Car & Vomit
I’ve been trying to think from Thursday of any peculiar tradition in my family, and I can’t remember any. That’s strange, because I know my family is very peculiar, and I can’t believe we didn’t have a ritual for anything.

Now, you people keep talking about car journeys, and that made me think of a kind of “ritual” that we would follow every time we had to go by car. It didn’t matter if it was a short ride or two whole days on it. Car meant vomit. A lot of vomit everywhere.

The ritual would start with my mother giving me Biodramina (a pill again car sickness). I would cry and cry helpless, begging please not to be put in the car, telling them that the pill wouldn’t work. We knew it wouldn’t work. She’d make me eat the really disgusting thing and that would make me sick before hand (after a few years of this, she gave up)

Then, my father would ask a hundred times if I had enough plastic bags. Depending on the journey I had to take more or less, but to give you an idea, for a 15 min ride I had to take at least 3, and make sure they didn’t have holes. One day my father came with a big roll. It was like one massive plastic bag rolled very tight. It came in a cylinder with a knife at the end, so I could cut the bag as long as I wanted, then tie one end and use it.

In the meantime, my mum, knowing me, would take a lot of towels.

Well, everything ready we would go to the car. Just the smell of it would make me sick (it still happens sometimes with very old cars). My sister would sit near one of the doors, my brother in the middle and me near the other door. Always like that (my brother had tried a few times to leave the car when still in motion)

Then my sister and I would go to sleep. For a while, only. I would wake up and, immediately, start vomiting. It didn’t matter what I had eaten before. Once I vomited all the gastric acids on my stomach, as I hadn’t had lunch. Then, my sister, with the smell and the sounds, would wake up too, and start vomiting.

My mother would start shouting “How can I have two daughters so stupid, eh? How can I?” If we were lucky, my sister would reach one of the bags on time. If not, the car floor would be a mess (forever, it never got cleaned).

After some time of having each sister in one side vomiting for England (or for Spain, but we don’t use that expression) my brother would join us. So the car and us would end up covered in vomit. Every single time.

And that’s the more important and repeated ritual in my family.

(My father would only play the same singer in his car all the time, and until very recently I couldn’t listen to him without feeling sick)
(Aberracion Life's getting very complicated, but a lot of fun., Wed 26 Nov 2008, 8:30, 7 replies)

WOW!
Thats super harsh. Do you still get sick in cars now?
(powervator and NONE SHALL PASS, Wed 26 Nov 2008, 10:05, closed)

I do
But I have improved a lot. It doesn't happen that much these days.

I've been known for swallowing my vomit once I forgot my bags in my uncle's car. He was very picky about his car.
(Aberracion Life's getting very complicated, but a lot of fun., Wed 26 Nov 2008, 12:28, closed)

Being the world's most travel-sick person
I was often punished for barfing so I have a deep compassion for queasy kids.

When I used to take my kids' friends out with them in my old cars/minibus/camper van I'd always explain gently that some people get a bit sick on a journey so here's an ice cream box with a carrier bag in and some kitchen roll...

Why can't everyone manage that? Not feckin' rocket science.
(Juan Quar is clinging to her front teeth on, Wed 26 Nov 2008, 14:09, closed)

Exactly
It's not that difficult. My parents and my family in general were very patient with this, but my uncle...
(Aberracion Life's getting very complicated, but a lot of fun., Wed 26 Nov 2008, 14:46, closed)

Oh yeah, and who was the singer?
*retches in anticipation*
(Juan Quar is clinging to her front teeth on, Wed 26 Nov 2008, 14:10, closed)

Joan Manuel Serrat
Now I love him, but then...
(Aberracion Life's getting very complicated, but a lot of fun., Wed 26 Nov 2008, 14:45, closed)

Oh my..
you poor thing!
(TDub Nunc id vides, nunc ne vides on, Wed 26 Nov 2008, 15:55, closed)