So I just did a cross country road trip down 101. Whoever said people with sickle cell could not drive long distances obviously has never met me.
I drove 997 miles from Portland, OR to Santa Barbara, CA…all by my wonderful, fabulous self! Much to the consternation of my parents, who wanted me to take Norio or a friend, I packed up Viola (pictured right—->) and headed south.
The first day, I drove through the wintery, snowy passes of Oregon for five and a half hours, and stopped for the night at a hotel in Yreka, CA. I was listening to music, books on tape (The Camel Club by David Baldacci was amazing!), and talking on the phone to my friends and family.
The second day, I drove halfway to San Fransciso…then turned around about 150 miles to visit my friend in Chico, CA…about 70 miles from Sacramento. That was a 7 hour drive. My friend Shay is 8 months pregnant, and this would be the last time seeing her before she delivered her bundle of joy! I spent the night with her talking…and took off early the next morning.
The last day, I drove 9 hours…and drove through SF, stopped at the Nigerian store for foodstuffs and kept on going until I reached Santa Barbara. All in all, I would say it was an awesome first solo road trip. Here’s to many more!
So far, no problems, just minor soreness and some aches at the end of the day, but I’m sure a regular driver would have had this as well. I took some Motrin with me which I had to take on days 2 and 3.
I’m feeling great now, I’m down here ready to start work. So here is to defying another sickle cell rule.
