I have been at my home in Arlington, Virginia for about a week. That's long enough. Long enough for me to cook a few meals for myself, long enough to meet up with some friends, long enough to do some laundry. I had a job interview in there too. (They've got it down to me and someone else, and the second interview will be in early October.)
I really wanted to see my friends Brian and Jenny Lumb at Nourish and Flourish in Asheville on The Pilgrimage, but I didn't tell them that I was planning to see them until I was leaving. At that point, they quickly and regretfully told me they were in Seattle! I would still like to go see them, so I will do that now. They will be there this time. One good thing about going now is that I may actually get to see some fall foliage on the trees...maybe.
If I don't see autumn leaves on my way to Asheville, I may see some as I head north through West Virginia and Pennsylvania. I am going to see some other friends in New York and Ontario this time after I leave North Carolina. I may go to Rhode Island (one of my two remaining states) on the way back, but I probably won't. I invited another friend to come see me next weekend, and I hope he can come. He lives on the west coast and really needs a break from the project he has been doing recently in Boston, so I suggested he take a hop down to DC instead of going all the way back to California for the weekend. I did not get to see him when I was out there last month. Anyway, I can't be in Rhode Island and Washington at the same time, and I am definitely going to be in Canada at least two nights. For sure.
This time, I have a white Kia Forte. The guy who gave be the upgrade was not at the car rental place today, so I spoke to Lolita again. She is the person who checked me in last time. She is a nice lady, but she wasn't going to upgrade me. Not even if I batted my eyelashes at her. In fact, today they did not have anything to upgrade. At the time I picked up my car, they had my Kia and a 15 passenger van. That's it. She offered me the van, and I said no. (Someone had it reserved anyway.) I usually reserve a compact car, which is actually a sedan, and usually I get a Ford Focus. I am not happy about getting a Kia this time, but we'll see how it does. I am sure it's the same car class as the Focus, but I just can't stop thinking about those hamsters in their commercial, and that's not the picture I want for a car that I am driving hundreds or thousands of miles. I think they need to rethink their branding strategy. I used to work for Honda, and we made fun of Kias. We also made fun of Hyundais though, and I know they have come a long way since I was at Honda.
Saturday, September 20, 2014
Friday, September 12, 2014
End times are here
I just returned my car to the car rental place. After asking my mileage, the woman at the desk informed me that I put 6,901 miles on their car and she was not allowed to rent it again until they got the oil changed.
I said, "I know. It's been telling me about the oil change since Death Valley."
She said, "Wow. That's a long trip. I hope you weren't alone."
"No," I said. "My dog was with me." I am pretty sure she was asking about humans.
In 6,901 miles, I saw 19 different states and Mexico, bringing my total number of states visited to 48 and Oscar's to 22 since I adopted him in February 2012. According to the in-car tracking, I spent 130 hours behind the wheel.
I don't know what to say about the success or failure of my pilgrimage. I said that I was setting out to find the answers to life's important questions, but the best answer I have now is that the meaning of life is to live it. We've all heard this kind of cliche before, and I was kind of hoping for something a bit more clear and specific.
I talked to a lot of people who might know about what I am going through, hoping they would give me answers. I talked to a senior foreign service officer. I talked to people who came to the U.S. from other countries, including countries in southwest Asia. I talked to former expatriates. I talked to several military personnel, officers and enlisted, retired and active, including one man who lost an eye and half of his skull to an improvised explosive device in Iraq. I talked to someone from the United Nations. I talked to the spouse of a World Bank employee. I talked to government contractors who worked overseas. I talked to government civilians who worked overseas. I talked to the former bureau chief of a major overseas post for a major American newspaper. I talked to a radio DJ who just has a lot of sense. I heard a lot of very interesting stories and perspectives. I realized I do have very interesting friends.
The stories and the meaning people made from them were as different as the individuals who told the stories though. This wasn't terribly helpful from a deductive perspective. So, I considered what inductive reasoning might do for me. (And all this time, I wasn't sure what I'd do with that darn Ph.D.!) With all this variation in my "research," I started to question the social norms and values that I had subscribed to and I asked myself if these conversations could provide other ways for me to see the world. Is it an accident that I studied cultural hegemony in my academic ramblings?
One of the things I learned in Afghanistan is that Americans don't have all the answers. We often think we do, and sometimes others expect that we do. I looked at myself now and tried to figure out how this applied to me. (I also thought about U.S. foreign policy, but that's another question for another day.) For example, I had this idea that I needed a JOB. I would ask questions like, "Where will I work?" and "What will I do?" But I realized in my wandering that instead if I asked questions like, "What is my legacy?" and "How do I make a difference to others?" the answers were different.
