All rights reserved. Copyright © 1996 by Norman Aragones
I left on Friday, June 28th. Originally I had planned to leave in the morning, but events conspired to delay my departure. By the time I had managed to pack everything I wanted to bring, I was already 1:00 in the afternoon! But at last, I was up to the final touches.
Remembering my father's camera, an idea hit me. I decided to take one final shot of my mom's house, as a gesture of ending my life there, and beginning my journey.
But first, I had to take a test shot to get used to this new camera of mine. Within my room, trying to recall my father's instructions, I took a Rockwell-esque photo of myself.
My homage to Norman Rockwell...
With that done, I glanced around my room, looking at all the things I would be leaving behind. I saw the barbells and weights which I had begun to work with, never really getting into the hang of them. To my right stood the plastic crates I had used as a bookshelf at Rutgers, filled with all the textbooks and manuals I had ground my brains on; next to that lay the drawers and single bed which I had personally hauled up into my first apartment in New Brunswick. All of them had memories for me; and now I was moving on. Looking around one last time, I silently said my goodbyes, and walked out of my room.
...and being spellbound as I was,
no inward road to lure me,
I had no other course to set
but to lead out upon the wave.
I was almost two o'clock! Ken Jorgan was waiting for me to pick him up at the Pentagon, down in D.C. at five. I knew that I wasn't going to make it. Getting on my mom's system one last time, I dialed up YVV and sent him e-mail saying that I was going to be late, and that I probably wouldn't arrive until seven. After that, I hurriedly logged off, got my jacket and last bits of food, and stuck them in the passenger seat. Outside, I was finally ready to go. Walking over to the other side of the street, I took the last photo of my life in Jersey, and the first one of my Road Trip.
Here it is.
And with that, I got into my car, reversed out of the driveway, closed the garage, and left.
More to come...