Justin G. Roy

940 Miles

( Click here to read Day One to MA – 260 Miles )

( Click here to read Day Two to MA – 760 Miles )

As I write this post, I cannot help but feel both saddened, joy, excited, and just about every other emotion possible. The trip out to Massachusetts with my Father was wonderful, it was very difficult to leave Chicago where I have met and befriended so many great people, it’s exciting to start a new chapter in my life, and I am looking forward to spreading the social media love on the Nichols Campus.

There is only one answer to the above. Grab another cup of coffee and poke some friends on Facebook.

Last night my Dad fooled with the alarm clock for about 10 minutes, making sure it would not wake him up in the morning (as it did on Day Two). He was semi-successful; I forgot to turn my cell phone alarm off. Needless to say, we woke up early and I had to make up some excuse (rather than admit I forgot to turn it off) and referenced technology, the internet, and twitter in my long drawn-out reason why it went off. I think he believed it, or took the same road as I – smile and nod.

Either way, we were up early. I turned on my laptop to post Day Two, check Twitter and email and all of a sudden, I hear the shower turn on – remember we have not purchased flip-flops (see Day One for that story) to this point. Ready? The reason was that it did not matter when he is around everybody else, but since he is going to see my Mother today he wanted to smell nice and look good. After more than 30 years of marriage, he still wants to look good for my Mom, and his eyes light up when he talks about her. From the age of 12 to 18, I thought this was gross but now as an adult (or self-proclaimed adult) I think it’s truly a blessing when two people remain so much in love as these two (this trip was also the longest they have been apart in a long time).

I know, you might be thinking this is not the same Father I have been writing about. To that I say, you are correct but it is the same man; the same man who cracks me up and makes me ponder, is also a loving human being.

Our travels today took us through the rest of New York, into Massachusetts, through some mountains, past frozen ice (well, I suppose all ice is frozen) and into Western, MA ending in Wilbraham. Home of Friendly’s, the Peach Festival, and a Stop Light. Wait; there is a general store too.

When I turned off the highway (we took Route 90 the entire way), I realized that my Father had not slammed his foot down thinking there was a brake on the passenger side of the truck. If you have ever driven with a parent, you know what I am talking about; if you do not know what I am talking about, then you are the parent that does this. As usual, I realized too early. 920 miles of easy riding led us into 20 miles of comments such as:

“You know, there could be cops out.”
“I think the speed limit is 30, but remember that is just the limit.”

And such motions as:

Taking a deep breath in when somebody taps his or her brakes half a mile away and I do not.
Slamming his right foot on the floor.

Perhaps Dad thought I wanted to lose more hair out of stress? Maybe he thought a good way to end the trip was to remind me of when I was 16 and he was teaching me how to drive?

Either way, I did not have to pay any fees for the damage his foot made to the floor.

We pull into the driveway and open the back door. Phew, nothing broke, nothing fell out, but not much had shifted forward (there was not much space for anything to move). We unpacked the truck under supervision of my Mother who unfortunately thought I had to return it that night and was slave-driving us. Not a bad thing, however, since she got us to unpack the entire truck (slash dump it in the garage) and return the truck in just 3 hours. Thanks, Mom!

All said, again, it was a wonderful trip and I am glad I opted to move myself and happy my father came out to drive with me. It was an extremely peaceful and relaxing [920 miles, not 940] trip where the opportunity to have quiet time, thinking time, planning my next move time, and a lot of laughs and learning was amazing. I almost wish I moved from California to Massachusetts just to make the trip last longer.