whitereflection | it's in the blood

visited 27 states (54%)
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And damned near all of it by car, because my Dad was and is severely phobic about flying and was a fiend for roadtrips. Roadtrips for vacations, roadrips for taking Mom to different hospitals when her health was bad, roadtrips for moving (and moving back again). I've flown only a little in comparison. To be honest, I miss roadtripping. I miss interstates and highways and the scenery of America along the way. I miss motels and American food chain restaurants and tourist trap gift shops. But I'm a passenger, not a driver, and the husband isn't any better (also, he hates traveling :/ ).

Dad doesn't drive so much anymore--back and neck problems, but when he and my stepmother do take trips, that's how they do it. But he used to be such a freaking maniac for driving. He could go and go and go, like a vehicular marathoner. Sometimes we didn't even do motels--we'd just sleep as he drove until we got there (Omaha to Seattle or vice versa's 36 hours, I'm just sayin'.) All he needed was Coca Cola, someone to read the maps, and the radio. (Though I do remember one trip he needed a brief recharge, and we slept in the car at a rest stop.) In comparison, the bits of driving I've done? Hour trips to Lincoln, or the hour and a half trips to Seward or Audubon, a few hours to Kansas City. I think the longest I've ever driven was about 6 hours to Witchita, and that was too long for me. At least it was back when I tried it.

Sometimes I want to roadtrip again so much it's like an itch under my skin. What was the old slogan in that one car commercial, "Drivers wanted"? Yeah.

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When I was about four or five, my mom, dad and I drove all the way out to Monterey, CA to visit my brother's family. His wife had just had their first baby and I guess my parents hated flying or just couldn't afford a plane ticket, I dunno, but we drove all the way out there from Ohio. We stopped in Salt Lake City to visit my uncle and his family for a bit along the way. Also, I used to get carsick like crazy as a kid, so the trip wasn't full of good memories along the way. Aside from throwing up most of the time, I remember laying in the backseat and seeing stars one night. Not sure why that memory sticks in my mind, but it does :) Even though it takes forever, I'd much rather drive than fly.

Oh, I can so relate--I used to do that sort of car-stargazing as well. ^^ Don't get many chances to anymore, what with almost never driving like that, and always trying to get home before dark when doing short trips for family visits.

I was prone to being really carsick when I was really young, like around 3-5. By schoolage, I grew out of it--which is lucky, considering how much we did driving trips. Wouldn't have been the same experience at all, traveling while being doped to the gills on Dramamine. ^^;

I hope you know that I intend to pick your brain when I'm writing my giant Wincest 50 states story over the summer. You have no choice. That's what you get for being unfairly well traveled.

:x I will do my best to help you in any way I can! But I hate to say, don't expect great things. Most of the trips we took were between when I was 8 and 16. And considering I'm 36 now... : / 20 to nearly 30 year old memories are hazy and full of holes. :( Like for example, this one 2 week vacation we did when I was 11, where we looped through the southwest to the west coast and back, I remember we stopped at the Four Corners monument, and it was pretty much just cement pavement with it marked out where the states came together (snooping at Google, looks like they tried to make it fancier since then, heh). And I dunno now, but then it was just ringed with sort of touristy-gifty stands selling a lot of turquoise stuff, and we got snowcones, because it was damned hot. ^^; Some bits I remember more than others, but it's kind of hit or miss, and no doubt a lot of bits I remember won't be the same now.

That's okay! I have many people whose brains I will be picking at (my parents went to all 50 states before I was born, so if push comes to shove and can just hound my mom about it, lol). I'm just remembering this and keeping you on my list of people to harass :D

Oh cool beans, that works. :D I'm good for little tidbits at least. Like when we nearly hit a moose at night in Yellowstone. XD

Hee hee, it's actually little tidbits like that I need to make it feel more authetic, you know? I can google big touristy sights, but I need the ice cream and the feeling of disappoint when you saw the four corners monument to make it convincing :D

Also, I have my own washed out baby memories of Yellowstone, but they involve demonic buffalo instead of moose. We're awesome. *high fives*

I've been on four big roadtrips in my life. I like to do them completely unplanned. "Hey, let's go south today!" "Oooh, what's a jackolope? Let's go find out!" I've hit every state but California. That's on the menu for this summer.

The last time we had a GPS (man it makes everything easier) and an iPod hooked up to the car speakers. Gotta tell you, after 6 hours of pretty scenery and NC-17 podfic, you are READY to hit a motel room ...

Ohman, that's awesome ♥ I would love trips like that--or even having a minor plan, but not like every detail planned out. Like I've got this sort of daydream for some reason, of driving South Dakota from east to west and hitting every single tourist trap that those damned billboards along the interstate advertise. XD; I envy that you've just about got all 50 states--there's so many I've still never seen, especially east. And I would *love* to see Alaska and Hawaii, but not sure I ever will.

Gotta tell you, after 6 hours of pretty scenery and NC-17 podfic, you are READY to hit a motel room ...

XD XD XD Now that is awesome. I don't know if I could roadtrip with any of my family/friends and do the NC17 podfic, though. Maybe if I ever got to travel with fellow spn-fans someday. ^^ Ugh, I can't wait until we can get another car--our last one had a cassette player so I could use an adapter for my iPod, but our current one just has a factory radio, no cassette or CD thing. It's so old that I can't justify replacing the stereo just to make it iPod adaptor capable. Hopefully when it dies, I can change that though. *crosses fingers*

I just counted mine and I was surprised that I have actually visited 15 states, even though I only lived in the states for a year.

Me and my friend who also went to USA for her exchange year have been dreaming about going back some day and taking a roadtrip from coast to coast. And I think I could actually manage to drive long hours because I'm so used to driving long distances all the time.

I wonder if Hawaii and Alaska are the only states the Winchester haven't visited? :D Or have they been to Alaska? I have no idea...

Ohwow, a coast to coast trip like that would be so *amazing*!! I hope you do get to do that, and when you do, I hope you blog about it so some of us could live vicariously :) ♥

You know, I don't think they've been to either. Hawaii has the whole having to be flown to issue, and Alaska would be a *hell* of a drive, plus something that would require passport checks to get to...hm wait.

Actually, it's more doable than that. There's ferries that go to Alaska from places like Bellingham, Washington (used to live there for about 9mo in high school). Though would still require passport checks--and the Winchesters are good at forging stuff, but passports would be hard. ^^; There'd have to be a massively *important* reason to go to that sort of effort, I imagine. Would make for an awesome as heck fic, though. 8D We need to find a fan that lives up there to write us one that really gets the feel of the area well.

I love your post! We took so many road trips when I was younger...and your whole post made me all misty remembering the good times and the bad times and the hilarity that always ensued when my whole family was trapped in a car for copious amounts of time. LOL!

:D See, you understand exactly! ♥ That's another reason I miss roadtripping, and why even if I got the chance to do one again, I'd love to go with friends, because just me and the husband, eh, but a *group*, that'd really get the feeling of the whole family in the car like back when.

it's in the blood

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