Top 7 Confessions from a Traveling Bookaholic – Part One

Traveling is exciting, but for those who are avid book lovers like me, it can be hard to be on the road for long periods of time. Since we are in the process of moving across country on a PCS, (literally one coast to the other),  I am finding that I have less and less time to read. So I will be completely honest with ya’ll here. I have tried audio books, but if you do not find that PERFECT reader, then you are going to get bored! I found myself drifting off to sleep behind the wheel while trying to enjoy a book that I had been wanting to read for a long time. After some tried and true testing, I have figured out that some readers are not as good as others. Some of those voices can simply lull one to a peaceful dozing state. Once you find that one reader who can keep your attention and make the book as exciting as the voices in your head, KEEP THEM! Those readers can be few and far between, but once you find that one you like, then you can find more books by them, and keep the miles rolling by.

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So I have been doing some hard thinking while in the car, and attempting to find a way to read while driving. I DO NOT recommend this however, as police officers tend to not be as understanding of your book addiction as other book lovers might! I have given this sad state a lot of thought. I have tried just about everything I can think of to still get my reading in while on the road, even asking my son to read to me as we were in the car. That got old really fast as he kept asking questions, which then lead to a story that he remembered that he needed to tell me.

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Below, I have listed 7 of my confessions from our road trip. This list is still in revision, as I still have another week in the car before we reach our final destination.  I am sure that my husband will NOT be amused by some of these. However, the truth will out!

1. Traveling and seeing new places can be exciting, but those Scottish highlands that are calling to you from the folds of a book are even more exciting right now. This can be classified as cruel and unusual punishment.
2. Frequent “bathroom breaks” may be needed. If you are super sneaky and have a decent sized bag, you can slip a book in there and grab about five minutes of reading before your spouse figures out what you are really doing.
3. Traveling with small children in the car ensures that you get decent break times, as they are NOT fast when it comes to doing anything! You can sneak in a few pages while they are in the bathroom or trying to decide which snack they are going to need for the next couple of hours in the car.
4. Reading while pumping gas IS acceptable. It just means that you can ignore everything going on around you for a few minutes.
5. When you stop for the night in a hotel, ensure that there is proper lighting for reading. Acceptable reading places are bathtub, hot tub (one of my favorites), or sitting outside (freezing) while you read through a couple of chapters before loss of limb from frostbite forces you inside to warm up and grab some sleep before starting out the next day driving.
6. Your spouse does not consider book stores acceptable stopping places for a break. I have had to cast many longing views out my window as we travel past. This is beyond mean. There was nothing in the marriage contract that stated I would not buy books during a move. You would think after ten years of marriage that book buying would be understood by now and accepted. It isn’t.
7. Stopping to see family while traveling will enable more reading time, however, they might want to actually see more of your face than the tops of your eyebrows and hairline. One way to get around this is to have a book on your phone that you can surreptitiously look down on while under the guise of checking the weather, email, etc. Otherwise, you have to wait until everyone goes to bed, claim the couch as your own and read your heart out!

We are thankfully on a hold over for a few days. We were all tired of seeing the inside of the car, and I think there might have been mutiny if reading was not included at some point. As we are both driving, it makes finding time to read even harder. If I was a passenger, then I could have whipped through several books by now. Sigh.. the joys of moving! I just have to remember that once we are out of the car for good, that there will be time for reading again!

But for now, I am off to try and find some decent readers on audio books. Stay tuned! Happy Reading!

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