What Happened To Our Summer?

Previously I wrote about trying to figure out where my wife and I were going to take our son this summer. Many of the plans mentioned in that post have been solidified but it still only reveals one small aspect of our summer scheduling. I wish it were that simple but that is simply not the reality in which we live. There are many other factors playing into the rearranging of days, times, projects, vacations, and obligations that many of us have to juggle during this time of the year.

In addition to our desire to escape for a day or two at a time we also have many other things scribbled into the small grids that summarize our season. The next group that we have to account for are the various projects that we are having completed at the house over the next couple of months. These include the small items like garage doors, landscaping (i.e. tree removal), and interior door installation. And then there are the not so small projects that I hope to see completed like the HVAC overhaul as well as deck and porch construction. All of these take a lot of time and, right now are a bit in flux with regard to timing which is why we need to keep a few spots open.

Next are the family events that round out the calendar and that have been scheduled for months. This doesn’t just include the picnics in August but also the times when we need to schedule times to get together with family. There are so many things happening at this moment that it has become necessary to schedule these weekends. Of course, there are also a few times, granted they are few and far between, that we have scheduled to meet up with friends as well.

Day trips and local events have also become important in our schedule as we want to take the time to explore the communities around our home and also find different places for us to visit on a regular basis. Finally, there are the obligations that we have both during the week and on the weekends that we have little flexibility in scheduling. Did I mention that we need to maintain our home and property too… yeah, that requires allocation of a few weekends. So, at this point, it is surprising to find that there really isn’t a great deal of free space remaining on the calendar and the few open weekends that do exist are going to be welcomed as a respite from the chaos of the season. That is, of course, if they don’t get filled up with some unavoidable occurrence between now and then.

Less Than Some, More Than Others

Having paid closer attention to the number of miles that I accumulate over the year, it is a bit staggering to think about all of the driving that I have done over the past year. Given recent circumstances, it is difficult to determine a truly accurate number but I still have a good sense about how many miles I can expect to put on the new car. This is especially true given the fact that I have already tallied about 2,500 miles over the first nearly three weeks since I picked it up. Of course, that includes some of the usual trips just to get acquainted with the car during the first week.

For someone who used to put 10,000 miles or less on a car annually, the numbers are pretty surprising when I sit down and calculate my travel from the past year. Just between the miles that I put on the Jeep (22,500/ 9 months) and those that I have put on the Mercedes to this point (2,500 / 3 weeks), I can already expect to see approximately 25,000 miles annually. Add in the miles that I put on the rental cars over the month and a half of use (3,000) and the additional miles that we put on my wife’s car over the past year during family trips and while driving the rentals (4,000) and the total miles over this past year jumps up to 32,000. Yes, this pretty much ensures that I will be replacing my car every three years to keep from driving beyond the warranty.

To put that total in perspective, I drive enough miles annually to travel around the Earth along the equator (24,900 miles), complete a cross country trip across the United States and back (2,800 miles each way), and I would still have 1,500 miles remaining in case I wanted to take a detour to two. Of course, that adventure would be much more interesting than the vast majority of the miles that I have driven this past year as the bulk of my total (over 25,000 miles) consists of my daily commute to and from the office during the week. Especially given recent events, this is not a fun nor interesting part of my year behind the wheel.

In fact, I remember more about those other 7,000 miles than I do about my time commuting. In addition to the 2,500 miles that we put on my wife’s car exploring Virginia last summer, we also put some miles behind us driving over the Pittsburgh, Hershey, and a few day trips here and there. It was also enjoyable (and highly annoying) driving up, down, and across different streets during our prolonged home search. I would like to experience more miles exploring this year. Not as many as a couple of years ago when we traveled all over the Commonwealth (and then some) but somewhere in the middle. Of course, it helps that our son enjoys exploring new places and doesn’t mind (too much) being on the road.

How ‘Bout Them Apples!

That's right, this has nothing to do with "Good Will Hunting"!

In addition to making significant progress on our baby registry this past weekend we also did a little exploring. With a beautiful fall day taking hold of our sense and the crisp air relaxing our lungs and our minds, we heading on the road with few plans as to where we would end up. Once the traffic cleared and we broke the bounds of the urban sprawl, we made our way down the highway watching the burning colors of the trees float past our windows.

It was about an hour before we broke the spell of the mesmerizing autumn landscape and took the next exit off the highway. Weaving back and forth across the scenery and over the ebb and flow of the country roads, it didn’t take long before we found ourselves a little lost and turning to our phone for advice. With the windows down the scents of the season eased what could have been a frustrating detour and before we knew it we were back on a road that we recognized (albeit still unfamiliar).

A few quick turns later and we found ourselves slowing to a gentle coast as we watched families cross the road and into an orchard. We figured it was as good a time as any to stop for a while, stretch our legs, and see if there were any fresh delectable items that we wouldn’t mind taking home with us. After finding one of the few parking spaces still available, it didn’t take long before we were surrounded by apples, pumpkins, and other produce sourced from just a few yards from where we were standing.

The autumn harvest surrounded us offering solace as the people flowed across the aisles of fruits and vegetables like a raging tide which would sweep you away if you didn’t keep your feet firmly planted. Seeing all the bright colors and their trees of origin in the distance, we couldn’t help but pick up a pint of apples for the road. It had been too long for both of us since we had been to an orchard and it didn’t take more than one bite to ensure that this would be a frequent occurrence especially once the baby is able to enjoy the sights, smells, and tastes of the season.

The stop is just what we needed… a time to take a break not just from the road but from the realities that were waiting for us upon our return. And we found out that many of these trips are no longer just for us but a means of finding places and experiences that we want to share with our son in the future. I guess you can add one more stop to that growing list.