civilized ku # 475 ~ live and learn

Quality Fuels ~ somewhere in Kentucky or Tennessee • click to embiggenIt seems that there is, as expressed by Stephen, a bit of curiosity out there, re: my roll baby roll entry and ...

... how you came to be trapped with 3 such uncongenial traveling companions.

The trip was planned as a dual-purpose event - play a lot of golf and check out Cumberland County, Tennessee as a suitable retirement location for my brother, the now-retired US Postal employee. Over his years in the Postal Service, he had become the unofficial golf outing/trip organizer for a group of about 16-20 other postal employees. Together, they made many annual Spring golf pilgrimages up and down the Mid-Atlantic coast.

That said, my brother asked me to accompany him and 2 of his USPS golfing buddies - retirees all - on the trip. Sounded like a good idea - and golf-wise it certainly was - so I accepted the offer.

My mistake was to not go with my late-blossoming (during the week before the trip) instinct that, once we reached our destination in Tennessee, being without my own means of transportation would lead to a very limited range of things-to-do options beyond the golf courses. Like, as it actually turned out, when they sat glued to the TV for 2 afternoons and evenings watching the NFL draft - thank god that I had taken a couple books along for just such an eventuality.

It also occurred to me that my traveling companions might not be very inclined to listen to my kind of music / PBS radio, but I must confess that I did not consider the possibility that they wouldn't listen to anything, music/radio wise, nor that there would be an absolute keep-on-pressing-on mindset to the road trip.

In any event, the idea of 4 guys traveling over that 1,600 mile distance (round trip) in 2 cars really didn't make much sense for a number reasons, not the least of which was the fact the travel was premised on 4-way sharing of the cost of gas, tolls, etc.

So, I went with the flow and learned a valuable lesson - the next time I and 3 other guys are going on a road trip, it will be in a vehicle of my choice with my eyes on the road and my hands upon the wheel. That way, I can trap them in my version of what to them might be a road trip from hell.