After being rudely awakened by D, we begrudgingly got up. I actually wasn't doing too terrible after the few hours of sleep, with the exception of the dry contact eyes that felt like a cross between rough sandpaper and glue.
We went inside the truck stop and used the bathroom. D was already complaining about her $8.00 shower and her $2.50 soap purchase. Since we were awake, I was ready to leave. I don't drink coffee and if I had to be up, I might as well be on the road. That however wasn't the consensus and I meandered around the truck stop for a while browsing the sales items while others ate food or drank coffee. About 1.5 hours later, we finally pulled out of the truck stop. Needless to say, I wasn't the happiest of campers, I would have preferred to sleep and be woken up a few minutes before leaving. At this point I have no idea what time it was, but it was still dark out and I'm guessing it was well before 7:00a.m.
Due to the large loads that we were carrying, we had to stop about every 200 miles. This was equivalent to about 3.5-4 hours. Dad was getting more and more tired. He managed to blow through a toll, despite the two miles of signs indicating the upcoming toll. He also barrelled over a construction cone. At one point, JC got out and took over the RV while I drove the U-haul and was accompanied by the 16-year old nephew. Personally I was fine with driving solo, but no one else seemed to think that was a good idea. The nephew kept trying to figure out what time we were going to get home the following day, saying that we only needed to stop for a couple hours again to get home around noon on Sunday. What? Like mother like son, clearly.
We stopped for a late breakfast at about 11:45a.m. (2:45p.m. Michigan time). The restaurant came with high recommendations of a breakfast buffet. D and the RV dawdled at the gas station for almost 1/2 an hour and finally got to the restaurant claiming that the tire pressures were down over 20#'s. Breakfast stopped being served at 11:00a.m., so D had to gripe about not eating them. She finally settled on a grilled cheese.
JC and I were the first to arrive at the restaurant. We flagged down his parents and helped them with the parking situation. We went into the restaurant to grab a table. I specifically asked that grandma sit next to mom and she agreed; however, when grandma arrived she choose to sit next to me. Lucky me.
Clearly I'm not an assaultive type of person, but again, a short fuse on little sleep I have to admit is highly probable. I was pretty sure I knew what was best for grandma and that was to sit as far away from me as possible; however, that seemed to be the general theme: no one wanted to be near grandma.
I did my best to converse with grandma. She of course was clearly repetitive and failed to listen after questions. She asked four times what the soup was, "Vegetable Beef". Of course my reiterating it to her wasn't good enough and she asked the waitress a handful more times. Then she went on about how she can't have peppers and are there peppers in the soup. The waitress didn't understand and I must have told grandma three times, if not more, yes grandma, peppers are vegetables and they are in the Vegetable Beef soup. Grandma finally opted to not get the soup and was glad that she could order from the senior menu. Mom on the other hand, not so fortunate and I had to hear about it six times that she wasn't eligible for the 65 and older but in Arizona they are eligible at 62 and they better find restaurants in Michigan that the senior age is 62, and...and...and...as I tried hard to let the dribble drone on and out.
Meanwhile I tried to make small talk with grandma. She made some comment about Ohio and I mentioned, "Oh, so you aren't a fan of Ohio?" Apparently that must have been a sore subject as I received a gentle elbow to the ribs from JC. We did manage to finish our lunch without incident. I didn't even try to poison grandma once.
Back on the road, we ventured onward. D was getting better at stating we had to slow down as dad was having difficulties and then she would drive ahead of us and push 70mph. Clearly the vehicles traveled best between 60-65mph. but D claimed she had to "make up time" when she could, regardless of anyone else.
The ride was pretty boring. I would have thought JC and I would have shared many stories and really enhanced our relationship. This truly wasn't the case. When I drove, I felt even more isolated as he sat far off against the window and he often dozed off. Conversation was very minimal. When he drove, I sat in the middle trying to encourage conversation or to get him anything he needed to be comfortable. I couldn't sleep as a passenger. I did have a few phone conversations to help pass the time.
Tensions were getting higher as we became more fatigued. The ride couldn't end soon enough. Dad was needing more and more rest. D was more and more irritable and couldn't get away from the family quick enough.
