There Is Rarely A Perfect Time

 

The goal

Our trip to Florida is rapidly approaching.

I sort of agonized over picking the dates to go.

We flew away on Mar 8 last year and had a great trip. It was the chance to introduce Sean to the Gulf Coast of Florida. 

It served as an inspiration to come back and, so long as Kris and Lori want us there, to make it a regular thing.

Not long after we got home last year, we began talking about going back.

But this time, Sean wanted us to drive.

He was into driving last year but I pushed for us to fly.

In the end, it didn't have anything to do with a fear of flying or anything like that. If anything, it was that he didn't like the airport process.

I'm right there with him on that. Westchester Airport was overcrowded that Wednesday morning.

But, in truth, I think Sean wanted to know what this drive was all about. He's heard me talk about it so many times since my family never flew to Florida.

He's an outstanding driving companion even if he mostly keeps to himself under his headphones.

He's driving to North Carolina many times with me. In the end, he wanted to complete the drive to Tampa Bay.

I think he felt it might allow him to honor -- and feel closer to -- my parents.

He loves traditions and that's a lot of what this is steeped in.

But, to be honest, I suppose we should have scheduled this for mid-February. We normally drove to Florida over the mid-winter break which was a sweet spot.

Among the many things I loved about those days was getting in the car in pitch black on a freezing cold morning in New York.

By the end of that day, we were in the Carolinas, shedding coats and feeling more comfortable. A day or two later, we were in the warmth of Florida.

In this case, the temperature is likely to be in high 40s or low 50s when we drive away. Oh, it will still be great but just different.

My concern was making sure I didn't miss work while I was away but that hasn't quite worked. 

This week might have worked, I suppose. Even then I would have missed last night's Luadlowe/Waterford game and Friday night's FCIAC Freshman All-Star Games.

There was no stretch in February when I wouldn't have missed work, so I remained committed to being at all of the Brunswick events.

Their winter schedule was set to be completed on March 2. This year, I kept the calendar open to have some cushion for any other jobs.

And that all turned out to be prophetic.

And here we are.

So we'll revisit it again next year, based on the availability of when we can all make the dates work.

For the record, I haven't packed yet.

At least, not completely.