If you’re reading this (and I hope you are!) I’m currently on a lengthy drive down to Atlanta, Georgia for DragonCon! I flew down to Garth’s home turf late last night so we could get an early start today, as it’s a ten hour drive. It’s an endurance test to be sure, but I’ve come to look forward to the drive as much as the convention itself.
Garth and I are lucky in that we can spend a long time in one another’s company with minimal irritation. This is mostly possible because in between these marathons of proximity we don’t see each other at all for months at a time. We remain in touch via remote games and memes, as nerds do, but otherwise these times we get to spend together are a sort of holiday for me. The DragonCon Road Trip is, in its way, like Christmas Eve on the way down and New Year’s Day on the way back.
I don’t know how we manage to do it, but for a ten hour drive it feels like it goes by quickly. Granted, in the past, I haven’t been the one doing the driving. Garth drives a stick-shift and I’m not great with those vehicles, so to avoid the risk of damaging his car I’ve been in charge of music and entertainment. This year we’re renting an automatic transmission car so I can share in some of the driving responsibilities. Which is fine by me, because I’ll still be in charge of the music while I’m behind the wheel.
The drive back is like a road trip fever dream. We’ll have spent an entire day exhibiting at the last day of the con, have gone through the process of packing up and loading the car, use the remains of our energy to drive ten hours back to Garth’s place, and I’ll be dropped off at the airport in the middle of the night to wait for my early morning flight home. The conversations that happen when two tired, aging nerds are both exhausted from four days of an immense show and hopped-up on fast food and energy shots is hard to describe… but needless to say, Garth and I learn a lot about each other.
If you’re going to be in Atlanta this weekend and can endure the insane crowds that overwhelm several hotels and full city blocks, come by and see us at DragonCon! If not, I’m sure I’ll have some memories to share here in the blog once I’ve recovered from yet another fever dream.