Jun 19, 2018 3 min read

This weekend was so incredibly hot and humid that even the weatherman called it intolerable. Abject misery is how I would have described it, but intolerable will suffice, I suppose. We had loads of work to do, but instead opted to go for a quick cruise in my husband’s 1965 Ford truck.

We planned to go to town to grab gas for some of the equipment, but we ended up taking a drive. As long as we kept moving, it was really nice, but when we paused to grab a sandwich, I thought I might melt into a puddle. With no air moving, the humidity was palpably heavy.

We cruised south for a while, looking at the sights and listening to the radio. My puppy was with us, and he lay with his head in my husband’s lap. We were comfortably silent for long stretches but enjoyed casual conversation when the radio permitted.

After an hour or so of travel down back roads, neither of us had a clue where we were. We counted bars in the middle of nowhere, followed muddy creeks and skirted around towns. It was my ideal day trip – spontaneous and unhurried.

Finally, we saw a sign for the interstate and decided it was time to head home. We discovered that we were south of Fairmont, W.Va. An hour back up the interstate, and we finally stopped for the gasoline we initially started out to grab.

While we were stopped, my pup stuck his head out the driver’s side window and his paws on the steering wheel. I couldn’t resist snapping a picture of him looking as though he was driving. And then I couldn’t resist sending it to several members of my family and a few friends. I’m not sure they find him as cute as I do, but as a general rule, they indulge my oversharing.

Of course, because it was so hot, we had to partake in a little ice cream, as well. Because of the heat, we barely made it a mile before the ice cream was beginning to run down the sticks and onto our hands. Every drop that dripped onto my lap or onto the seat was quickly lapped up by my puppy. He enjoyed it so much that I saved the last few bites for him.

We were waved at, given the thumbs up, beeped at and smiled at by many passersby. The truck is pretty cool-looking, and it is sure fun to ride in. We plan to take many more cruises in it over the years, and I’m looking forward to getting lost in the middle of nowhere with my husband.

On a much more somber note, when we arrived home, we discovered that my son’s turkey had escaped from the acre of pasture he was fenced into and had been hit by a car and killed. We buried Roger out in the field where he lived, my son insisting on doing the digging. He was an interesting and affectionate pet for the past year and a half, and we will miss him.

Laura Zoeller can be reached at zoeller5@verizon.net.