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11/29/2025

Today’s blog

Lynn Murphy Mark

Road trip report

Well, Lucy and Ethel, aka Rose and I, are back home after a whirlwind trip to the environs of Muncie, Indiana. We were originally scheduled to drive back this morning, but wisely listened to the various iterations of weather reports and decided to leave yesterday afternoon. 

As with any good road trip there were a couple of episodes of being lost. Once we left the highway convinced that there was a Culvers nearby where we could have lunch on the way to Indiana. There was, once we found it, but it was still in the being-built stage. We settled for Wendy’s. When we got to Indianapolis we tried to navigate the Gordian Knot of highways that go around or through the city. One of the routes we chose took us off highways and led us past cornfields on state roads. Just as well. There were traffic jams on the highways and somehow the app knew to take us off of those and guide us on quieter, less traveled roads.

When we made it to our destination, we were warmly greeted by Kim and Ralph – Rose’s family. The house looked amazingly organized for the day before plans to host 10+ people, including a six year old boy, and an unknown number of dogs. The resident dog, Tux, was excited to see us, as wound up as an 80 pound lab mix dog can get. He was especially interested in what I was wearing, mostly because he could identify Mollie-Dog’s scent.

Anyway, Kim is one of the most organized people I know. In her head she had Thanksgiving Day all planned out. Guests had been assigned to bring a number of the sides, and the promise was that they are all good cooks. Indeed they are, as evidenced by the variety and quality of the food served up on the big Day. The youngest member, 6 year old Seamus, had requested a white cake for Thanksgiving, so his mother accommodated. As it turned out, Seamus had no more interest in eating white cake by the time dessert was available. So like a 6 year old with a first-time mom.

Football was on all day. The two teams we were rooting for failed miserably, handed their behinds on a couple of platters. They were perhaps the biggest turkeys of all. I believe both of the teams are at risk of missing the playoffs, but I don’t understand the rules around this. I do think our Chiefs are out of the picture. More will be revealed.

As an only child, and a single parent getting kids every other holiday, I have been blessed with many an invitation to Thanksgiving dinners. I thoroughly enjoy watching the interactions between relatives and friends. In some cases I have been forewarned about the possibility of a Thanksgiving Day kerfuffle if politics become a subject of conversation. I always keep my views to myself, figuring that family dynamics will determine the outcome. This Thanksgiving the whole household was on the same page politically save for one member. I sat next to that person and we chatted about everything but the mess that this administration has made of our United States. 

By the end of day on Thursday, the weather reports became more and more alarming. The four of us strategized an exit plan for yesterday, a day earlier than planned. But, one thing was for sure – before we left we were going to a morning showing of “Wicked for Good”. Rose and Kim had not seen it yet, and I was looking forward to a second viewing. I’m still trying to decide which of the two Wicked movies I like best. I did make a big goof, though. When Rose needed to visit the rest room I neglected to tell her that if she went at that particular time she would miss the best song of the whole thing. (“For Good” is the one I love the most.). Oh well. My bad.

We left Yorktown, Indiana, after lunch. The plan was to visit Seamus’ house, so Rose could get a recent picture with her great-great nephew. Of course, we got lost in rural Lapel, Indiana. But we were found and a picture was achieved. 

The rest of the drive was uneventful, sort of. We did find a Culvers for dinner purposes. By that time it was my turn to drive. So I took the wheel for the last two hours of the drive. As we approached Saint Louis we each had a plan in our head for which highway to take. Our plans were markedly different. Had I been a little more assertive my plan would have won and we might have shaved a half hour off. But it’s Rose’s car and she is quite sure of herself, so we took the long way home…

I loved every minute of this trip.