On the Road Again

So this past weekend was the first of many overnight road trips with the softball team. Let me tell you there is nothing like 4 hours stuck in traffic on I-95 with 18 other people after playing 5 games in three days to make you wonder why you do this to yourself. Here are some tips for traveling on a bus full of softball player, or really any sports group:

• Bring sound canceling head phones- The best way to feel like you've escaped is to not hear anyone else's snoring, bad jokes, and whispers (which sometimes turn out to be a lot louder than you'd think)
• Bring a pillow and blanket- 2 reasons for this one; once you've put your head phones on you're gonna want to force yourself asleep (falling asleep in one city to wake up in another is the best, narcolepsy comes in handy.) The second reason is that for some reason no one can ever make up there mind on whether it should be hot or cold on the bus. So when we enter the bus it's stifling and 10 minutes into the trip, I'm looking for penguins as it seems we've entered Antarctica. 
• Bring a form of entertainment. Make sure your phone is fulling charged, bring a book, TRY to get some homework done. There is nothing more frustrating then when I let myself calculate the amount of hours of my life that have been spent on bus trips, knowing that I was wasting my time. When you can't fall asleep it's all the more evident, so bring a distraction. And pray to God you get a bus with WIFI.

Overall the best advice I can give is to just relax and try to zone out. Remember that you're lucky to be going somewhere different even if it's just for a few days. Some of the best memories I have with my team and friends are those on the road. When you start to feel like you've been on the bus so long that you're literally delusional just let it happen, be silly and laugh. That's what makes the trips bearable. Oh, that and dramamine.