Prepared
The other day, Sweets and I had to go to the grocery store. Our list was relatively short, as we’d only be in town a few more days:
- Fruit for the next few days
- Milk for the next few days
- Snacks for the road trip
- Drinks for the road trip
- Two gallons water to freeze and put into the cooler for the road trip
When we got to the grocery store, we were standing in the middle of the produce section (i.e., the first section you walk through) when we got into a stupid little spat. Sweets was tired from his day. I had zero tolerance for his crankiness. There were words. Over something really stupid (if you have to know, we were crabby over what we were eating for dinner).
So, instead of getting further into it with him over nothing worthwhile, I walked off. I had my list and knew where to get what I needed. First, granola bars (healthy snack). Second, peanut butter pretzels (sort of healthy snack). Third, caffeine free soda. And then my hands were full, so I had to find Sweets, who had the cart. He was emerging from the aisle next to produce; in other words, he didn’t make it all that far. I looked into our cart and saw chocolate-covered Oreos and Twizzlers.
I looked at him and jokingly said, I knew I shouldn’t have left you alone near the candy aisle. His response? With a smirk, he said, What? We need snacks for our trip! And then he proceeded to pick up a bag of Chex Mix and a second bag of peanut butter pretzels, because one clearly wasn’t enough.
As we were making our way from the milk cooler towards the front of the store, he asked if we should get some ice cream. I looked at him. Are you kidding me? No. No ice cream. Do you see what we already have in our cart? We don’t have room for it anyway, since the gallons of water will take up room in our freezer.
And so, my friends, I’d say we are well prepared. To engulf our high fructose corn syrup quota for the year in the next two days. Wish us luck!
Speaking of road trips … what are some of your favorite snacks to bring? And while we’re on the subject, what do you like listening to … music? talk radio? books on tape? nothing at all?
July 28th, 2010 at 5:55 am
While I dig on granola bars and peanut butter pretzels, I’m hanging with Sweets. Sorry.
As for travel snacks, we like to make our own trail mix to take along. Usually a combination of nuts, raisins, M&Ms, and whatnot else. And we typically just take an iPod along with an aux cable to hook up to the radio. If we get a rental car with satellite radio, well that’s something else altogether. We really dug on the free satellite radio we had on our last trip. It was our virginal experience. So nice.
July 28th, 2010 at 6:52 am
Yesterday I made a bunch of cookies for us to bring. So I guess I’d be with Sweets on the unhealthy snacks. It should also be known that I have ONLY packed cookies so far…no clothes or actual necessities yet. You can see where my priorities are.
July 28th, 2010 at 7:48 am
Road trips make me think of bags of chips, beef jerky and home made peanut butter sandwiches. I am more of savory snacker so you can keep cookies and candy.
As for the radio, when I am alone in the car I listen to talk radio (MSNBC or FOX on XM) or to sports games. Not that I am a news junkie, but I find music annoying after a while.
July 28th, 2010 at 7:50 am
I’ve been known to match cookies or some other type of sweet to induldge in while traveling, and pretzels and crackers are usually a staple as well.
As for what do I listen to? It usually depends on who I’m traveling with. If its my mom — Barry Manilow, soundtracks from musicals, things like that. If its friends — country, pop, Barry Manilow, oldies. If I’m alone — NPR, Barry Manilow, whatever I’m in the mood for. But Barry is always played somewhere. =)
July 28th, 2010 at 8:08 am
I ACTUALLY feel like this could have been a trip me and Eric went on.
1. We often bicker over what to eat for dinner as I lean towards more healthy foods.
2. He’s ALWAYS tempting me to get JUNK when we go grocery shopping!! And I *almost* always don’t let him because I don’t need a huge bag of chips or gallon of ice cream in the house tempting me. I never buy that kind of stuff when he’s away. Occasionally he wins out though ;)
July 28th, 2010 at 8:17 am
My road trip list: Dr. Pepper (or if you need an alternative version, black cherry soda from Whole Foods. All natural! Cane Sugar! No fructose!), Goldfish Crackers, Junior Mints, lots of water.
As for music, I love mixes. I mean, sure, I love listeningn to my favorite band as well, but mixes are so fun, element of surprise, usually music you can sing to at the top of your lung kind of thing. It’s great :) I do enjoy books on tape but I find that they mesmerize me which is only ok if I’m the passenger.
I also bring my Nintendo DS along for the ride: crossword puzzles, Sudoku and other silly games are great to occupy me (when I’m not driving) and the other road-trippers (when I am driving).
I haven’t had a chocolate covered oreo in years. They sound rather delicious right now :)
Travel safe!
July 28th, 2010 at 8:27 am
We habe not done a road trip in a long time but we packed sandwiches, granola bars, water, some chips and chex mix. I try to not bring sticky food or food that will melt. You never know when yo will find that melted piece of a candy bar under your seat.
As for music, we tend to gravitate to NPR and we download a bunch of pod casts that we take turn listening too.
