Montreal, Why Not?

A Friday afternoon road trip may not be everyone’s idea of a good time.  Or convenient enough for you to hop in the car and head out.  But it was for me and my friend Susan.  We both had appointments in the morning but could hit the road at 11 am.  We had briefly talked about a possible road trip a couple of weeks before and decided we would pencil it in.  We never fully decided or discussed it until two days before…and it was a maybe.  We checked the weather for smooth driving.  And reviewed our work commitments. 

Thursday night we talked and Susan said, “Let’s go.”  I  had been on the fence and thinking of alternative ways to spend the day from skiing to working to reading…. Could not believe my change in energy and perspective after that call.  I dug out my maps, dreamed of city life and was really looking forward to a change in scenery.

I wonder how many times we talk ourselves out of doing something that would feed our soul because we are on the fence, or we can think of other things to do or there are other practical priorities seeming more pressing.  Going to Montreal after a major snowstorm meant the roads were not totally clear and parking was difficult. We had not thought ahead to exchange money or planned exactly what to do.  An afternoon roadtrip to a foreign country did not make sense. Yet, we decided to go.

As I left work to go get Susan, a colleague asked, “Are you going for the weekend?”  I shook my head.

“Overnight then?”  “No, just for the afternoon.”  I left her puzzling with her own thoughts.

Passport in hand, I hopped in my car.  I knew the addresses of a couple of bookstores I wanted to visit (See next post.)  And there was a neat exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts.  Susan added to our list of potential activities with lunch and a possible pedicure.  We hit the road and discussed all the possibilities.  I was energized by doing something completely out of the ordinary.  We compared notes – I had ten dollars in Canadian change for the parking meters, thanks to my husband who hunts across the border and keeps the change.  She had Canadian dollar bills thanks to her Canadian born husband. With a full tank of gas, we were good to go.

 And smiling even though the trip did not make sense.