I talked with several people about how to define success. I thought about my friends who are big corporate executives and my friends who have smart and active kids. I thought about my friends who have long marriages. I thought of my friends with big houses and expensive cars. I don't have any of that. What makes me a success? Another friend suggested that perhaps for me, success is not about a big bank account or another diploma on the wall. He recognized that while I do set goals, the goals are just guideposts as I go off on another journey...and the journey is what I enjoy. I do really like talking to people and sharing ideas. My next question to my friend was: How do I find a meaningful journey? He said, "Let it find you." That is a novel idea...and a lot less work.
One of my very helpful friends suggested that I think of myself as "retired." He didn't mean that I should take up gardening or play bridge all afternoon. Instead, he suggested that I free myself from the idea of having to work and to think instead of what I would do if I could do anything.
He suggested not only thinking of what I want to do, but how I want to do it. What if I just took a part-time job? What if I worked from home? (Wait! What? I need health insurance and a 401k and a boss and regular income and all that, don't I?) Well, wouldn't you know it, as soon as I let go of the idea of needing a job for the benefits, I found TWO respectable-sounding part-time jobs that I would consider doing, and both included benefits! (I applied to one and got a reply within an hour that sounded very promising. I will probably apply to the other one too.) As I thought about it, I considered my friends who had non-traditional jobs and still have not found themselves living under a bridge. I realized a part-time job with benefits would give me time to do other things.
This is where a sinister voice creeps in and says: "So your big discovery was that you can get a part-time job which will afford you time to go get a real job. Brilliant. Pilgrimage = success. Yes, that was sarcasm."
Ugh.
I know, all of you who are entrepreneurs are saying this is nothing new. That's what made this discovery so hard. There seems to be no universal "right" answer. Everyone seems to have different questions and answers regarding the same problem.
For now, I'm better off concerning myself about what I needed to discover and letting everyone else worry about finding their own answers for themselves. Good luck, y'all.
I am not sure that my pilgrimage gave me the "answers to life's hard questions" that I was seeking, but it seems to have opened a lot more doors for me if I can keep the sinister voices at bay. It has also given me some liberty to be okay with doing what is right for me even if it's not in accordance with society's pictures.
I said, "I know. It's been telling me about the oil change since Death Valley."
She said, "Wow. That's a long trip. I hope you weren't alone."
"No," I said. "My dog was with me." I am pretty sure she was asking about humans.
In 6,901 miles, I saw 19 different states and Mexico, bringing my total number of states visited to 48 and Oscar's to 22 since I adopted him in February 2012. According to the in-car tracking, I spent 130 hours behind the wheel.
I don't know what to say about the success or failure of my pilgrimage. I said that I was setting out to find the answers to life's important questions, but the best answer I have now is that the meaning of life is to live it. We've all heard this kind of cliche before, and I was kind of hoping for something a bit more clear and specific.
I talked to a lot of people who might know about what I am going through, hoping they would give me answers. I talked to a senior foreign service officer. I talked to people who came to the U.S. from other countries, including countries in southwest Asia. I talked to former expatriates. I talked to several military personnel, officers and enlisted, retired and active, including one man who lost an eye and half of his skull to an improvised explosive device in Iraq. I talked to someone from the United Nations. I talked to the spouse of a World Bank employee. I talked to government contractors who worked overseas. I talked to government civilians who worked overseas. I talked to the former bureau chief of a major overseas post for a major American newspaper. I talked to a radio DJ who just has a lot of sense. I heard a lot of very interesting stories and perspectives. I realized I do have very interesting friends.
The stories and the meaning people made from them were as different as the individuals who told the stories though. This wasn't terribly helpful from a deductive perspective. So, I considered what inductive reasoning might do for me. (And all this time, I wasn't sure what I'd do with that darn Ph.D.!) With all this variation in my "research," I started to question the social norms and values that I had subscribed to and I asked myself if these conversations could provide other ways for me to see the world. Is it an accident that I studied cultural hegemony in my academic ramblings?
One of the things I learned in Afghanistan is that Americans don't have all the answers. We often think we do, and sometimes others expect that we do. I looked at myself now and tried to figure out how this applied to me. (I also thought about U.S. foreign policy, but that's another question for another day.) For example, I had this idea that I needed a JOB. I would ask questions like, "Where will I work?" and "What will I do?" But I realized in my wandering that instead if I asked questions like, "What is my legacy?" and "How do I make a difference to others?" the answers were different.
