THE RETURN OF THE SUNDAY DRIVE

About thirteen miles down the road, something clicked. My soul downshifted and found the perfect rhythm for the present moment. I leaned my head back against the bucket seat, extended my hand out the open window and let the air rush through my fingers as we motored along. As I opened my palm to run my fingers through the wind, the tension of the day blew away like grains of sand and my shoulders finally sank away from my ears.

Lately I’ve found myself increasingly anxious, agitated and irritable…with this unscratchable itch niggling at the back of my mind. My dad calls it “Cabin Fever.” My husband calls it “Stir Crazy.” I think it’s all of the above.

Whatever you call it, the only aspirin I’ve found for the temporary treatment of “Stir Crazy Cabin Fever” is a good long Sunday drive- the kind that aimlessly wanders through the back country roads and highways in your local area. It doesn’t hurt that these days I get to do that in the purring cockpit of Lap Around America’s 2019 Shelby GT350, but any ole ride will do. Roll down the windows, put on some classic rock and wander those back country highways for a bit…you’ll feel better, I promise.

My dad has been a car enthusiast for as long as I can remember, and while we may not have always had “cool” cars when I was growing up, one of our weekend traditions was all pile into the car together, swing through Sonic on our way out of town for a cherry limeade, and find a country road to explore. As a young teenager, I never truly understood the desire to drive aimlessly through the countryside with no destination in mind and not much to look at but trees and curvy roads. I didn’t understand how my parents could pop a “Greatest Hits of the 70’s” cassette in the tape player, roll down the windows, not speak to each other for hours on end and yet somehow leave that car more peaceful, more centered and more bonded than a four hour conversation over a fancy dinner. I didn’t understand why my parents even needed those long Sunday drives…until recently.

Something about the last six months at home with little to nothing to do and all our old forms of entertainment closed down has left me desperately searching for an excursion or two. Since, most of the time, restaurants aren’t really an option and movies are definitely out, my husband has defaulted to one of my new favorite sentences- “Do you wanna go for a drive?” Regardless of what car we end up taking, the time of day or even what the weather is like, those tours through town and the countryside calm me, cool me and help ease the tension of the day ever so slightly. I highly recommend it…the return of the Sunday drive…better than any other remedy for Cabin Fever that I’ve found.

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