Enjoy and have a safe trip!
July 28th, 2010 at 9:20 am
Let me tell you our unsuccessful leave of the city on Saturday for our week long vacation.
Woke up at 4am to a sad phone call that kept me up all morning. Let Chicago at 9:30am while highways were still closed from the floods. Got into Wisconsin and just remembered we forgot to put the garment bag with our clothes for the wedding we were going to that day in door county at home. Luckily we were right in front of outlet mall at Kenosha. Bought clothes that didn’t fit very well for my pregnant bump. Took us 7hours to get to the rental office to pick up keys to the house. Wedding started at 4 and we arrived at 7. But we made it!
Now I relaxing with my morning coffee on the deck. I am loving it here and will be coming back next year with baby in tow.
Speaking of baby I’d love to see baby bump pictures soon!
Have a great trip.
July 28th, 2010 at 9:33 am
I like bringing a cooler with fruit and other healthy things to eat, but when it is a loooong drive I also like eating candy. Sweettarts are always a good pick. Twizzlers too.
I usually listen to NPR as long as I can find it and then put on upbeat music from my ipod. Otherwise I will fall asleep!
July 28th, 2010 at 9:34 am
I love anything salty as roadtrip snacks -- but I’m trying to find something that can be a stand in for my usual salt & vinegar Crisper’s. So tasty, but so bad for me!
July 28th, 2010 at 9:40 am
Haha, that sounds like a typical grocery store scenario for us, too ;)
Someone gave us a package of Oreo’s for our LA-KC roadtrip and I am proud to say that I didn’t eat a single one! I especially love little packets of food that I can ration, like those 100-calorie packs, so I don’t ruin any chance of having a satisfying dinner. Popcorn is a favorite, too! And plenty of cold water is a must!
Safe travels to you and yours!
July 28th, 2010 at 9:43 am
I usually make travel mixes. Though I haven’t done any of that for my upcoming flight from Seattle to Philly. Hmmm. Better do that tonight! I tend to read or do crossword puzzles unless I am in a car (motion sickness). Snacks include nuts (almonds probably), Think Thin bars. Most snack type items are off my approved food list (chips, candy, etc.).
Hope you have a great trip!
July 28th, 2010 at 9:49 am
Unfortunately, my hubby & I do a 6-hour roadtrip pretty frequently for medical purposes. He demands Pringles! (The only time I’ll buy them.) I usually also pack gatorade and juice boxes, and sometimes something sweet.
We talk about everything under the sun, and when we run out of things to talk about, we put in an audiobook. I let the driver choose the book, because it would not be good to have the book bore him to sleepiness!
July 28th, 2010 at 10:11 am
When snacking on the road I love pringles, teriyaki jerkey, and home made chex mix with usually a gatorade, sobe, or water to wash it down.
While on family road trips it’s usually all our favorite 80′s music turned up loud and singing along. If it’s just me and friends it’s usually music or sometimes podcasts.
July 28th, 2010 at 10:29 am
I usually snack on granola bars and cookies with lots and lots of water (I annoy the driver every time). For music it depends on where the road trip is leading, if it’s to the beach I listen to Jack Johnson and others if it’s to visit family in L.A. it’s Spanish music. Cute blog!
July 28th, 2010 at 10:32 am
I demand gummy bears while traveling. I never buy candy unless I’m driving somewhere far.
I hope you guys have the best trip!
P.S. Andrew and I have had more fights in grocery stores than I can count—I don’t know what it is? Haha.
July 28th, 2010 at 10:45 am
When on the road I like a mix of sweet and savory. I like granola bars, pretzels, beef jerky, and my husband likes peanut butter m&ms. For drinks usually bottled Sweet Iced Tea and we stop for coffee along the way.
As for music. We usually have our iPod and we alternate between his music and mine but if we’re deep in conversation we often turn it off so we can talk.
July 28th, 2010 at 10:57 am
Haven’t you seen all of those commercials about high fructose corn syrup? It’s totally harmless, apparently. Since it’s just made from corn and all.
July 28th, 2010 at 11:31 am
I haven’t been on a road trip in ages, but if I did go I’d try to mix healthy snacks (nuts, dried fruit) with some unhealthy treats to alleviate the boredom. One of my favourite snacks currently is a type of Korean cookie that tastes like fortune cookies. They make them with peanuts or with seaweed. I actually like the seaweed ones. They’re green at the edges. Bonus to this: no one asks me to share.
July 28th, 2010 at 12:37 pm
Nilsa!!!
It’s Sarah, I used to work with Sweets. Jus tread this entry and I had to put my 2 cents in as we just completed a road trip to Chicago from New Orleans.
We packed goldfish pretzels, sweet and salty Chex mix, Tootsie Pops (a fave of mine when I get bored or sleepy). We also packed sugar-free Red Bulls, Light Frappucinos, cut up watermelon, baby carrots, and Capri Suns.