I talked with several people about how to define success. I thought about my friends who are big corporate executives and my friends who have smart and active kids. I thought about my friends who have long marriages. I thought of my friends with big houses and expensive cars. I don't have any of that. What makes me a success? Another friend suggested that perhaps for me, success is not about a big bank account or another diploma on the wall. He recognized that while I do set goals, the goals are just guideposts as I go off on another journey...and the journey is what I enjoy. I do really like talking to people and sharing ideas. My next question to my friend was: How do I find a meaningful journey? He said, "Let it find you." That is a novel idea...and a lot less work.
One of my very helpful friends suggested that I think of myself as "retired." He didn't mean that I should take up gardening or play bridge all afternoon. Instead, he suggested that I free myself from the idea of having to work and to think instead of what I would do if I could do anything.
He suggested not only thinking of what I want to do, but how I want to do it. What if I just took a part-time job? What if I worked from home? (Wait! What? I need health insurance and a 401k and a boss and regular income and all that, don't I?) Well, wouldn't you know it, as soon as I let go of the idea of needing a job for the benefits, I found TWO respectable-sounding part-time jobs that I would consider doing, and both included benefits! (I applied to one and got a reply within an hour that sounded very promising. I will probably apply to the other one too.) As I thought about it, I considered my friends who had non-traditional jobs and still have not found themselves living under a bridge. I realized a part-time job with benefits would give me time to do other things.
This is where a sinister voice creeps in and says: "So your big discovery was that you can get a part-time job which will afford you time to go get a real job. Brilliant. Pilgrimage = success. Yes, that was sarcasm."
Ugh.
I know, all of you who are entrepreneurs are saying this is nothing new. That's what made this discovery so hard. There seems to be no universal "right" answer. Everyone seems to have different questions and answers regarding the same problem.
For now, I'm better off concerning myself about what I needed to discover and letting everyone else worry about finding their own answers for themselves. Good luck, y'all.
I am not sure that my pilgrimage gave me the "answers to life's hard questions" that I was seeking, but it seems to have opened a lot more doors for me if I can keep the sinister voices at bay. It has also given me some liberty to be okay with doing what is right for me even if it's not in accordance with society's pictures.
Thursday, August 21, 2014
Land of Entrapment
While their license plates say that New Mexico is the Land of Enchantment, I've heard more than once from more than one independent source that New Mexico is the Land of Entrapment. It's felt like the Hotel California: You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.
I have been trying to leave for two days now.
Yesterday, I tried to leave, and I made it from Santa Fe, where I have been staying, to Albuquerque, almost 45 minutes away, before I turned around and went back to Santa Fe. I decided to leave yesterday because I had a schedule to keep and places I planned to see. I'd already delayed a day. I have a car to return in a couple weeks. I had almost 8,000 miles to cover. I have friends who have lives and schedules and they want to see me, and I want to see them. They have bosses and jobs and all that nonsense that I had to respect. I had to get going. That was my thinking when I decided to leave.
Gratefully, I did not get too far down the road before I was struck by an idea. It honestly felt like a divine inspiration. I'll prefer to think that it was from the Land of Enchantment/Entrapment...or call it God, if you're inclined. I'll just say that it felt like something bigger than me was lovingly slapping me upside the head and saying, "Hey Chica, WTF are you doing? You say you took this trip to get answers to some of life's hard questions, to do new things, to explore new paradigms, to get a new framework for looking at and living life. And you're leaving because you are afraid that you won't get enough of your arbitrarily set mileage under your wheels, because your supposed friends would -- what? -- stop talking to you if your schedules did not mesh up? This is about putting on your own air mask first, Chica. You have good friends. They will be there for you, whether it works to see them now or not. This is not about your schedule, a schedule that you made up and you can change, by the way. You need to take care of yourself right now." That's what the voice -- except I get "messages from God" as feelings, not voices -- that's what the feeling said to me.
I have actually been learning and exploring a lot about myself and my questions here in Santa Fe, and when I have wanted to leave, it hasn't felt right so far. In fact, while my friends were perfectly willing to let me go if I wanted to, it felt like they were begging me to stay. (They're pretty intuitive friends.) And I have wanted to go, or said I wanted to go, to keep my schedule and my goals intact. Yet, I've done things like engaged in extremely stimulating hours-long conversations about esoteric, intellectual ideals for just long enough that leaving at that later hour seemed impractical. I think my higher self was sabotaging my plans knowing that I enjoy few things more than stimulating conversation. I did get some good personal insights along the way, so it wasn't totally just mental masturbation!
