I-5

mood: grand
listening to: fiona apple
last read: email from jenni p.

so, i made the trek from here to san jose this last week, just me and the two boys. as i was traveling along that barren stretch of land between LA and the SF bay area, i was flooded with memories-- some good, some not so good. it has been quite a while, almost two years, since i drove home. but i quickly remembered both the glory and peril of that drive. i do enjoy a great road trip. i find it soothing the open road, the low murmur of the engine, and the time to rediscover some of my favorite music. this trip was filled with fiona apple, sarah mclachlan, ben harper, and putumayo kids sing-along to world music. (that last one is an odd sort of favorite. it is not the musicality that i enjoy, but the effect it has on my kids. it's a definite cost-benefit situation. although, the scatty, bluesy rendition of "old macdonald" is quite entertaining.)  the peril is the seemingly endless road in front of you. it took me 7 1/2 hours door to door, with one stop at the in-n-out burger in kettleman city. the boys were surpisingly not horrible, and slept for about 1/2 the trip, in part thanks to some dramamine. yes, i drug my kids when we travel. i figure, we eat organically and preservative free 80% of the time, their system can handle a little "encouragement" every two years.

as i was driving, i couldnt help but think of all the people i have made that trip with in the past. most of them were at one time or another, bffs. it was a little heart twinging to think that most are no longer regular parts of my life. some of that is good, and some of that is sad. i was also quickly reminded of my age. as soon as i got to san jose, i could not really remember where most things were. for me, this is HUGE. i always remember directions and locations. at the age of 20 i could remember how to get to my childhood home 400 miles away that i had not visited since i was 8. now, i couldn't remember how to get to my mom's work that i had been to 18 months before. oh, 30, you are coming, and quickly. time for some ginko i guess.