He was tired. Not tired in the physical sense, but tired in the way one can get while trudging along the same path for too long without relief or the comfort of a nice place to sit down and take the air. There is a vague dissatisfaction that can overcome one who does the same things every day, in and out. A job that's really not quite enough to engage his formidable intellect. A home life that has long lost passion and romance. Silent frustration and ennui, but the impetus of momentum has a force all its own.
A chance radio contest about a long dead TV show, a phone call, and suddenly the man held a ticket abroad. Not two or more, but one. And after a heated if slightly frustrating set of conversations and arguments found himself on a plane to New Zealand. Why such a place? His son had spun the globe and put a finger down, asking daddy to bring him something from there.
It seemed very unreal at first, contrived. Even as he sat there in the plane, he was unable to relax and smile as if convinced that at any moment his name would be announced over the loudspeaker and asked to deplane to go back to security. There was no little trepidation mingled with the satisfaction of turning his cell phone off and tucking it away as the plane took off.
The flight itself was unremarkable, save for the pleasant novelty of having the stewards bring the bottles of wine around over and over, refilling everyone's cups for free. He refused the first time, but after a while shrugged to himself and had just enough to leave him napping for most of the flight.
In the main Auckland terminal, things were buzzing. There were uniformed men with dogs sniffing suitcases here and there, security standing about, and everyone seemed to be gabbling to someone else very quickly arranging pick ups, drop offs. Feeling a little lost, the man headed over toward a car rental company and asked about a car, and recommendations of where to go.
The young woman at the counter smiled at him warmly with a hint of sympathy for his slightly mussed appearance and stressed tone. She arranged the rental of one of the rare automatics, with plenty of warnings about which side of the road to travel on. For a moment it was like finding a new friend, and the man confessed the whole mad adventure in a rush. No plans, no agenda. A week with nowhere to go and no one to do it with.
The bright faced girl laughed, and casually passed him a brochure for a small bed and breakfast on the opposite coast with a map for how to get there. "It's very popular with the fisherman," she explained. "Sometimes you can even swim with the dolphins as they come into the small bay there. My dad used to go all the time."
The rates were surprisingly cheap in the flyer, and fit the limited budget of his trip enough that the man found himself nodding over and over. It was settled then. She shook his hand, and the warmth of that simple touch seemed to steady him at last. The world seemed more real abruptly, more clear, and for a moment he felt charming once more as he thanked her.
There were moments, as he worked his way through town many kilometers below the speed limit, that he became glad no one else was with him. Twice he narrowly avoided an accident by slamming on the breaks, and the whole matter of right hand turns felt all out of perspective. But once on the open highway he found a radio station and fewer cars. The windows down, he found his spirits lightening still further as he sang at the top of his lungs while winding through the countryside.