Highway rest stops are always fun places to stop 'do you business', stretch your legs and grab some food and drink. We made lots of trips to Jersey when Justin was growing up. Three hours in, either way, was always break time. Elenka usually went off to get us some substance for the next 3 hours, and J- and I headed for the 'stupid stuff'. You know what I'm talking about. It's the t-shirts of the local sports' teams, styrofoam cup holders, all sorts of keychains, tiny toy cars that fit in your palm, decals for you car window, refrigerator magnets of all different shapes, decks of cards, coloring books and more and more and more. Elenka always cautioned me. "Don't buy anything." But I was weak, and Justin was game. We seemed to always return to the car with something stupid in our hands, laughing all the way. Good times. Lasting memories.
Heck, we needed something to break the monotony of the 6 hours.
And I longed for something other than the Boston Globe and a black coffee.
Humor was a solid choice.
What do they say?
Laughter and money are always in style.
What tricks do/did you have to kill the miles?
I like the "Trapped in Boston" stuff. :-)
ReplyDeleteI have satellite radio. I love driving long miles, if I'm by myself. I can't stand the whining from passengers. Plus I stop every 100 miles or so to find a geocache.
ReplyDeleteWe played lots of word games with our own kids and our grandkids were relentless. When I traveled with my toddler grandson, which was often, I bought cheap little toys, that I wrapped in colourful tissue paper and after appropriate intervals, I'd pass a new "gift" to him in the back seat. Worked like a charm and kept him busy when our drives were several hours long.
ReplyDeleteOn our plane trips to Florida, we did just this too.
Deletewhen i was a kid we would go on lots of rv trips and we'd use the roadside stops to pull over and have lunch. i remember my mom pulling out bread and lunch meats and we'd eat at a picnic table at the rest stop. you always remind me of these little but great memories!
ReplyDeleteI don't ever recall being tempted by the road-stop trinket stuff. These days I listen to audio books to pass the time.
ReplyDeleteLadies are always 'don't buy anything' about this stuff, but otherwise...
ReplyDeleteWhat? No Lucite enshrined scorpions?
ReplyDeleteI do remember these road stops very well. I always enjoyed looking at all the stuff but, I can't really recall buying anything other than snacks. But, I do remember going for the strange snacks, the things you never eat at home.
Long trip with a 5 year old.... Highway Bingo! Kept him busy. And 20 minutes at a truck stop every couple of hours to pick up snacks full of salt and/or sugar and/or other unpronounceable ingredients. And sandwiches and fruit at picnic tables at rest stops. I'd like to go on a road trip right now!
ReplyDeleteWe would snack a lot when I was a kid and then pull out sandwiches. Dad never wanted to stop for long so we ate as we drove along.
ReplyDeleteIt isn't so easy at highway speeds today but I always like to look for out of state license plates.
ReplyDeleteI'd drive at night so the kids would sleep. And one woke up and howled the others awake, I'd pop in a Willie Nelson tape and tell them to just Wail With Willie. I ate lots of apples as I drove, because you have to work at eating an apple; you can't just doze through it. And we'd stop in every state to buy each child a shot glass from that state, even if we weren't going to a destination in that state. They still love their shot glasses. I wonder if anyone thought it was odd that I'd be buying 7, 8 or 9 shot glasses at a truck stop at 3AM?
ReplyDeleteI could spend my life on the road.
ReplyDeleteMy parents would pack snacks along, and little games that could be done in the car on long vacation trips.
ReplyDeletecute way to peruse stupid stuff. :)
ReplyDeleteMunchies and music!
ReplyDeleteOur kids would compete to see who found license plates from the most states. And, I would assign things to find ("yellow house," "car carrying a green bicycle"). And, of course there was punch buggy white . . .
ReplyDeleteBut in France the rest areas, like the kind on the Jersey Turnpike, sell wine. Good stuff, too.
ReplyDeleteOh, you good dad, you. We kids were fascinated by the trinkets; the parental units -- not so much. So you can guess who won.
ReplyDeleteWe played slug bug, counting Volkswagon Beetles and slugging your brother in the arm. Imagine a trip across the U.S. (twice) in the early 50's and the to South Dakota and then from Rapid City, SD to San Antoio, TX and back......all pre 62......yes, dad was in the Air Force. Car games, no electronics. Whew, how did we get by.
ReplyDeleteWhen you come up our way, stop at Perry's Nut House! Trinkets, kids' car games and fudge along with some old, real stuffed animals.
ReplyDelete