Actually, I had quite a full day yesterday. When I unpacked again at my friends' house for yet another night, I was spent. I took a long nap and then slept a full night on top of it. It seemed like my body just needed time to integrate all the new insights. I'd spent a lot of time yesterday with my friend, Judy, at the Scher Center for Wellbeing, and I have been staying with my friends, Srideep and Laura. Laura is also a practitioner at the Center. After I talked (and cried) with both of them yesterday, I realized what they do for a living and what they were doing, very intensively, for/with me, was precisely what I'd been looking for. It added to all the other things I have been doing here in Santa Fe.
I think I will leave today, to see my friends in California, but it will be with a lot of new wisdom about me; how I make choices; which kinds of choices work for me and which don't; how I think and act when I am/am not living from a energized, resourceful place; how to stay energized; why that matters, etc. I know a lot of this stuff, since I have also been studying it for the past few years, but I forget. Like many people, I sometimes get sucked into what we tend to call life, and I forget what living is all about.
I am definitely not saying that I have the answers to the questions I set out to seek, and I am not sure they will come in such a stark way. Right now, I am working on BEING in a most authentic way, and I expect the answers will come. In fact, I fully expect that the "questions" will change in such a way that what I am referring to here as "answers" will probably be irrelevant. New questions will come instead.
I've officially decided to scrap the schedule and itinerary. I think I am leaving Santa Fe, for now, but I might be back. It is the Land of Entrapment, after all. I really want to see my friends in California. This stop has been just what I needed. I trust that I will know what I need to do when I need to do it next, and I trust it will come to me at just the right moment.
I have been trying to leave for two days now.
Yesterday, I tried to leave, and I made it from Santa Fe, where I have been staying, to Albuquerque, almost 45 minutes away, before I turned around and went back to Santa Fe. I decided to leave yesterday because I had a schedule to keep and places I planned to see. I'd already delayed a day. I have a car to return in a couple weeks. I had almost 8,000 miles to cover. I have friends who have lives and schedules and they want to see me, and I want to see them. They have bosses and jobs and all that nonsense that I had to respect. I had to get going. That was my thinking when I decided to leave.
Gratefully, I did not get too far down the road before I was struck by an idea. It honestly felt like a divine inspiration. I'll prefer to think that it was from the Land of Enchantment/Entrapment...or call it God, if you're inclined. I'll just say that it felt like something bigger than me was lovingly slapping me upside the head and saying, "Hey Chica, WTF are you doing? You say you took this trip to get answers to some of life's hard questions, to do new things, to explore new paradigms, to get a new framework for looking at and living life. And you're leaving because you are afraid that you won't get enough of your arbitrarily set mileage under your wheels, because your supposed friends would -- what? -- stop talking to you if your schedules did not mesh up? This is about putting on your own air mask first, Chica. You have good friends. They will be there for you, whether it works to see them now or not. This is not about your schedule, a schedule that you made up and you can change, by the way. You need to take care of yourself right now." That's what the voice -- except I get "messages from God" as feelings, not voices -- that's what the feeling said to me.
I have actually been learning and exploring a lot about myself and my questions here in Santa Fe, and when I have wanted to leave, it hasn't felt right so far. In fact, while my friends were perfectly willing to let me go if I wanted to, it felt like they were begging me to stay. (They're pretty intuitive friends.) And I have wanted to go, or said I wanted to go, to keep my schedule and my goals intact. Yet, I've done things like engaged in extremely stimulating hours-long conversations about esoteric, intellectual ideals for just long enough that leaving at that later hour seemed impractical. I think my higher self was sabotaging my plans knowing that I enjoy few things more than stimulating conversation. I did get some good personal insights along the way, so it wasn't totally just mental masturbation!
Actually, I had quite a full day yesterday. When I unpacked again at my friends' house for yet another night, I was spent. I took a long nap and then slept a full night on top of it. It seemed like my body just needed time to integrate all the new insights. I'd spent a lot of time yesterday with my friend, Judy, at the Scher Center for Wellbeing, and I have been staying with my friends, Srideep and Laura. Laura is also a practitioner at the Center. After I talked (and cried) with both of them yesterday, I realized what they do for a living and what they were doing, very intensively, for/with me, was precisely what I'd been looking for. It added to all the other things I have been doing here in Santa Fe.
I think I will leave today, to see my friends in California, but it will be with a lot of new wisdom about me; how I make choices; which kinds of choices work for me and which don't; how I think and act when I am/am not living from a energized, resourceful place; how to stay energized; why that matters, etc. I know a lot of this stuff, since I have also been studying it for the past few years, but I forget. Like many people, I sometimes get sucked into what we tend to call life, and I forget what living is all about.
