Long Distance Love

It seems like just yesterday that I made my first trip to Albany…well, Schenectady really…to visit my Aunt Mildred.  

We tried to work out a weekend for a visit for quite some time.  I was trying to balance a trip upstate with my crazy busy work schedule and all the other plans I had made with friends for fun in the city.  We settled on a weekend in March 2010.  The train ride was great…peaceful and almost serene.  I took some great pictures of the beautiful landscape. 

Once I arrived, we had all sorts of fun. We talked.  We ate out.  She took me to get a pedicure. We talked.  We went to church with her son/my cousin's family on Sunday.  We had a fabulous time.

Little did I know it would be one of the many that were to come.  Since July 2010, I have made more trips between New York City and the much smaller, but equally as interesting state capital, Albany, than most elected officials do in a lifetime or at least it seems that way.  Although I usually almost always take the bus now and the weekends are spent with Christopher instead of getting pedicures and listening to family stories with my Aunt, I now have a love-hate relationship with these trips. 

I love that I am able to spend 6 hours round-trip doing things I want to do – read, sleep, check status updates on facebook, sleep, get work done, sleep...ok, ok – so I mostly sleep…is that such a bad thing?  I love having built in time away from New York City.  Time that isn’t so rushed and busy and expensive.  Most of all, I love being able to spend time with Christopher.

However, I hate having to pack up everything I might possibly need for an often times not too pre-determined schedule.  I hate having to wait in the line at the station (usually sweating profusely from rushing there as quickly as possible so that I can get the best spot in the line).  I hate sharing a seat with a stranger and being all squished up next to them. 

Needless to say, the good far outweighs the bad.  While I will be overjoyed when these nearly every other week trips cease, I will be a little sad as well.  After all, you don’t spend over 2 years learning all the tricks of the trade for nothing, right?

Andrea :)