Perforation Problems

When we were kids, twice a year we'd pile into my mom's mini van and make the trek from Georgia to Indiana: 10 hours to Indianapolis where my dad's parents lived, 11 hours to my mom's parents in Marion, and 12 hours to the lake. At 13 I prided myself on the fact that I could go the entire drive without having to stop to pee. In retrospect that wasn't the healthiest thing, but my mom's need to stop every couple hours grated on me and somehow seemed an indication that she was weak. God, Mom! Develop a stronger bladder!  I'd put up with the visit to my dad's parents, but it was just dues we had to pay before we could get to the lake. There in my grandparents' ranch house with the 70s furniture and seashell themed bathroom, Grandma Drummond would feed us vegetables I wasn't allowed to turn down, while my brothers and I sat, backs straight and on our best behavior, listening to the adults talk. After dinner we'd all adjourn to the living room...

Preschool: There was a giant yellow Big Bird you could ride. I have an impression of the room being red-orange, which must have been the carpet. I cried when my mom dropped me off, but she distracted me with a flower we were going to plant in a little ceramic pot and slipped out while I was busy. Next thing I know the day was over and she was there to get me, and I was taking my little marigold home. Kindergarten: All I remember from kindergarten is the classroom decorations. A cut-out, laminated image of the Morton Salt girl on the wall, and all the students' names on raindrops surrounding her umbrella. A calendar on the inside of the door that changed every month. I remember "March: In like a Lion, out like a Lamb" and "April Showers Bring May Flowers." There was a laminated ruler with my name on it on my desk. We might have made Valentine's Day decorations by creating animals with heart shapes. I don't remember my teacher, or any of the students. Ju...