Well, Tallahassee’s green team – FAMU’s Green Coalition and Florida State’s environmental group – hadn’t even made it to Washington D.C. when adventure found us on the bus ride.
The trip on the FAMU bus started simply enough about 12:21am when we left the parking services lot and went on the road. After several attempts at completing our first roll call (painful and funny at the same time), we experienced a fright like no other. A student spotted a spider near her seat and pierced the night with her scream. It seemed like she had seen one of those oversized arachnid creatures from a 1950s B-movie.
Once we managed to calm down our shaken comrade (it wasn’t easy), we participated in America’s democratic process and voted for the first road trip movie for the night “House Party,” a 90s classic. There was action, romance, laughs and dance moves that would go on to influence even today’s generation of dancers.
The next movie on tap was “ATL” (yes, the same one that shows on BET and MTV on alternating nights) during which most people went to sleep. (now was that the fault of the movie or the hour; in the producers’ defense, it was about 3:00am).
Sharp turns in Georgia in the pitch black night woke several of us up, and gave us a lot to talk about to sunrise. Later, we took our first rest stop and, despite a delay from one student who was determined to make sure he’s the last person on the bus at any stop, made it back on the road in less than half an hour.
We continued on through Georgia and entered South Carolina around 11:00. The long trip was starting to take its toll on students. There were even talks of a Coup D’état (sleep deprivation and near-death experiences will do that to you).
Those thoughts were diminished upon entrance into Virginia. This was where we faced our biggest scare of the trip yet. While driving in heavy traffic, a minivan swerved right in front of the bus.
The driver slammed on the brakes causing nearly everyone to bounce off the seats in front of them. A few of our students let the minivan driver know how they felt.
And yes, all of that before we made it to D.C.
Later, Rattlers and Seminoles.
— Anthony
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