Month Four: September

Somewhere in no-man’s land along I-16 between Savannah and Macon

Chip and I had to curtail our baby’s first in-utero trip to the Georgia coast. Relaxing on the windswept beach at Jekyll Island and running out for food ten times a day to appease the baby's appetite was pleasant enough until this morning, when the air conditioner broke in our car. Trust me, you don't want to be driving around in the coastal Georgia heat when you're pregnant. Currently all our windows are down as we head home but I'm getting little relief even at seventy mph. Carrying on a conversation with Chip above the roar is impossible.

We spent over a hundred dollars and three hours at the service station trying to determine the problem, apparently a blown fuse. We drove about five miles and reveled in the cool air blowing on us when we heard a “click” and the air started blowing hot again. Chip stopped at Walmart and bought a packet of fuses from the automotive department and we started back toward Atlanta, popping in new fuses as the old ones blew. Eventually that no longer worked, though.

You know how adversity often creates opportunity? The whole lemons and lemonade thing? Well, all that sweating (sorry, Miss Manners, but there's no way perspire is going to be an adequate word usage) has given me a terrific idea. If Georgia ever returns to the harrowing drought conditions of just a couple of years ago, at least now I’ve discovered the solution. Just put some pregnant women in a car without air conditioning. I'm thinking three would do it. And voila, there would be enough fluid streaming down the middle of their backs to overcome ANY drought.