When I worked in the group homes of Northern RIARC, or just RIARC as we commonly called it, it was a custom for staff to hook up with one of the residents each summer for a week long vacation to a relatively local destination of their choice. Over the course of several summers in the early nineties I had the following very memorable road trips with some very special residents.
Alfred in Maine
Probably the summer of 1991 since I do remember having a beer or two (or three) when bowling, eating out or back at the hotel. Though Alfred chose Maine, he couldn't define where in Maine or why Maine in particular. I knew he liked fishing and the water so I selected a destination near Old Orchard Beach. We fished for all of an hour or so before he wanted to go bowling. And everyday for the rest of the vacation in this picturesque touristy seaside Maine town, all he wanted to do was go bowling. Alfred was obsessed with bowling. And smoking. And, as you could do back then, smoking while bowling. I bowled with him but mostly I just kicked back with cold one and chilled, enjoying a free vacation while getting paid. Oh yeah.
Doris in Quebec City
I think it was the next summer, in '92 when Doris and I went to Quebec City. Though technically an international trip, for French-Canadian descendants of Woonsocket, it's just considered akin to a ethnic pilgrimage to the homeland. Doris wanted to see Canada, and she especially wanted to see the "old" Canada of her family verbal folklore. I knew well what she meant. My family too had many a tale of the "old country" when gathering for festive occasions. But when we got there, other than old historic buildings and structures, there wasn't what she really wanted...a bunch of olde tyme Cannucks sitting around the sugar shack singing drinking shanties to a fiddler's strummin'. They didn't offer this in the travel guides and brochures. But she did enjoy the old fort with the period costumed staff and the museums. One vivid memory of this trip though was the fact that I probably risked Doris overdoing it physically as I had just lost a lot of weight recently and was very fit walking rapidly to and fro all over town with Doris panting and sweating to keep up with me. Oh, and she was overweight and in her 60s. Oopsie. Well, luckily she didn't have a heart attack and she probably lost a couple pounds herself, so all's well.
Doris in Pennsylvania
The next summer, I though about Doris' wishes to see "olde tymers" and thought, "How about the Amish?" Turns out, there was a bus group that was organized by a local travel agency that had regular week-long vacation packages out to the Pennsylvania Dutch country from Rhode Island. With everyone else on that bus in Doris' age group, I was the only person under 30, but this was the trip she wanted. I gotta say, I had fun too. We stayed in a regular "English" motel, of course, but visited the Amish farms and shops that were open to the public and each evening sat down to a real farm-fresh Amish feast. It was cool and right up Doris' alley.
Alfred and Mary in Kingston
Now that I was working at the Elm Street apartments group home I took Elm Street residents on vacation but it turns out Alfred had moved from Gaskill to Elm so I again went on vacation with him, this time with his live-in girlfriend/fiance Mary. Mary was non-committal on any specifics, she was fully willing to do whatever Alfred wanted to do so he chose our destination. He again suggested Maine but knowing that last time all he wanted to do was bowl I suggested a summer cottage nearer to home in "South County" Rhode Island. (It's really Washington County but Rhode Islander's call it South County.) This week was a bit of a chore since all Alfred wanted to do, again, was go bowling but now, once there, Mary wanted to do other things and balked at the non-stop bowl-a-thon ambitions of Alfred. So they fought. Oh only verbally, of course, but they could both get very loud. So much of the week was spent just sitting around the house doing nothing with me having to calm each of them down when they got into each other's face. They were two stubborn people set in their usual rituals. Not really a great mindset when on vacation. We ended the "week" a couple days short and once back home they both fell back into their usual routines and were much nicer to each other. Traveling was never going to be their thing. Oh well, live and learn.
Kenny in Boston
Kenny was closer to my age so he was enthusiastic to do younger things and liked the idea of visiting and staying in a bigger city so we set off for Boston. He (and I) were really into exhibits and educational/cultural activities so we went to the Computer Museum, Science Museum, Art Museums, outdoor concerts and a Broadway musical. Budgets were fairly ample for these vacations (the money coming from some grant or donor I guess) so I made sure we made the best of it. We were pooped from this high-energy vacation by the end of the week but I'm sure he talked about it for years afterwards.
