Chapter 8

For the next few weeks, it was just as Pat had warned me. Lots of driving and not a lot of excitement. On Monday, Carol and her father picked us up to bring us to the empty truck. While Pat was on the phone with Clyde, I pulled Carol aside for a goodbye hug.

“I really wish I had met you at my school or some other way because I think it would be awesome to have you as a close friend.”

“I know. You’re so sweet and I envy you being brave like this. I promise not to spill the beans for a while, at least until the end of the summer when you’re back home.” We embraced. “And I think you would have been a great cheerleader!”

She then asked if it would be okay to see the inside of the truck. Pat nodded that would be fine as he was doing paperwork. She commented on how complicated all the shifters and dials and other things looked. “Trust me, I watch him and his feet are almost dancing on the pedals as he works the gears. I couldn’t do it. And yes, in the back is where we sleep.” She nodded and said it looked ‘cozy’ back there. “Very!” I popped the lid on a supply bin and pulled out a brand new company shirt. “You can wear this and remember the weekend,” I smiled. “Be the envy of your friends! A fashionista!”

“Thanks! Oh, I made dad stop so I could get a few copies for you.” It seems that there was a small community newspaper that came out on Monday and Thursday each week. The focus of the issue was the weekend celebrations and there were lots of pictures. There on page 4, was a picture of the Lady Mavericks, posing in uniform with their blue and white poms on the ground in front of the girls sitting on the grass. The rest of the girls were behind them, with me standing left of center in the back. You couldn’t see my shorts, so I really did look like I was part of the cheer squad. Thankfully, no names were listed.

“This is so cool! Thanks!” We giggled and embraced. Soon we were on the road, and headed to Ohio.

I’m not sure how he managed to do it, but Clyde had us busy going back and forth and up and down the states, with never more than a day of downtime. At one point, Pat tucked a copy of the newspaper into an oversized document envelope and mailed it home to his sister and nieces. When we called them the following week, Nancy was all excited about me and the cheerleaders. I just said that they were really nice, and it might be something she could look into when school started.

To avoid something called ‘highway hypnosis’ (as in you’re so bored that you get distracted, and being distracted in a big truck is NOT a good thing!), we talked, we sang with the radio, played the license plate game. And at one point at a truck stop we bought several audio books on cassette. Some woman named Erma Bombeck told us how “The grass is always greener over the septic tank” and there were times I was laughing so hard I was sure I would pee myself! Or we would follow along as Sherlock Holmes and his friend, Dr. Watson, went about helping Scotland Yard solve mysteries. At first, Pat was reluctant to get “There and Back Again (The Hobbit).” He said he tried reading it in school but never thought much of it. However, listening to it as we traveled, was a great way to pass the time and miles.

“No, we are not stopping for second breakfast!”

I also had my first encounter with a “Lot Lizard”. In case you are wondering what that is, they are women (and to my astonishment, sometimes men) who will look for a customer willing to “pay for play” if you catch my meaning. We had just dropped off a load of textbooks for a parochial school in Alabama, and were stopping for the night. We hit the showers at a truck stop and were going to eat dinner and sleep late in the morning. Had there been a motel nearby, we would have gone there instead.

I guess I took a little longer than usual in the shower, because I needed to wash extra. Girl stuff, once a month, like clockwork. I was in the lobby of the diner, waiting, and I saw Pat returning from putting his stuff in the truck. As he was headed towards me, some female (can’t call her a ‘lady’ or anything polite) slithers up alongside of him with a big fake smile on her face and by her posture, she is flirting and making an offer. She touches his bicep and puts a finger to her lips, trying to be coy. Clothes? Well, I guess they qualified. Shorts that were so snug and short they looked more like panties with the pockets dangling from under the frayed denim and a pair of cheap heels. The top? I have bras that cover more.

Pat was shaking his head and trying to be polite, but she wasn’t taking the hint and kept up with him as he made his way to the door (and me!).

“Hi, honey! Who’s your friend?” I took his hand and kissed his cheek.

“Don’t know. We weren’t properly introduced.”

I fixed skankzilla with a hard look. “He is quite the catch, but I caught him. Run along now!”

“What? You?” she sputtered. “You’re just a kid! Where did he find you? Middle school?” Her posture was getting aggressive.

“Not your concern,” I smiled. “But what IS your concern is the patrol car out in the main lot.”

She looked outside and then muttered something that I couldn’t really understand. But she left.

We were eating and Pat was looking at me, intently. “So, you caught me?”

I grabbed one of his onion rings off the plate and smiled. “Yup!”

It was the end of July and we found ourselves not far from Nashville. Clyde, perhaps in a moment of understanding, told us that there would be no work for the next two weeks. This would allow us to do whatever we wanted and relax. And sadly, give Pat enough time to get me home to Brunswick. (We had clued him in on what was happening, right after the situation with the New Jersey State Troopers.) Summer was coming to an end soon, or at least the part where I didn’t have to be in school.

We parked the truck in a secured long term lot. Pat paid us up for a week, because we were not sure just how many days we would need. If we left early? Oh well, the parking place kept the money. A short distance from there was a car rental agency. Again, we rented a car for a week, and could return it at any time, even with a night time drop off. The only thing is that because I was under 21, I wasn’t allowed to drive the car, due to insurance reasons. Melody had a license, but I didn’t. And she was 19. Mom had given me a few driving lessons, but I wasn’t all that good behind the wheel, yet.

We checked into a really nice hotel. Not a questionable motel, like some of the other places we had stayed. No, this was a place that had king sized beds, room service with a restaurant and salon down on the main floor for the guests to enjoy. There was even a pool!

“Are you sure about this?” I was looking around. It was like a palace, and I had never seen anything so nice before.

“I think we can afford it,” he grinned.

Looking through the magazine that was sitting on a dresser, listing all the interesting and fun things to do in Nashville, we decided to just order room service and stay in for the night. It was only Tuesday.

Founded in 1779, Nashville is a city that is saturated with history, and not just because of the music industry. During the Civil War (or as many still called it, The War of Northern Aggression), The Battle of Nashville was fought between the Confederate Army of Tennessee under Lieutenant General John Bell Hood and the Union Army of the Cumberland under Major General George H. Thomas, taking place on December 15 & 16, 1864. The battle resulted in a decisive victory for the Union Army, while the Confederate Army suffered heavy losses and ceased to be a serious threat. The Union victory effectively ended Southern resistance in Tennessee, and was one of the largest victories achieved by the Union Army during the war.