I think I like road trips more in theory than in actuality. I plan and plot, do laundry and get maps from AAA (I'm pretty old school when it comes to directions), but then there's the anxiety of knowing that a long drive alone is ahead of me. I'm fine once I'm on the road, and sometimes find a few gems on the radio.
The best are from local radio stations, as in small-town local. One of my favorites was probably in Illinois on a drive between Columbia, MO and Louisville. A newspaper box had been stolen. Any information? Please call ...
A couple Saturdays ago, when I started out in the morning from Knoxville up to Kentucky, I heard "Trade-io."
"I've still got that screen door for sale. I'll sell it for $98. And I'll throw in two closet doors." Apparently Trade-io has a following that could reference the screen door.
After that, one of the regular callers read a verse of scripture.
"That's a short one, this morning, isn't it Bill?" the host responded. The caller read with admirable emphasis and pacing.
When Trade-io got scratchy, I found another station, advertising an event that evening. Cocktails would begin at 6 PM, dinner at 6:45, and there would be a guest chef. It was probably a successful charity fundraiser -- I didn't catch those details -- but the announcer's matter-of-fact tone and the 6:45 Saturday night dinner time gave it that timeless, small town feel and kind of lonely, too, somewhere beyond the exits of I-75.
