Traveling Together
Traveling together to the Spoleto Festival
in Charleston, S.C.
copyright 2006 Tom Blake
A good way to test a new midlife dating relationship is go traveling together. My partner Greta and I have been in a midlife dating relationship for just over a year.
Greta and I went traveling together to South Carolina to visit her daughter Tammi and her family and to attend the Spoleto Festival--a fine-arts event that takes place each June in historic Charleston.
In our midlife dating relationship, we split nearly all expenses. We both work and each of us have mortgages and other financial obligations. We each paid for our own Orange County – Atlanta airplane tickets and split the rental car costs.
On our first morning in South Carolina, Greta and Tammi went for a massage while I opted to stay at the house.
“Will you be OK if we leave for two hours?” Greta asked.
Trip lesson one: Be self-sufficient. Entertain yourself. Besides, it’s best if you aren’t together every waking moment. I was happy to dive into John Grisham’s new book, “The Testament.” While reading, I pictured them enjoying their rub downs. Little did I know that they were at the bottom of a ditch in the daughter’s white BMW with gas pouring out of a ruptured tank and oil oozing from a busted oil pan.
Tammi took life-saving evasive action to avoid a head-on collision, which happened 50 feet in front of them and resulted in a fatality. Neither Greta nor Tammi was hurt. Trip lesson two: Enjoy and appreciate each other in your midlife dating relationship. Life can change oh-so quickly, when traveling together or when apart.
Singing group Hootie and the Blowfish are enormously popular in their native South Carolina. We went to their concert at the state fair, near Clemson. Cars were lined up in single file for three miles. It took forever to get to the parking lot. When Hootie came on stage, he began by saying, “Two words.” And then he repeated, “Two words.” And then he said, “Lou Holtz.”
What Hootie was reminding Clemson football fans was that Lou Holtz was the new football coach at bitter rival USC—the University of South Carolina (Hootie's alma mater). I guess you have to love college football, which I do, to appreciate how cool that was. I’m not sure if Coach Holtz won any games that first year at USC.
At the Spoleto Festival, we went to a play and an afternoon chamber music concert, which Greta loved. I fell asleep a dozen times, chamber music isn't my bag. But then I remembered the football and basketball games she had sat through patiently with me in our midlife dating relationship.
Walking through the streets of Charleston is a historical treasure hunt. The old mansions are restored beautifully. Trip lesson three: Be flexible. When traveling together, do things your partner likes, even if interests are different.
South Carolina is humid. We pulled into a Burger King. I wanted the biggest iced tea they carried. Greta bought me a 55-ounce monster. I took a huge gulp and gagged. Iced tea in South Carolina is sweetened with about five pounds of sugar per glass. Greta didn’t know. Trip lesson four: Don’t blame your mate for something he or she doesn’t realize because you are in a strange or different city, state or country.
We stretched our last vacation day to the limit by driving 145 miles from Charleston to Savannah, Ga., with a quick side trip to Hilton Head Island, SC, thrown in. Oh my, the pecan pie in Savannah. Then, we hurried another 250 miles to the Atlanta Airport in less than four hours to barely catch our plane. Trip lesson five: When traveling together, don’t wait until the airport to fill the rental car gas tank. We ran out of time, returning the car with a quarter tank. Refueling charge: $41.13. Estimated cost had we done it: $13.50.
“Don’t worry about the cost of the gas,” she said, “you got us here safely and on time.” I appreciated her comment. She always looks on the bright side. She could have gotten on my case for not stopping earlier and not planning better.
We boarded the plane, holding hands, still talking, still happy. We had had a fun time traveling together. Our midlife dating relationship had survived a good test. I thanked the heavens that Greta and her daughter had not been injured in the accident.
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