Have you ever had to stop at one of these little roadside conveniences to fill your belly with food and your car's tank with gas? If you have did you ever stop and just sit there for 5 minutes to people watch? Did you see that guy in the plaid shirt and wonder where he picked up his grooming habits from as you've seen wilderbeasts with better style. Ever wonder how some lonely little rest stop in the middle of f*cking no where could end up becoming the last place for you to find a Roy Rodgers restaurant? How is it that it takes you a 2 hour drive to find a decent CinnaBon? Are the teenagers in East Bumblef*ck that bored that the rest stop is now the premiere place to hang out on Saturday night? Ever wonder how Mexicans ended up in the middle of the Poconos serving pizza and Chinese food? Ever feel bad for the poor woman at the next table with the 4 kids and no husband in sight and then realize that's not make up but a black eye on her? Ever walk out of a place like that and then find yourself counting your blessings as you begin your ride home again?
I stopped in a rest stop this past Saturday night and I did all those things.
11 comments:
Ever realize that the place you just stopped to rest, tired you out more than what you already were? It's kind of a slap you in the face reality.
sometimes those little out of the way rest areas have the best food and the best entertainment. i love to people watch-specially those big ole trucker boys who come in draggin ass but they have great stories to tell.
we useta to go to this one truck stop every friday night for this fish fry they had-people would be out the door.
what can i say--i live in ohio-we're redneck white trash in these here parts.
When I lived in Wisconsin & commuted to Chicago, I used to stop midway in my commute on I-95, at a Wendy's so that I could pee. I used to drink too much water in the morning.
You've just painted a stereotypical British image, which suggests that its stereotypical for good reason. Actually, it sounds a bit like Essex.
Sample Essex-girl joke:
What do Essex girls put behind their ears to attract men?
Their feet.
Thats one thing I don't do enough of, and that's people watch..... I need to get better at that!
A whole day at the beach yesterday and I could have had some interesting stories I'm sure!
Keg, good shit there bro!
I've stopped at one rest stop at some places that had great food...and then not so great. A not so great memory is one from a "truck stop" as I call them... It was on I-40 near Ashfork, AZ. I asked for a bowl of fresh fruit and club sandwich. I got a sandwich that was toasted on a greasy grill and apparently instead of butter they used bacon grease...and when I asked about the fruit the waiter said "Yes ma'am...fresh right out of the microwave. I thawed them out for you!" This same waiter was excitedly filling us in on how he was on his way to Utah to convert to Mormonism. You just never know what you'll see, taste or worse, smell! haha
*sigh* I miss road trips & people watching. Thanks for this post, brought back a lot of great memories.
People watching is a fun thing. I used to live in a small town like that rest stop-very briefly, I couldn't handle it. Their idea of a fun night out was the truckstop or the firehouse. There was a bar on every corner of town, a bar on every corner and a firehouse with a bar on every corner. I'm so glad I moved back to the burbs. You don't see as many freak shows in the burbs though...lol...at least freak shows are entertaining.
There is nothing better than being in an all night truck/rest stop. Not only is the people watching personally uplifting but i really don't think you can find better food at 3 am :-) Just because I'm from California doesn't mean I don't know a good truck stop when I find it :-)
Actually I was counting my blessings on Saturday night on how suave I was going to look in my recently purchased new plaid shirt, but now you have me rethinking everything...
I got yelled at and chased out of a rest stop with a mcdonalds and a gas station in the hills of tennessee, then followed three counties by the dudes that yelled at me who were in a blue f150 pickup from circa 1982, while along the roadside the signs all had bulletholes in them, and this all happened after dusk. Godda love NY plates.
it is so hard for me to imagine all that you have written...we are so protected here that even men think twice before laying his hand on his wife...you get sued and fined for hanging around at a place for 'too long'...i dun know...it is just hard to imagine...
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