And I’ve Had Quite a Few
By Jeff Salter
This week we’re blogging about vacation misadventures (vacations gone wrong). Gosh, where to start?
As a kid, my family vacations could be described as days of tedium followed by mere hours of enjoyment — but the enjoyment was terrific.
My family never traveled EXACTLY like this, but with five people (and luggage) crammed into a VW Beetle for a trip from Louisiana to California (and back)… it felt like this.
As an adult, I never cared for vacations… for a number of reasons.
One: I was usually busy at work anyway… and knew I could later take the cash (when I departed for either another job or eventual retirement) for any un-used days. That was money in the bank.
Two: My wife and kids usually preferred to go visit my in-laws than to travel to some exotic location that we couldn’t afford to visit anyway. As much as I loved my in-laws, I didn’t want to spend my vacation residing with them because I’d usually end up with a project like helping them paint their house.
Three: Vacations were (and are) expensive and my young family seldom had a dollar bill to spare.
All that said, I still have numerous memories of vacation mishaps. I have company this week so I’m not sure I can focus my brain on any new recollections of episodes, but I do have a list of former blogs on this general subject.
So let’s begin with one of the most notable:
Broke down after a sand storm…
…and left in the desert. This one occurred when I was in eighth grade… and was quite an adventure in the days before cell phones and GPS.
https://fourfoxesonehound.wordpress.com/2012/06/21/broke-down-and-left-in-the-desert/
The strain of a train is a pain
Another standout – decades later than the one above – is this condensation of my account of my first rail travel as an adult.
https://fourfoxesonehound.wordpress.com/2012/08/15/the-strain-of-a-train-is-a-pain/
Our very first family vacation…
…when I was in second grade. This wasn’t a trip of misadventures, per se, but when you cram a family of five (and luggage) in to a VW Beetle and drive from Louisiana to California (and back)… you have to expect a certain degree of discomfort. The whole long way.
https://fourfoxesonehound.wordpress.com/2012/08/23/drive-to-disneyland-and-turn-right/
I can’t leave the topic of family vacations without listing some of the numerous parks we visited:
https://fourfoxesonehound.wordpress.com/2016/08/18/parks-of-every-variety/
Question:
Have YOU had any vacation misadventures?
[JLS # 395]
Angela Schroeder
Patricia Kiyono
Elaine Cantrell
Jeff Salter
Joselyn
Tonette Joyce
Four Foxes, One Hound 
You’ve had your share of vacation adventures for sure! I’d hate to be stuck in that desert with the family separated. Still, now that it’s over I bet you look back on it with a certain nostalgia.
LikeLiked by 1 person
it’s the kind of experience you look back on with a sense of satisfaction that you survived without any additional turmoil or mishap… but you’re hopeful will never occur to you again.
LikeLike
I laughed out loud about the Beetle. Joe-the-Husband had one as a young man.He was the most family-minded sibling, the 3rd of 15. He once showed up once for a date with four of the youngest in the back seat. Friends told us that he’d drive out to his college with brothers to play touch football, and it was like the clown car at the circus , with brothers climbing and climbing out of the VW.
LikeLiked by 1 person
for their tiny exterior size, those early VW Beetles actually held a LOT of people and luggage. As your husband’s family likely did, when we were younger, we took turns in that “way back” pocket behind the rear seat… directly beneath the rear window.
LikeLike
I think you and my hubby would get along well. He tells me he’s had misadventures that have led him to the conclusion that he’s better off in his recliner. Once I asked him if he’d come to Europe with me if I brought his recliner and TV along, and he laughed at me. That being said, I would be somewhat annoyed with some of these events, too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Funny how some marriages have one spouse who LOVES to be constantly on the go… and the other is a homebody who can’t be blasted out of that county without dynamite.
I marvel at couples who appear to be equally enthused about gadding about.
LikeLiked by 1 person
If your wife ever needs a travel companion, have her contact me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: Occupy the Travel Time | Four Foxes, One Hound