One of the benefits of having to redefine your life, is that you get to redefine your life, and include fun things that you would not normally have done.
I took a little road-trip with a friend this weekend to New Braunfels. I used to love doing things like that, jumping in the car, and just going somewhere! A vague idea of a plan, in so much as we knew where we were going, and where we’d sleep, but little else of consequence decided beforehand!
If you’ve never taken a road trip before, I’ll break it down for you, and also, you have my pity!
You decide about a week or two in advance where you want to go, probably no more than a few hours in one direction, and whether or not you can stay at someone’s house. (Cost saving on these things is a must!!)
You then decide whose car is being driven, and decide who’s paying for gas.
Once these trivial formalities are out of the way, you get to the really important stuff like, what music are we listening to on the way there?! I was lucky in that my road trip companion is a music lover on a grand scale, so I didn’t have to worry about that part!
You load up the car, and head out. Usually following someone’s innate sense of direction, or a really crummy GPS as was done in this case. Really, it’d show us on the road one second, in a field the next, and back on the highway the next! And they sell these things, for money!About an hour in, you get hungry, and decide you’re going to stop for food, but not at a place you have back home. I have learned that a crummy looking building that’s been there for EVER usually has pretty good food in it, and will have some interesting stories as well. We stopped at a burger joint that I recently discovered was frequented by a young enlisted man at Ft Hood. You may have heard of him, he sang a song about a hound dog, or something like that.
You arrive at your destination, and seek out fun things to do in the area, and toss around a few ideas. After decisions are made, and fun is had, you turn in for the evening.
The next morning, it’s time for a road-breakfast. Can’t be fancy, has got to be from a roadside taco stand, or a greasy spoon diner. Either of these choices are acceptable, but nothing else. You now have the entire day to play with. You could pick up the list from the night before and find out what’s open that day, or jump back in the car to go find mischief, but either way, the goal is to be a little bit outside your normal parameters of what you call “You”. It’s a mini-vacation from yourself.
Once you have quoted Harry Potter and said Mischief Managed, you begin the long road home.
They say the return trip is quicker. I’m here to tell you, it’s not. However, you have new things to talk about, and hopefully more music to listen to, to get you back home in time to grab a few hours of sleep before the alarm goes off Monday morning.
Who knows, you could have a good enough time to write about it!
Ben Cox is the morning show host of “Ben Cox in the Morning” on KQBZ, 96.9 FM in Brownwood Texas. He is the new in-stadium voice of the Howard Payne Yellow Jackets football team, & Ben is also an event DJ for weddings, parties and the like.
The thoughts and comments reflected in this column are those of the writer alone, and do not necessarily reflect those of Wendlee Broadcasting, or its affiliates.
