animal-house_cc    Last week, I went on a college visiting trip with my daughter. We covered 1,300 plus miles in just over 100 hours with our longest single stint in the car being about 7 hours. One universal truth about road trips is that fellow travelers need to be compatible. Twenty minutes with someone who is insufferable can feel like a lifetime even when you have the ability to walk away from that individual.  Try 2 -3 consecutive hours within the confines of “mid-size” rental car. Like I said compatibility rules.

     Lucy Gordon is nothing if not compatible. She goes along to get along. She is blessed with the ability to carry on a conversation and is no slouch in holding up her end of it. She understands the golden rule of road trippin’ that stops require a minimum 2 hours between pit stops or preferably at least 150 miles traveled. And boy, does she know her Country Music!

     See that’s what I love about road trips. You learn something about your travel mate. Yeah, I knew Lucy Gordon enjoyed music, since I’ve had to reprimand her many mornings about her music blaring while she got ready for school. I even knew she liked Country Music, but what I found out on our sojourn was that she LOVES Country Music. Now combine that particular music love with a trip through Southwest Virginia and into Tennessee where any spin on the AM/FM dial turns up yet one more C&W station and you’ll realize we had something special going on! Did you know there are “oldies” stations for Country Music?

     When I examine my closest friendships, most of them date to my college years. I have to believe that much of this lasting foundation was built in endless hours we spent on our road trips together. I sure am glad that Lucy Gordon and I had this road trip together.