird for her too. She doesn’t even like it when I drive. G3 was so excited about being able to take the wheel to kick off this road trip, he went to bed early last night. He wanted to make sure he was well rested.

Leaving the cats behind gets harder and harder. Dante missed me so much he was super cuddly at night and in the mornings when I returned from Cape Cod. I would wake up with his body curled into my hip and then I would linger in bed later than usual to pet him. Then, towards the end of the week, as we started to pack and the cats started to sense that something was up, that we might be leaving again, Dante got even more mushy. Even Kramer was more affectionate than usual, bringing me to his petting spot more frequently and indulging in being pet more than ever. This morning, their little eyes made me feel guilty as we were leaving. Bean looked incredibly sad and Dante’s little face seemed to say “Don’t you love me anymore?”

We got on the road at six—a little later than I wanted, but it worked out because G3 is not supposed to drive before sunrise. Once we entered Pennsylvania, G3 pulled into a rest area and Kati took over the driving. She drove until we crossed into Virginia where we stopped at Waffle House in Fredericksburg for breakfast. The fact that it was quite a bit more expensive than it had been the last time we went—two years ago—is indicative of how much prices have skyrocketed recently. We used to be able to count on it for a cheap-albeit extremely greasy—meal. Not anymore.

I-95 is dreadful. We have been on 95 all day and it is miserable. Over the years, we have taken many road trips and this is the worst. At least out west there is pretty scenery to look at. Here, it’s just endless highway and trees. I suppose the trees make it better than the NJ Turnpike—that really is a slice of hell. We had pockets of traffic through Virginia until we reached Richmond which added too much time to our already long drive. As soon as we cleared the traffic, Kati asked me to drive for a bit. Being on 95 and moving at a crawl was mind numbing and she was feeling tired. My shift was short. Only two hours. I made the mistake of getting an Arizona iced tea when we stopped for me to take over. My bladder is tiny and the liquid shot through me very quickly. But me needing to use the restroom meant stopping at McDonald’s which Kati didn’t mind at all considering her minor addiction to McDonald’s fries. G3 didn’t mind either since he got a burger and nuggets. Lesson for me: drink less because pee stops are not cheap.

Kati drove until it started to get dark and the gray skies threatened rain. Her vision makes driving in low light conditions difficult. When the rain came, it hit really hard. I could barely see the road and slowed to twenty miles an hour to make sure I didn’t drive off the road or into another car. Luckily, it didn’t last long. Although we did drive through a second arm of the storm that took almost twice as long to get through, but we made it. After that, the rain cleared and it was an easy drive to Savannah where, famished, we stopped at Culver’s for dinner.

It was eleven o’clock at night when we finally pulled into Fort McAllister State Park where we are camping for the next two nights. When we reached the park, the gate was closed. We obviously got here way too late to check in. Luck, however, oddly enough, was on our side and a young guy—not much older than G3–pulled up behind us. He was here to meet a friend and therefore had the code to open the gate. Grateful, we thanked him and made our way to our campsite. From what I can make out in the dark, it is a very nice campground and it is surrounded by really pretty trees. On the side of the road, Kati spotted two deer loafing like cats. How Kati, with her nearly nonexistent night vision, spotted them, I haven’t a clue. But they were cute, just hanging out with each other, and they did remind us of our little guys at home.. The tent bed is made of sand, and even though it’s packed, it is much softer than dirt and there are no roots or rocks to poke me while I am sleeping.

As soon as we arrived, we grabbed the tents from the trunk and started to set up. Two seconds after G3 shook his tent from the bag he whispered screamed words I couldn’t decipher, but his tone was enough to express his anger and frustration. His tent requires two poles to set up. He only had one. When we got back from Alaska, we discovered one pole was broken. Kati set it aside and told G3 she’d give him a pole from her one-man tent. Yesterday, as we were packing, I remembered her promise and got her pole which I slipped into the tent bag. That pole made it to Georgia. I have no idea what happened to G3’s good pole. I do know that after I got the pole I told G3 to make sure everything was in order. Kati also told him to check to make sure he had everything. As usual, he chose not to listen to us. The tent, unfortunately, is useless without both poles. So, opting not to sleep on his hammock, he is currently sleeping in the car.  Needless to say, this will definitely be one of those moments we will remember forever.  It will be a story we retell numerous times. But now it is late, I am tired, and the cicadas are chatty. I always sleep best when they put me to sleep.