/ General
On the Road
I'm at lunch with my friend yesterday and she tells me she's going on a road trip across the States with a guy who may loosely be described as her boyfriend. Cool I think, but then I hear the rest of the story and I think who is this lunatic I'm having lunch with. It turns out she's known him for "four fun-filled days" (that's a quote!), and that was all of three months ago! They met at a wedding! They've been talking on the phone every day since and tomorrow she's off to meet him in NY where they'll get in a car (a Subaru!) and drive across the country.
Now this is surely the stuff of a great romantic comedy and I can't wait to hear how it turns out. Because if this does not end in complete and total disaster, with one or the other hitchhiking back to New York alone, they should absolutely get married when they reach the west coast. Any two people who can still stand each other after having spent two weeks sardined together in a car have a better shot than most at making a marriage work.
Indeed, something like this ought to be a requirement to the state granting a marriage licence. Here they ask for family documentation and blood tests but it's all dispensed with very quickly and easily. A driver's licence requires vastly more preparation and expense than a marriage certificate. Why not a compatibility requirement for marriage?
I'm thinking (uh oh!) the State should provide some sort of a room that locks from the outside and has no tv, alcohol, or other drugs with which to make the time pass in a blur. We'll call it the Pre-Nup Chamber, and our marriage candidates would spend say, 28 days, locked inside with no entertainment but each other. When they emerge we'll call them married. Or not.
By the way, I love car road trips. It's my favourite way to travel. A road trip across North America would rank at the top of my ideal holiday destinations. My friend is starting in NY and will end up on the West Coast somewhere in two or three weeks. If you've got any route suggestions or must-see stops, leave them in the comments below.