It’s awesome to be a part of a group of seven friends (the Magnificent Seven, in fact) who have been friends for almost forty years. A few years back, we decided to get together every year to play board games and generally catch up on everything. It’s been a great tradition, and this year our destination was Omaha, where Aron lives.
I figured a road trip would be a ton of fun– I find that I often enjoy the journey as much as the destination. I did the math, and it was roughly a twenty-hour drive from my house to Aron’s. The trip would take me through eastern Montana (which seems endless at times), Wyoming, South Dakota, Iowa, and finally Nebraska. With stops to eat and charge the car, I was looking at around twenty-four hours. But hey, I have the time, so on a Tuesday morning I set out.
That day I drove a total of sixteen hours. It wasn’t really all that hard; on the interstate the Tesla practically drives itself (I use “autosteer” because I don’t have “full self-driving”, which is a sham anyway). And at each charging stop, I could stretch my legs and take a catnap for the fifteen or so minutes it took. With nothing else to do that day, it was easy to just cruise down the highway jamming to some tunes and watching the scenery roll past. I pulled into a rest area around midnight, inflated the air mattress that fits in the back of the car, and went to sleep. Surprisingly, sleeping in the car wasn’t too bad.
The next day, I found something fun at one of the Tesla charging stations:
It’s a little Hot Wheels Tesla (blue like mine!) with a tag that you can scan to report where this little car has “traveled”. You take the car with you and leave it at the next charging station. What a cool idea.
On Wednesday afternoon I rolled into Aron’s driveway and greeted the gang. The first thing he showed me was his amazing custom-built gaming table. This thing is sweet. It’s felt-covered, lighted, has handy cupholders and personal trays (for all your pieces), and even converts into a “regular” table.
He had it made a few years ago, and if I played board games as much as he does, I’d consider getting something similar myself.
Although we spent time at the house, we also had a separate Airbnb rental (long story) and enjoyed hanging out there. We played a lot of games.
I discovered there was a Potbelly sandwich shop just a few miles away, and I insisted on going there for lunch. I loved the one we found in Seattle back in May. Aron’s a good sport so he joined me.
But of course the main reason we get together– and the best part for me– is just spending time together. We laugh about old times (as in, the 1980’s) and catch up on new things. We tell jokes and pick on Dirk and eat great food and taunt each other during games. What I love about this group is that even after almost four decades, we’re still the best of friends.
As always, the days wound down too quickly and we had to part company. I braced for another twenty-four hours back to Montana. This time, I cruised for eighteen hours in a single day! Naturally I stopped at Wall Drug along the way…
… not because it’s amazing (it’s not) but because there’s a Tesla charging station just down the street.
Somewhere in South Dakota I saw a staggering thunderhead rising in the distance. There had been some storm alerts on my phone, but I left it behind as I continued along the highway at 80mph.
Another night in the car at a Montana rest stop, and another few hours the next day, brought me back home. There were plenty of fond memories, and I’m excited to see these guys again next year.