At our dinner stop, I told JC that I wanted to find a hotel for the night. Clearly I wasn't about to attempt to "sleep" in the RV again. I really am considerate and wanted grandma and her mutt to live! I used the GPS, which for the most part was pretty good although some of the gas stations had since gone out of business. I researched the map and then the GPS looking for a gas station/truck stop with a nearby hotel. The GPS listed a Budget Deluxe Motel in Rolla, Missouri with a nearby gas station. I called the hotel to discuss rates and availability and learned that a reservation wasn't needed and the rate was $43.00. I was pretty positive that this wasn't going to be a great hotel, but something away from grandma would be heaven, even if for half a dozen hours! I also knew that it could be like the roach motel for the rate and the fact that there would be availability on a Saturday evening without a reservation, but I didn't care.
JC didn't seem to want to disclose to his family that we would be getting a hotel room. I assumed that they would all crash in the RV again. JC did tell his sister D at the stop that we had planned on staying in a hotel. She didn't seem like it was that big of a deal, especially given her spitting water $8.00 shower of the morning.
The exit before our exit was scattered with name brand hotels: Holiday Inn, Hampton, etc. Hotels I would have loved to stay at if we were actually going to be there for any duration. But seeing that I was the one forking over the bill for a few hours of silence and convenience, I wasn't going to go for the high dollar while the family struggled in the parking lot! I also confirmed that there was ample parking for our vehicles at the hotel behind the gas station.
The hotel of course was nothing that I would venture back to. The front desk closed at midnight and the attendant was standing outside smoking, watching us across the parking lot getting gas. It was just after 11:00p.m. Missouri time. We had traveled approximately 1360 miles since leaving the morning before and had been traveling for about 32 hours. I walked over to the hotel to check in while JC pumped gas. I have to say that the man was a tad bit creepy commenting on my sexy phone voice and my good looks - obviously creepy since I had been traveling for 32 hours without a shower!
I was impressed that the $43.00 was the final price, all taxes and fees included. The room was on the main level, there actually was a second story as well. I checked out the room, which offered two queen beds, a small bathroom, refrigerator, t.v., and microwave. More than we needed!
I went back to the parking lot where I encountered D. She went on to say that if we left in three hours we could arrive back home by 1:30p.m. on Sunday, according to her GPS (mind you the GPS doesn't include stops!). I told D that we needed sleep and that there wasn't a reason that we needed to get home that early. She started yelling at me about her having priorities. I told her that I had priorities as well, but that the plan had been to arrive home Sunday evening and that we needed sleep. She yelled that she had gotten sleep either and that they weren't getting a hotel room. I said that was fine, but that JC and I needed sleep. I said that the couple hours of sleep wasn't enough and that JC and I didn't need to get up as early as the rest of them. I went on to say, "We dicked around this morning for 1.5 hours before we left. JC and I could have gotten up ten minutes before we left." Apparently that wasn't the right wording for this irate sister. She went on to yell at me that SHE didn't dick around. I said that I didn't say that it was her, but that it took that long for us to leave. She said that JC didn't drive the last several hours and he should be fine to drive, which I said that he wasn't. She then went on to yell at me, "Well, I didn't invite you on this trip!" And with that, she stormed off into the gas station with her mother in tow.
I got into the passenger seat of the U-haul and sat there. I observed D glaring at me from the station window. I called JN to vent about what had just happened. At this point I was in near tears. I really can be emotional and the stress of JC's family and lack of sleep had really marked it's toll on me. I just wanted some peace and silence and sleep. Pushing everyone to their limits wasn't benefiting anyone and I knew that no matter how much we all wanted to end this road trip, to do it safely we needed to stop and rest for many hours. JC got into the U-haul and I hung up with JN to tell him what had transpired with his sister. I stayed in the vehicle while he got out to talk to the family.
We then parked the U-haul, grabbed our suitcases and went to the room. I was clearly looking forward to a shower and rest. The room didn't have a blow dryer, but I didn't care, it had hot water and a towel and that was good enough for me. I truly am not high maintenance! JC left the room to visit with his dad. Oh and I forgot to mention that when we were walking to the hotel, whom happened to be at the registration desk? Mom and grandma!
JC came back and said that everyone was getting a room. What? Why would they spend the money to get a room when they had the RV? I could only imagine the bitching of the room from the family. Wouldn't they just stay in the comforts of their own? How did I know that I would be responsible for their adventure and likely misfortune? I tried not to worry about it, as it was about my shower and my sleep. Everyone agreed that we would get up at 6:00a.m. Six hours of solitude with JC.
Solitude, Silence and Sleep. Heaven here I come.
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