Travel Day

After another tour of, yet, another school for next year, I'm headed to Penn Station to hop on an Amtrack train bound for Philadelphia. This year, our first, will be spent at my family's home where the rituals of families torturing one another, all in the name of love, will be begin in earnest tomorrow. I know every family in this country can outdo one another on the chart of dysfunction and family love. My family, I'm afraid, is no better or worse than the rest.

I am relieved to be heading home, or rather, heading away from our apartment for the next three days. It seems our neighbors, who share a wall the entire length of the apartment with us, has somehow managed to stuff four more people into their apartment. Aside from the sheer feat of such a thing, there is the mind numbing noises of kids (theirs) screaming and banging about that is making me long for the suffocating attention and adoration of my parents.

I know each part of the travel will be full of stress as everyone else along the eastern corridor heads to a train station or airport. I'm so grateful to not have to get on an airplane to get somewhere. This was the time of year when we would head to LAX for the five hour flight to DC. This year's shindig at my parents is sure to be filled with Feliniesque moments for my husband. But that is the joy of living so close to your family.