2013 Road Trip Day 9: Circle Of Life

I know I've used enough cheap metaphors for one lifetime on this Homeric odyssey already, but the "Circle Of Life" definitely fits. We went to see The Lion King on Broadway today.

My daughter said it was "better than the movie." My son said he didn't like it, but was riveted throughout. As for me, I thought it had great Broadway production value, choreography, and puppetry. But the play was 2 1/2 hours, whereas the movie (I checked IMDB) clocked in at 1:29. That's just too long, fully one-half of a 5-Hour Energy.

But something Simba said late in the show struck me:

"How can I go back? I'm not who I used to be."

There are too many connections for me while having my kids with me in New York City. I lived here from 1996-2002, but it seems like a lifetime ago. The sights of smoke billowing from a manhole, the smells of a pretzel stand, the taste of a slice of pizza, the agony of a stagnant and overheated subway stand - they all tap into whatever part of the brain that links to memory. The kids don't have those memories and will likely never know them. This part is my journey alone.

So I went AWOL for a couple of hours to the old Upper West Side before meeting a friend for dinner. And at 96th & Amsterdam, it was still there.

The Dive Bar was getting a facelift on the exterior but it was pretty much the same on the interior. It's really anything but a "dive" with whiskey and beer selections that can be sampled for weeks.

The Yankees were playing the Red Sox and it brought back a flood of more memories - how many baseball games did I watch there? There was also a legendary high-stakes Super Bowl pool, and I watched several of the big games there. But more than that, it was my spot around the corner. A place to meet friends or kick back after work or just think.

There hasn't been a place like this for me in Omaha or Kalamazoo or Savannah, but of course life is different now with new responsibilities. But every once in a while you can sit on a barstool and relive the past in your thoughts, and come back to the same point in your circle.

Savannah To Clemson: Drive Or Fly?

Clemson SC is a 4 hour and 15 minute drive from home. It is a tedious and boring drive, but it isn’t all that long in the scheme of things.

But today I opted for a different plan. I flew to Atlanta and drove 2 hours to Clemson from there. That doesn’t make much sense does it? Well here are the factors in making that call, a choice I’ve been making more and more lately.

Primarily it’s necessary for preparation. In my brief time between events, I often have the kids. I also have workouts to catch up on, and many TV shows to digest from the DVR. Add these past couple of weeks of surveying potential new SUVs, and you’re right up against it until it’s time to leave.

While the time at Savannah airport or on the plane isn’t plentiful, it is a chance to hit the books. There is no work you can get done in the car besides making phone calls.

The second and less important reason is every segment counts. It’s usually a motto I don’t employ until November/December, but why wait? Get to Platinum Medallion a little earlier and you don't have to make such hard choices.

Driving is for going home after the game when I’m all keyed-up on adrenaline and 5-Hour Energy, but alas I have to go from Clemson to Columbia, Missouri for a Saturday game. So it’s going to be a 2-hour drive back to Atlanta, a flight to St. Louis, and then a 90-minute drive to Mizzou. Then a 90-minute drive back before two flights home.

It’s like the worst of both worlds: The hard choices are the price for having made such a good career choice.