On Family Traveling

Well, we made it to Chattanooga. Finally.

I've always been fond of road trips. Even the lengthy sort. Of course, once one is married, all activities involving navigation and the operation of a motor vehicle suddenly become spontaneous exercises in conflict resolution. And this is not to mention the added dimensions marriage brings to the packing of the bags (which use to consist mainly of sniffing one's own t-shirt, grabbing a mountain dew from the fridge and tossing a handful of CD's into the passenger seat. On a good day your toothbrush MIGHT end up in your back pocket).

Now of course, it is different. There is actual luggage involved now. And math. Math is required for the packing of the luggage. And one entire piece of luggage is designated for the sole purpose of transporting the soaps and the conditioners and the loofas and all sorts of mysterious tiny bottles containing lotions and creams and astringents that (if price is any indication) all perform very important functions, though one can never be sure exactly what those functions are. This time there was even room left over for my toothbrush (phew!).

CD's are still a necessity of course, but no longer may the traveling collection be compiled on a whim. No, no, no. Now there is delegation, and negotiations. Concessions must be made. Deals must be struck. What once was a completed without a second thought, now becomes a highly political endeavor calling for the subtle arts of compromise and consensus building.

"Ok, I'll leave behind Tool, if you promise not to make me listen to Norah Jones again".

"Alright... And let's pick out something we both can enjoy"

Of course this last statement actually means something more like "Let's pick out something that neither one of us will hate to hear, but which lacks any trace of aesthetic conviction which might make it objectionable to the tastes of listeners on either end of the musical spectrum". (Which by the way, explains how Coldplay sold all those records).

And so it goes. And we've not even mentioned the children. Ah yes! The children. Now throw children into the mix and the once simple road trip becomes infinitely more complex. What, with the pooping of the pants and the changing of the diapers and the dropping of the toys and the crying of the babies and the stopping to pee pee and the stopping to pee pee again and the asking of the questions and the kicking of the back of the seat and the stopping to pee pee and the turning down of the radio as not to wake the baby and the eating of the candy and the spilling of the juice box...
As you can see, it can all become a very involved ordeal.

So, now I'm writing from my hotel room. As it turns out they were out of actual rooms with two beds, which is exactly the kind of room we reserved. As Jerry Seinfeld was quick to point out, it's not so much the taking of the reservation that is the challenge. It is the keeping of the reservation. But the kind folks behind the desk made good and put us up in a suite. Sweet. And swanky!

So all is well. Early day tomorrow. I'm going to get in bed. Which as I understand, is custom-designed for a great night's sleep. Or that's what the brochure said, anyway.

Chinese Internet bans the word "Freedom".

Live! From Chattanooga! It's a big Presbyterian church businesss meeting thingy or whatever!

Wow. Even the SNL intro doesn't help make it sound exciting.