Deployment Journal - Day #88

This week's FIFTH (5th!) trip into the city happened today.  Quite sure we've never gone more than three times in a single week before.  I now know why.  I seriously wanted to veer off the road randomly, out of pure boredom.  The drive felt so long.  Particularly if Little One isn't sleeping, and her fussing and squiriming and protesting grinds into my already-tired nerves.  Minutes feel really long at these times.

Ironically, I used to live in a city - a very large one, actually - and I routinely drove 50-90 minutes to get anywhere.  But, something about the sheer quantity of endless dirt and sky, of edgeless space only occasionally punctuated by "OHMYGOSH there's a teeny house over there - see it?!  On your left, about ten miles away.  WOW, I wonder who lives there?!" moments -- it just makes long drives seem longer here.

It's intense.  Honest.  Even tho' I feel ridiculous trying to explain why I'm not just being a wimp.  Really.  I'm not.

This said, today's route was actually twice as long (yes, that means we drove over two hours, each way - a logistical riddle, with a small child's schedule to accommodate - plus errands in the middle, making our total "stuck in carseat" time just shy of six hours.  Poor darling.) 

But, it was worth it to see a dear old friend, whose age and health make it impossible for her to come to us.  And she tottled around her yard with us, insisting we take bagfulls of her ripe apples and grapes and plumcots. 

I was grateful we went.  It'll likely be a while until we go again.