We threw away the watermelon and carrots. Didn’t even touch them! Haha…
As far as music, we made an ipod playlist and I downloaded a bunch (think over 600) podcasts. I listened to all the NPR Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me podasts. Very entertaining! Also, NPR This American Life. I don’t know where you’re traveling through but I can tell you that along most of I-57 and I-59, there are little to no radio stations!
Don’t forget pillows and a blanket for snoozing on the road. I also like to bring a box of Trivial Pursuit cards, because I’m a trivia nerd.
Have safe travels!
P.S. So happy for yall and Grasshopper!!
Sarah
July 28th, 2010 at 12:59 pm
I usually prefer to do the shopping by myself. A) J doesn’t look at the price tags (as much), B) he always buys stuff that we really don’t need and C) I can decide what we eat :)
On road trips, we prefer trail mix and granola bars. Sometimes we get a bag of chips at the gas station, but we usually don’t plan to bring one on the trip.
July 28th, 2010 at 2:11 pm
I cannot go on road trips without peanut m&m’s.
July 28th, 2010 at 2:13 pm
Music all the way. Oh, and Pringles. And a couple of Rockstar drinks. Once we have all that, our roadtrip is complete.
July 28th, 2010 at 2:37 pm
I like variety in the snack department and the listening department. I like to bring veggies and hummus (it’s usually pretty easy to eat while driving), goldfish crackers or some other kind of crunchy salty snack, and then skittles or other similar candy. I’m not a big soda drinker so water is just fine for drinking.
I like a good mix of music and books, but I tend to listen to books only when I’m driving at night.
Hope your road trip is fantastic!
July 28th, 2010 at 2:38 pm
We use the 13 hour road trip to Michigan as an excuse to eat fast food! Although I do try to have one of those stops be at a Subway. McDonald’s cheeseburgers and their fries piping hot! Yum! And of course, when we stop at a gas station, it’s cow tails and slushees.
Oh and we usually use the time to talk about whatever might be on our minds. And we listen to talk radio.
July 28th, 2010 at 3:50 pm
Sweets is my kinda snacker!! Love twizzlers!
If I’m traveling solo, I love a book on CD. If Tim and I are on the road together, he likes to talk. So, typically no planned music. But, we both like JJ Gray & the Mofro, so a couple of their Cds will do the trick. Other than that, we have totally opposite taste in music.
July 28th, 2010 at 5:47 pm
Normally my wife and I wait until we are actually on the road before getting into a spat. ;-)
As for snacks on the road, I really stay away from too many sugary snacks, which drain your energy level pretty quick. Almonds are one of the best I’ve found (I like the Blue Diamond brand salted and roasted). Or a little 50 cent package of sunflower kernels. Drink wise, a Vitamin Water XXX helps keep me hydrated without carbonation.
Music -- if we are taking my car, I have both Sirius and an iPod adapter, so musically, it covers just about any genre. Also, it allows me to listen to Howard Stern or comedy, which my wife likes the latter. The rule is for us: whoever is driving gets to choose what they listen to. I end up driving the most, but not for that reason. :-)
Musically, I like alternative, classic rock and the 40′s on 4 station on Sirius (big band like Tommy Dorsey and Frank Sinatra). Mixed up over a 10 hour drive, it works out great.
July 28th, 2010 at 6:24 pm
I’m big on granola bars for snacks. Sweets can have the Twizzlers — blech!
I either listen to music or nothing at all. I wish I could be a book-on-tape person, but my mind tends to drift too much.
July 28th, 2010 at 10:03 pm
Totally my kind of groceries!!
The boyfriend’s roomie and I tease him because whenever he goes grocery shopping, he never buys “groceries”. He buys snacks. Literally. His cart after a big grocery buy includes: Lean Cuisines, frozen tortellini, chips, lunch meat, gummi bears, a dip or two, and pop.
I look at it and say “you can’t make anything with any of that. What kind of ingredients for meals are these?!” And then he gives me a blank stare because, cooking? Is a completely foreign concept for him.
July 29th, 2010 at 8:02 am
You probably won’t like my answer but I like taking along cut vegetables for a snack. And of course twizzlers.
Have an awesome time!
July 29th, 2010 at 8:37 pm
Ok, I am laughing out loud from this post. I love it. Too freaking funny. I can just imagine the look you gave him when he asked if he should get ice cream.
I have not been on a road trip for such a long time… Definitely not since I found out about my gluten intolerance… so all my usual stand bys like pretzels are out of the question now… So I would probably go with some rice cakes, carrots, and then maybe some peanuts or sunflower seeds? And chocolate, too…
July 29th, 2010 at 9:32 pm
That’s adorable, he sounds like a kid in the candy store! Have a great trip and a nice weekend ;) I love bringing pretzels or dried fruit and the bag of M&Ms with me. Balance.
July 30th, 2010 at 12:36 pm
i think it’s an actual legal requirement to stock the car with junk food for road trips :) i NEVER want, eat, or crave combos… unless i’m travelling. then it’s a necessity!