The Drive Home

      I know that my last post was about coming home from college in North Carolina, and to keep up with that trend, I am going to tell you just how exhausting that trip actually was. I had taken long road trips before, including trips to Texas and Florida, so when my then-boyfriend (let's call him Josh) had offered to come pick me up from school in North Carolina, I was thrilled. I had many things to bring home with me that December since I would not be returning to North Carolina, so driving back seemed like the most efficient way to bring all of my belongings home. The trip was supposed to take about 12-13 hours, but little did I know, I had no idea what I would be getting myself into.
     I was extremely excited to endure on the trip from North Carolina back home to Rhode Island with Josh, although I can't say the same for him. I can't say I blamed him either, because he had to drive from Rhode Island to North Carolina one day to come and get me only to drive all the way back the next day with me and my obnoxious amount of pink belongings, stuffed animals and clothes....so much clothing. He was to arrive around 5:00 at night on a chilly Friday, but because of an unexpected snow storm that hit Virginia pretty hard, he didn't arrive until 10:00 pm. Needless to say, he was exhausted. All he wanted to do was go to sleep right away, but I kept pushing him to come out for some food and meet the friends I had made while away at college. That night we had our first ever fight, and it had pretty much set the tone for the trip the following day. I now know I should have been more understanding and thankful he was even doing this for me, but I was eighteen and to be honest, wasn't the sharpest crayon in the box.
       The next day it was time to pack up the F150 (which I still couldn't pack all of my things in) and head on home. It had started to snow, and I had a feeling this trip would be a lot longer than 12 hours. I was already emotional that morning because while leaving High Point University was my decision, I had still made some great friends there and was sad to leave them. Not knowing if I would ever see them again was discouraging. I had started to cry early on in the car ride, and Josh was still heated from the night before. That being said, he was in no sympathetic mood. We had started to argue again, until I had literally just given up and fell asleep. Suddenly, the road trip that I had been looking forward to had turned into the road trip from hell that couldn't be over fast enough.
      About five hours had gone by, and we decided to stop for food. The road conditions were awful, and it seemed people had suddenly forgot how to drive. While at the restaurant, Josh and I had finally come to a truce and said we would stop the stupid arguing. I finally thought the trip would be turning around, but of course, I was wrong. There was so much traffic, and right around New York it was already midnight...after being in the car for THIRTEEN HOURS. I thought I was going to cry I was so frustrated, but the worst was yet to come. About fourteen hours into our adventure, we both started to feel sick. We had both gotten the same chicken dish for dinner, and it appeared that made us sick. There is nothing worse than being stuck in a car..in traffic..and feeling like you're going to die.
     Finally, 18 hours later...we made it back to my house in Rhode Island. It was literally the worst day of my life, between the arguing and getting sick. Not to mention, every time I would fall asleep and wake up, I'd feel like hours had gone by only to find out I was only asleep for about a half hour. I could never be comfortable for more than an hour at a time, and my satellite radio had expired while on the road so we didn't have good music half of the way. While I'm grateful Josh made the trip to get me, I'd have to say that's the last road trip I take with a boyfriend.