Car trips became unforgettable travel experiences with us three girls. I remember this unforgettable travel experience by car was done in the 1960’s by my Mother and her cousin. Mother had decided to go to a religious convention in New Mexico, but we three girls were staying in Oklahoma with our maternal grandparents. On this trip, Daddy had to stay home and work, so our Cousin Thelma was the second driver, since she was also going to the convention.
They planned to not stop anywhere overnight, either. All I remember about that trip was that it was a long trip from Illinois to Oklahoma. (I think I was less than 10). This was a time when cars were bigger. We had more leg room for us three girls. Thank Goodness! The 60’s Oldsmobile was just the right vehicle for us.
Just so you know, there was nothing such as a membership that allowed great discounts such as we have now. I seem to remember the closest to that was the AAA Club. Mother and Daddy didn’t belong to that club, so that was probably the reason that my Mother and Cousin Thelma were driving straight through!
Unforgettable Travel Experience-Car Wars In the Back Seat
Since there were five people, a week’s visit and only one trunk, the extra suitcases were behind the front seats. Mother solved our problem of footspace and put a mattress over everything to give us a place to sit. The first argument started when “the twins” (me, [Julie] and Judy) took up more room in the back seat and Joan complained. Mother had marked off our spaces already, but we were still learning to share spaces. That’s why Joan was in the middle, for when arguments did happen, Joan was in the middle to keep the “fussing and fighting” in control. She was always the one “beaten up.”
Many times, we had extra stops because Judy always needed to go to the bathroom. Every time, this also caused an argument between us twins since we both liked the side where we could see the traffic. But, Mother always knew which twin had sat behind the driver before we stopped, though. Even Cousin Thelma, who mixed up our names, knew which twin had sat where. Judy’s hair was brown, while mine was black like Joan’s. I guess that’s how she did it.
Unforgettable Travel Experience-Things They Had Us Play or Do
We had several things that they had us play or do. This kept us busy and not complaining about spacing between everyone. Back then, no CD’s or tapes for music, no cell phones, no radio (drove Mother crazy), just our minds, voices and imaginations. Since most of the songs we knew were hymns, that was what we sang. Jesus Loves Me and Deep and Wide were our quick favorites. We also sang Jesus Loves the Little Children. After we got too loud, we were told to change what we were doing. Sometimes, we were told we had to be quiet for five minutes.
Being quiet was hard, so Cousin Thelma gave us assorted LifeSavers. The first thing we all would do was to look for the pineapple color because Judy and I didn’t like them. But, we knew that Joan would trade us any color, except red, for the pineapple. Mother and Thelma’s favorite was the peppermint. So, part of the time I traded with them. Of course, we wanted a drink after the Life Savers, so we had ourselves a bathroom break and a chance to get out of the car.
Afterwards, the rural areas provided us the challenge of counting the animals that we saw. Not just the different animals we saw, but the actual number of animals in a group or herd. Really hard for us two younger kids when Mother was traveling at the 55-65 miles per hour posted during that time. This was a challenge I was good at since animals were easier to spot.
Different State Plates
One of the last games we played as we traveled was to try and see different state license plates on vehicles. (I was the last one to see any state plates because I wore thick glasses.) We also tried to keep a running list of states that we saw. The only way I could remember them was to try to alphabetize them. I wasn’t very good at that. Joan was always the best at this game. I never did figure out how she remembered what we had seen, either.
Unforgettable Travel Experience-the Car and We Made It
We finally arrived in Oklahoma, after spending two days and nights traveling from Illinois. Yes, we slept in the car as both Mother and Cousin Thelma had divided the driving sessions. They were staying overnight in Oklahoma, then going on to the convention in New Mexico. We girls got to stay with Grandmother and Grandaddy while both Mother and Cousin Thelma were gone.
I was more than ready to get out of the car and go play with Grandmother’s Boston Bull terrier, Cindy Lou. We were surprised when we discovered Cindy Lou had puppies. Grandmother insisted that we leave the dog in peace and take our suitcases inside the house. Mother and Thelma brought in the mattress, too, since Grandmother needed it to have enough beds to go around. We “had all week to visit that dog,” Grandmother said. That week’s visit is another story, though, while the return trip is also another story. 🙂
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