Alfred in Maine
Probably the summer of 1991 since I do remember having a beer or two (or three) when bowling, eating out or back at the hotel. Though Alfred chose Maine, he couldn't define where in Maine or why Maine in particular. I knew he liked fishing and the water so I selected a destination near Old Orchard Beach. We fished for all of an hour or so before he wanted to go bowling. And everyday for the rest of the vacation in this picturesque touristy seaside Maine town, all he wanted to do was go bowling. Alfred was obsessed with bowling. And smoking. And, as you could do back then, smoking while bowling. I bowled with him but mostly I just kicked back with cold one and chilled, enjoying a free vacation while getting paid. Oh yeah.
Doris in Quebec City
I think it was the next summer, in '92 when Doris and I went to Quebec City. Though technically an international trip, for French-Canadian descendants of Woonsocket, it's just considered akin to a ethnic pilgrimage to the homeland. Doris wanted to see Canada, and she especially wanted to see the "old" Canada of her family verbal folklore. I knew well what she meant. My family too had many a tale of the "old country" when gathering for festive occasions. But when we got there, other than old historic buildings and structures, there wasn't what she really wanted...a bunch of olde tyme Cannucks sitting around the sugar shack singing drinking shanties to a fiddler's strummin'. They didn't offer this in the travel guides and brochures. But she did enjoy the old fort with the period costumed staff and the museums. One vivid memory of this trip though was the fact that I probably risked Doris overdoing it physically as I had just lost a lot of weight recently and was very fit walking rapidly to and fro all over town with Doris panting and sweating to keep up with me. Oh, and she was overweight and in her 60s. Oopsie. Well, luckily she didn't have a heart attack and she probably lost a couple pounds herself, so all's well.
Doris in Pennsylvania
The next summer, I though about Doris' wishes to see "olde tymers" and thought, "How about the Amish?" Turns out, there was a bus group that was organized by a local travel agency that had regular week-long vacation packages out to the Pennsylvania Dutch country from Rhode Island. With everyone else on that bus in Doris' age group, I was the only person under 30, but this was the trip she wanted. I gotta say, I had fun too. We stayed in a regular "English" motel, of course, but visited the Amish farms and shops that were open to the public and each evening sat down to a real farm-fresh Amish feast. It was cool and right up Doris' alley.
Alfred and Mary in Kingston
Now that I was working at the Elm Street apartments group home I took Elm Street residents on vacation but it turns out Alfred had moved from Gaskill to Elm so I again went on vacation with him, this time with his live-in girlfriend/fiance Mary. Mary was non-committal on any specifics, she was fully willing to do whatever Alfred wanted to do so he chose our destination. He again suggested Maine but knowing that last time all he wanted to do was bowl I suggested a summer cottage nearer to home in "South County" Rhode Island. (It's really Washington County but Rhode Islander's call it South County.) This week was a bit of a chore since all Alfred wanted to do, again, was go bowling but now, once there, Mary wanted to do other things and balked at the non-stop bowl-a-thon ambitions of Alfred. So they fought. Oh only verbally, of course, but they could both get very loud. So much of the week was spent just sitting around the house doing nothing with me having to calm each of them down when they got into each other's face. They were two stubborn people set in their usual rituals. Not really a great mindset when on vacation. We ended the "week" a couple days short and once back home they both fell back into their usual routines and were much nicer to each other. Traveling was never going to be their thing. Oh well, live and learn.
Kenny in Boston
Kenny was closer to my age so he was enthusiastic to do younger things and liked the idea of visiting and staying in a bigger city so we set off for Boston. He (and I) were really into exhibits and educational/cultural activities so we went to the Computer Museum, Science Museum, Art Museums, outdoor concerts and a Broadway musical. Budgets were fairly ample for these vacations (the money coming from some grant or donor I guess) so I made sure we made the best of it. We were pooped from this high-energy vacation by the end of the week but I'm sure he talked about it for years afterwards.