Less tech, more bonding: An ode to old-school road trips
As mealtimes approached, we all watched for billboards advertising restaurants. Bruce could recognize letters but hadn’t grasped the principles of reading and would announce proudly, “G-A-S — Eat!” Since miners, loggers and fishermen were the mainstay of the Upper Peninsula’s economy then, many of the “restaurants” were bars, and my father checked to make sure they included respectable dining areas. (And, I now suspect, checked the prices against the family budget.) Once seated at a table — with left-handed Bruce on the correct corner — we entertained Bruce, talked about what we had seen and planned the rest of the day. Watching, I learned to read a map. After we ate, Dad paid the bill while the rest of us went out to cool out the car if we hadn’t found a shade tree to park under. (Remember, no air conditioning.)
