Back From Kay-Bec

Salut... A week ago, I rented a car for one-week sojourn. A visit to my dad in Marston, Quebec was LONG overdue. But for the first half of my vacation, I hemmed and hawed about how to get up there. Bus(economical but damned inconvenient...and LONG.) or car-rental?(Very convenient,VERY expensive.) I opted for the car rental...Got myself a good deal but it turns out that the insurance was more expensive than the rental. SO... I promised a recently relocated friend up in Milton, VT that I'd pay him a visit. For the definition of a wrong career-move, all you had to do was look at this cautionary tale. My friend went into debt moving up here to open a new store for a mattress and bed company. They didn't pay dime ONE for his moving expenses. He was promoted to manager of this place in Burlington...No promotion, no real back-up...Long story short: They're miserable and in the red up there. I wouldn't be surprised if they headed back home. Hey, it was a wrong turn. He doesn't know what to do next regarding job, career, LIFE...I know how he feels. His wife is stuck out on the tundra being mom to little Dom and J. when he's back from school. And they're not big fans of the Yankee Stepford Stinkeye that they get up there. I got a small taste of it in a drug-store. That impolite size-up. Luckily, my job has taught me to completely ignore asshole behavior completely... I said good-bye to them, crossed the border at 89 North and used the internet's Mapquest instructions to get to Marston...(I can't say enough good things about MQ. USE it...Better than getting lost...) I spent five days with my dad and his two dogs up in the wooded north. I took in an amazing amount of Westerns on the LoneStar channel, visited some relatives, drank a bit with the old man, did some reading...all of the things that make an ideal vacation... But by the last two days, I was wishing I was back home...rather than enjoying the very valuable time with my dad...(And let's face it, he's not getting any younger...none of us are...)my mind was dazed, envisioning my beloved living room, just being HOME and NOT traveling. And I was missing Bill...and he was bummed out at home without me. It's awful, isn't it, marking off time, wishing your life away? Only when the party kicked off in high gear at my uncle's camp did I get pulled back into the present. We had a dozen people in there, drinking beer, speaking French(and a some English), smoking, and just having a good time. I don't know...I guess I'm becoming more misanthropic? Anti-social? Anyway, it was good seeing my uncles again...and I really enjoyed that last tail end of it... I left Marston at 0800 this morning...I tried to put my mind in that timeless state as I crossed the border, made it onto Route 3, and then onto the highway...It was a smooth journey...And god, am I glad to be home...GaP