Give A Little by Cathy

“Give a little bit.  Give a little bit of your love to me.  I’ll give a little bit.  I’ll give a little bit of my love to you.” (Supertramp)

We are finding as we travel that some people we meet (and some friends from home) are astonished that we have spent five going on six months in a 250 square foot space which is sometimes cut down to 200 square foot if we are too lazy to unload the motorcycle.  “I’d kill him or her” they say.  “I need my space.”  “I couldn’t do it.”  To be honest, it is not always easy, particularly when one or both of us is tired or hungry, but we have managed with only a few major arguments which are usually about navigation or money.

Our time together works, maybe because we have been married so long that we know each other’s foibles or maybe because we have learned to compromise.  While we don’t expect our spouse to like everything we like, we have learned that our marriage, like our journey, is more fun if each of us gets some time to follow their own passions.  What we don’t do is keep score.  I don’t get a quilt shop visit for every day I sit at the motorcycle track.  Glen doesn’t get an hour of TV for every hour that he walks the dogs so I can sleep late.  But we have comfortably travelled together for these months by making sure that we give a little bit of time and love to each other regularly.

The day after the motorcycle races ended in Springfield, we took a day trip to St. Louis to see the Gateway Arch.  Glen didn’t really care about seeing the National Park that wasn’t really a National Park, but knew I did (and that I wanted to earn my patch!)  So, he drove us down even though he would have rather been hanging around the campsite preparing to leave the next day.  It was on that road trip that we hatched the scheme to travel eleven hours across three states for another weekend of Motorcycle races.  And the trip was actually my idea.  Not because I would get something from it, but because it would make Glen happy.

We had a ten-day lag in our carefully reorganized schedule once we crossed New England off our itinerary so, we hustled to Williams Grove, Pennsylvania to see the same riders who were in Springfield race again.   Now, that I am learning the stories behind each man or woman who races, I enjoy the races more.  And as I learn more about the sport, I don’t have to keep asking Glen so many questions.

We “boondocked” in the racetrack parking lot which means we camped without any “hookups”, electric, water or sewer.  The nights were cool enough that we didn’t need AC and our stove cooks with gas, so we did fine.  It was fun to be shoulder to shoulder with some of the racers and their families.  And because the parking lot was actually a grass field, the girls could get out and stretch their legs.

 

The races were fun, the weather cooperative and some of our favorite racers won their classes.  Afterwards, we had three days to get to Kentucky to meet some friends who will travel with us for a while.  Happy to not have a schedule for a few days, Mr. Spontaneous announced, “We can take our time because we don’t have to go anywhere or do anything at a certain time.”

So, we when crossed from Pennsylvania into Maryland, and I realized that we were twenty minutes from Boonsboro where one of my favorite authors, Nora Roberts, owns an inn, restaurant, book store and gift shop, I didn’t hesitate to ask if we could go there.  Nora Roberts writes very different books than I do, but she has greatly influenced my writing.  Before I started my first book, I counted the number of pages in each chapter of her books and the number of chapters.  Then, I planned my books around her framework.

Glen didn’t seem to mind backtracking a few exits to accommodate my request although parking the truck and trailer proved to be a challenge.   Once there, he admonished me to “take my time” as he sat in the truck with the girls.

Boonsboro is a very old town probably founded by one of Daniel Boone’s cousins in 1792.  Incorporated in 1831, the town lies on what was once the National Road which today is known as Old National Pike or Alt US 40.  The route was originally laid in 1758 as a short cut between Fredericksburg and Fort Frederick.  During the Civil War, two major battles were fought near Boonsboro, and the town was used for a hospital after the Battle of Antietam.

Main Street, where the businesses I wanted to visit were located, is on the National Register of Historic Places.  It consists of 562 contributing elements.  Most of the buildings are log, frame, or brick construction although there are a few stone buildings as well.  Most of the buildings in the district date from the 1820-1850 period when travel on the National Road was at its peak.

Many of the buildings were marked with dates and original use.  I was struck by how close each building was to its neighbor and also by how many residences were included in what most towns might reserve for businesses.  The buildings had different levels, some with basements, some with high entrances where you went up or down steps to get onto the main floor.  Most had some type of a porch and were constructed right up to the edge of the road.  Seeing the variety of building materials and styles was very interesting to me.

 

The shops were also intriguing.  I bought some books, a Nora Roberts coffee mug (even though I don’t drink coffee!), and a small handblown glass vase before rejoining Glen at the truck where we had a quick lunch and hit the road again.

Some people would say he owed me that time because I went to the races.  Or that I go to the races to earn an excursion I want to do.  For us, it doesn’t work that way.  We believe in giving a little.