Stories from the Past: Riding Home

Music has always been a huge part of transportation for me, and I'm not strictly speaking emotional distances.  I have always been a huge believer that what you are listening to while driving is the single most important part of driving.  If you're tired, then the choice of The Decemberists is probably ill-advised, because that will cause you to veer into oncoming traffic on your way home from a funeral (or maybe that's just me).  If you're driving 300 miles home starting at midnight because you had a full day of class, rehearsal, and an improv show, then might I suggest cranking classic Brittney Spears and Eminem.  There's nothing in there that is going to let you nod off.

But, as I was waking up this morning, getting ready for today, letting iTunes play whatever it wanted to in the background, Train's "Drops of Jupiter" came on.  For about two weeks in high school, I was really into this song.  And I still like this song, but mostly because it reminds me of one specific memory.

I was getting out of a long rehearsal.  This must have been tenth grade, because I was carrying a backpack that weighed about 85 pounds, threatening to tip me backward with every step.  At one point, it almost realigned my spine into skuliosis, but that's another story for another day.  Anyway, I got into my father's truck, and this song was playing.  My dad, who had been waiting on me, was singing along to it.  For some reason, I just found this absolutely bizarre. 

My father is someone who loves classic rock.  And some classic pop.  But he's the quintessential my-taste-in-music-froze-in-my-twenties person.  I imagine that that happens a lot.  However, there's not really a huge selection of stations in south GA that aren't Christian, country, or rap, so the one 80's through present day station was his general fixture.  And he ended up liking it. 

I told this story to K'Fain a few years ago and she said, "Of course your dad liked "Drops of Jupiter."  Everybody's dad likes Train.  Nobody you know actually likes Train except for your dad."  I laughed, and we probably kept watching Law and Order: SVU.

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Posts may be sporadic for the next two weeks because Camp City Year is ramping into its home stretch.  Keep safe 'til then, and look for posts from the dark side.