Wallyworld or Bust!

Back from the family vacation- and I mean all family- sisters, parents, nieces, nephews, in-laws and hamster. It was "back to the scene of the crime" really--the vacation spot of our youth, my sisters, stepsister and step brother. Its a terrific family vacation spot- Sunriver, biking, swimming, and all kinds of fun stuff to do.

When I was a kid/teen we used to go there nearly every summer or Thanksgiving. In the early days we used to go in the wood-paneled, diesel station wagon that I dubbed "Le Auto-Bus"- much like vehicle pictured above. There we were all crammed into the wagon and pulling along behind us was a trailer with all of our bikes. We crawled up Mt. Hood, passed by all sorts of people as we crawled along in the slow moving vehicle lane. After National Lapoon's "Vacation" movie came out we taped a "Wallyworld or Bust" sign to the back of the trailer. As a teen there was nothing more humiliating than riding along with the younger kids and dog in the dreaded diesel Le Auto Bus. The wood paneling wasn't wood- it was like that contact paper people use to line their kitchen drawers. Plus it was a loud, stinky diesel. Thank the Lord, the Auto Bus was gone when I was learning how to drive. There was NO WAY I wanted to be seen driving the Auto Bus!!

Now, 20 some odd years later, I was driving a station wagon of my own, with a bike rake on the back (albeit, a much more fashionable Subaru Outback, sans the contact paper "wood paneling" and diesel engine!) with my own kid, and my many nieces and nephews congregated around the pool or tearing off on the trails on their bikes or strolling around Sunriver Village with their overpriced ice cream.

It was a lot of fun- all the kids got along great. Only one medical emergency- a bike crash and a cut up foot for my niece requiring 11 stitches. The two older nephews managed to find a few cute girls to bike with and go to the village with. My sister brought a long her hamster, who managed to chew up one pair of shorts left too close to the cage.

It was nostalgic- this is fast becoming the summer of nostalgia for me as scenes from my youth and teen years have come back to me. I used to look at older people as crazy when they went on about "how time flies" and how quickly the time went. I used to feel like I'd NEVER graduate from high school, or the ride to Sunriver in the Auto Bus was endless. But then it ended. After college its like being shot like a bullet through time, everything is going so fast its almost a blur.

I don't bother to tell my daughter or nieces or nephews that time is flying by- they won't understand it. But, it was nice to kick back by the pool and let time slow down a little again and think about swimming, tanning, and laying around.