Posted on March 16, 2012
by Renee Spindle
As most of you know my husband, aka Travel Man, is away from home quite a bit for his job. He is usually on a plane going somewhere, or traveling home.
Is it hard for us to stay connected and feel close to one another you may ask, why of course it is. But we try not to dwell on that fact. We are fortunate in this electronics age that we have many tools we can use to stay connected, communicate frequently, and try not to feel disconnected with the miles between us.
Our favorite form of travel communication is being able to Skype with each other. Skype is a great way to have a video phone call with your family members near and far. We have even had the opportunity to have a “group” Skype call, thanks to my brother. We got on a group Skype call for my Mom’s birthday, and sang to her. She was left speechless. I love to Skype with my grandson, even though he lives close by just to be able to chat with him via video. it’s always fun. We also Skype with distant relatives, and it’s such a great way to stay in touch.
Travel Man likes to be able to Skype every night or every other night depending on which time zone he is in. It’s always great to be able to see him on Skype, and for him to be able to get a glimpse of home while he’s on the road. For myself, once I’m able to see him I can tell how he’s really doing on the road. All of you wives out there know what I mean. If he’s looking really tired, and telling you things are fine you know he’s having a rough work week. If any of the kids are home they take the opportunity to say hi to their “Tom Dad”, and chat with him for a few minutes. That always helps Travel Man keep the connection with the kids, more than the kids realize. (Until they read this blog post of course.)
And of course we utilize email and text messages. I can Skype from my iPhone. Travel Man can Skype from his Vizio tablet. We are fairly well-connected, but I always like hearing his voice up close and personal on the phone. The good, old fashioned, phone conversations sometime can be fewer and further between than usual or than we would like them to be. But it’s always the best way for us to try to catch up with each other at the end of the day. And I do have to say that all of the various forms of communication are wonderful for both of us, but nothing beats going to the airport to pick up Travel Man. Then of course we come home for a great meal of homemade spaghetti.
If you have a road warrior in your life what’s your favorite way to stay connected?