Reflections on the Move Part 2

I was going to drop this series, thinking the move is “old news.” Except that the move is far from old…we’ve been here right at 3 weeks. It has been a true whirlwind since the decision to move was made the first weekend in May. Next week’s reflections will delve into the serious business of that process.

For now, though, a funny. One that I wish I had video for, but I was driving.

On move day, after the trucks were all loaded up and headed out on the road, Ann and I fired up our two vehicles and headed out. Well, Ann got a head start with Steven and Angie. Olivia and I were about 10 minutes behind her. We had stayed and done the final locking up and one last sweep of the garage.

As we were driving up Park Avenue in Stuttgart, I noticed a semi-truck being towed ahead of us. This was just the cab, and it was pointed backwards. Picture this: the tow truck had elevated the rear wheels of the cab, so the front wheels were on the ground. And the hood was pointed the opposite direction of its travel.

Got that picture? It looks almost like the truck is backing down Park at a high rate of speed. It’s rate of speed, though, was about 15 MPH below the speed limit.

Like any quick thinking American, I grabbed my cell phone. I handed it to Olivia and told her to send someone a Facebook message for me. We are slow adopters of tech, so she’s not a high-speed texter. It also takes all of her attention.

While she is focused on sending the message, I weave my way through traffic. She’s still head down, looking at the screen.

I get in the lane behind the truck, there are no cars between me and the towed vehicle. I push the gas pedal to the floor…which doesn’t do much, because Ann’s got the Durango and I’ve got the Caravan, but we start closing the gap. Quickly.

So I reach over, grab Olivia’s arm, and gasp.

She then looks up….and screams.

This was a great moment of Father-Daughter bonding.