The Send-Off Lunch

I met my brother for lunch in Cambridge. Although it was not his motive, I can't help but think that some of these goodbyes are the 'just in case you die on this trip I saw you' variety. Maybe that's because I'm thinking it with the pronouns reversed.

The buffet was delicious with sauces that hold to their reputation.

"come by the house before you leave, I'll give you some mace and a 38"

A bonus of the jaunt into Cambridge was the opportunity to use The Lady (my GPS companion). There are really two ladies in the machine, one gives the general directions ("when possible, make an authorized u-turn"), and the other gives the specific and somewhat creepy satellite-fed directions ("country road 114"). The former is named Moneypenny and the latter, Rita. This information should be remembered for your future readings.

The Lady was like having Jesus as my co-pilot. She knew it all and exactly when I should turn, etc. This technology is going to evolve the road trip, thus preventing the whole getting lost adventure aspect- but only if I keep her plugged in.

So Mikael and I went to Tamarind Bay for a scrumptuous lunch buffet. I've recently taken on vegetarianism as a cuisine hobby, and Indian restaurants are always delightfully full of meatless options. We talked about my trip and our plans for the next months. Telling him about why I'm doing this was special for me; only in the last year or so have I stuck to my convictions and pursued dreams (mostly in the form of adventures) that I'm proud to share with my big bro.

One particularly satisfying reaction to my trip that we discussed is how few people actually envy what I'm setting off to do. That's where the whole 'if I die' thing comes into play. This appears to be a far more dangerous undertaking than traveling in South America (granted, I was never alone there), but I scoff at such concern. Fears like that conveniently keep people inside, and I just can't let a wealth of horror movies (and a few headlines) deter me from this incredible plan. So we talked about how everyone either says "you're fucking crazy, I could never drive that much" or "wow, I would never want to do that, but cool," or "do your parents know what you're doing?" and my personal favorite "come by the house before you leave, I'll give you some mace and a 38" from my dear roommate's dad.

My brother was in the "that's so much driving" camp, but I think he understands. We had a pleasant and interesting talk, and then it was time to hit the road.

We'll be meeting in Vegas in the first full weekend of April, and that I'm really looking forward to, because, yeah, The Vegas is just so much more fun than Cambridge.

The Lady took a while to get warmed up on my way out but I found my way to the Interstate, miraculously, before she got her bearings.