Begich family vacation: Take me too!

Regardless of how you feel about our junior senator politically or personally, it's hard to imagine anything more idyllic than a young family off on the Great American Road Trip. I have this fantasy that they're driving the nation's highways listening to the Harry Potter books on CD, or maybe singing along to the reissue of "Free To Be... You and Me," and playing the license plate game, with stops along the way to learn about famous landmarks and national parks. (I assume there are a lot fewer threats to "turn this car around" than there were on my family's many road trips, but maybe that assumption is grounded in fantasy; Jacob is reportedly somewhat of a handful.)

I e-mailed Begich spokeswoman Julie Hasquet to find out if there were any updates from the road, but it sounds like the Begich clan is on their own -- Hasquet hadn't heard from them in a couple of days but promised she'll let me know when she does. I can't blame her, though, if she doesn't get back to me even after she locates the family car. There's a very real chance that the next day they'd find me standing by the side of I-76 with a bag full of Mad Libs and Jolly Ranchers, thumbing a ride.

Contact Maia Nolan at maia(at)alaskadispatch.com.