Watching a total eclipse of the sun may be a “once in a lifetime” opportunity. The August 21 solar eclipse passes through much of the continental United States, but its path lies far to the north of me. So my plan was to take the kids out of school, spend one day driving north and then another day driving back south, just so we could brag to other people that we saw the total eclipse for a few seconds. That was Plan A.
So I managed to book a hotel in the eclipse belt, which wasn’t an easy task since they are quite full (and overpriced). In fact, the traffic on the interstate highways will be heavy, since so many people from population centers are driving to the same spots to see this much hyped eclipse. Since I booked a couple of months ago, my intended hotel has called me several times asking if I would cancel my reservation (since I assume they have jacked up the price since then and could get more for the room from someone else).
Yesterday, I gave them what they wanted. I cancelled my hotel reservation at the Acme Motel in Throckmorton Slough or whatever the place was called. I won’t be one of the people driving for hours to see the dark sun for a few seconds. I’m going to miss this eclipse.
I cancelled Plan A because no one else in my family wanted to go. My kids actually want to be in school that Monday, since the school year is just beginning and they aren’t bored with it yet. My wife said she needs to work that day and told me to watch the eclipse on TV. Then she suggested that I could drive to Idaho and watch the eclipse by myself. Wait, did she mean I should take a one-way trip to Idaho or come back afterwards?
My Plan A was a family trip. I don’t care about seeing the sun go dark for a few seconds; I simply hoped that my kids might care. Since they don’t, I’m not going to waste two days driving by myself. It’s on to Plan B: staying home.
My dog suggested we have an eclipse day party. I told him I might be the only one staying home with him that morning, so it might be a party for two. The dog doesn’t eat my food and I don’t eat his, so we had a tough time agreeing on a menu. In the end, we went with fruit and cheese, which both of us will eat.