It’s that time of year again. Every summer, more than a quarter of the American population packs up their belongings and embarks on road trips all over the country. Whether you’re just driving down to the shore or going from one coast to another, road trips are what constitute a large part of our childhood vacation memories. Here are some of the highlights (or in some cases, pitfalls) we all experience on a road trip.
1. Packing up the car and, three hours later, realizing that you forgot something crucial (like underwear).
2. Thanking the heavens for GPS (and reminiscing on the awful days before it existed) as you set out on a five-hundred-mile drive.
3. Pit stops in sketchy and questionable bathrooms.
4. Sketchy places in general.
5. Fighting over the music on the radio, until eventually you wave the white flag and attempt to fall asleep as the first song begins.
6. Detours, detours, detours. (And don’t forget highway traffic!)
7. Getting ridiculously competitive with things like “The ABC Game” and “I’m Going on a Picnic.”
8. Someone has to pee again.
9. Alternating drivers and dreading when your turn is during rush hour.
10. Making every decision on the fly including where you eat, sleep and drive.
11. Watching your car slowly transform from a clean space to a dirty, trash-riddled vestibule.
12. Getting so tired that every road sign becomes hilarious.
13. Contorting your body fifty different ways to try to sit comfortably in the cramped space.
14. Yet another bathroom stop.
15. The moment you arrive at your final destination and sprint away from the car as quickly as possible (that is, until you realize there’s still a drive back home).
