As I wait for my wife’s pancakes to flip, I thought it would be as good as any time to get my next post up here. I have a weekly routine of making her pancakes for the workweek so she’s not missing out on breakfast. While I’m on just a few hours of sleep, drinking my coffee after forcing myself to go outside and run out in the cold, I thought of something to write about at least.

I live about an hour and a half from my hometown. Some of my family members and friends still live back there, so when I have the time, my wife and I, or maybe just I, would go up and see them. Yesterday, we spent part of our evening eating dinner for my mother’s husband’s birthday, and I went to see my friends shortly after. My wife went home, so we drove separately because she needed to be home for our dog. After a few hours of laughs and a good time with my friends, I drove the hour and a half home with me and my thoughts.

It’s therapeutic. When it was time for me to go home, it was open roads, just me and a few others out, a reasonably calm drive. While I had a synth-wave playlist, I went into a state of reflection, asking “what if” about scenarios that have passed by and how different my life would’ve been. Long car drives alone are a way to iron out details, prepare me for what is to come, and look back on my decisions or mistakes. Maybe it’s me, but that can be a form of therapy you need.

Maybe I need more of that to go out and go for a drive. It doesn’t have to be long, just enough for me to take whatever is on my mind and let it out.

What about all of you? Do you enjoy a long drive alone because of the freedom and the chance to check up on yourself?