I am definitely not saying that I have the answers to the questions I set out to seek, and I am not sure they will come in such a stark way. Right now, I am working on BEING in a most authentic way, and I expect the answers will come. In fact, I fully expect that the "questions" will change in such a way that what I am referring to here as "answers" will probably be irrelevant. New questions will come instead.
I've officially decided to scrap the schedule and itinerary. I think I am leaving Santa Fe, for now, but I might be back. It is the Land of Entrapment, after all. I really want to see my friends in California. This stop has been just what I needed. I trust that I will know what I need to do when I need to do it next, and I trust it will come to me at just the right moment.
Friday, August 15, 2014
Night Sounds
Like I said, it had been a long time since I camped. I love
camping. The smells, the sounds, the grit of sand in everything. Awesomeness.
I am borrowing a tent. It’s one of those popup tents. I tell
you, whoever invented that thing is a genius. How in the world anyone thought
that if you’d just bend this twisty pole this way and that one that way, it
will lie down flat as a saucer. If you unleash the band holding the tension,
poof! You have a tent that you can stand up in! Pure genius! Unfortunately, you
also have to be a genius to get it to go back into the saucer shape so you can,
oh, I dunno, put it in your car and continue down the road! I did it…kind
of…but it might be worth it to stop somewhere and see if I can invest in yet
another tent for my own private collection, which is already substanial. A
collection, I might add, which is currently in a storage unit in Michigan.
So yeah. Another thing I didn’t have was a camping mat. I
have two of them in my stash in Michigan, one that I just brought home from
Afghanistan. I never thought I’d need it in DC. One of my friends wisely
suggested that I go to Walmart and buy an end-of-season air mattress. I did
that. I even got a fancy one for $5.00 instead of the cheap, ordinary one they
had for $2.00. Woo-hoo. My friend is very smart. (He also showed me how to fold
the pop-up tent, which was a lot easier when we did it together.
Maybe I need to check Walmart for tents. I wonder if they’d
be cheaper in Arkansas.
So, last night, as I was falling asleep to a chorus of
crickets singing in beautiful harmony, thanking goodness for my good fortune,
to be surrounded by such beauty, realizing that my $5.00 air mattress was quite
sufficient and my borrowed down sleeping bag, that the same friend said was
older than me, was just warm enough. All was well.
I had drifted off to sleep when I was awakened by what
sounded like the howling of a dog. Interesting. I wonder if Oscar heard that.
Being a dachshund, Oscar was burrowed in as far as he could
go into the mummy bag, where I was also sleeping. I think this was his first
time camping, so he was plastered up against me, which made turning and
adjusting difficult. And with so much on my mind lately, I have been a very
restless sleeper. It simply wouldn’t do, so I shoved him down to the end of the
bag, where my feet were, where there was more room, and he had his safe little
cocoon. I hoped he wouldn’t get too hot because he wasn’t getting out too
easily with me in there.
Anyway, the coyotes or whatever they were, were baying –
attacking something or mating or whatever. I remembered once we’d heard them
when I was at Rusty’s cabin not too far from here.
A little while later, I heard another sound, the long, low
“whooooooooooo, whooooooooooooo” of an owl. I’d learned what owls sound like
when I was at the Sandy Creek Nature Center in Athens, Georgia, where I’d
served on the Board of Directors. Yep, I said to myself, owls are night
creatures. I love camping. And I dozed off to sleep again.
A while later, I was awakened by footsteps. There was
someone walking around my tent! Holy shit! There was someone walking around my
tent. Where is Oscar? WTF kind of attack dog are you, Oscar, all shoved down
there in the sleeping bag?? There is someone outside!! I quickly thought about
what was out there. What could they want? I have been camping enough to know
you don’t leave valuable things out. Everything was either locked in the car or
in the tent with me. I’m not going out there in the middle of the night, I
thought. They can take my camping chair. Where was my knife?
The footsteps were walking all around the tent. In my
restlessness, I had scooted myself to the far end of the tent, and I was all
the way in the back corner. I just listened. Then I started thinking. Those
were quick, light footsteps. Those were not human footsteps.
Again, I thought, what did I leave outside? Dog food? Ah, I
think I left the can from the meal replacement shake that I had for dinner.
Well, that was stupid. Wait, no. I distinctly remember locking that in the
trash bag in the car. What is it? Well, this IS bear country. I’d seen them up
at the cabin. But the campground didn’t have bear bins or signs. Anyway, I am
definitely not getting out of the tent.
The footsteps continued. Then they stopped. Then, it sounded
like a zipper was coming undone. It was coming into my tent! Maybe I was wrong!
Was it a human? Wait! That’s not a zipper!!!!! That’s not a human! That’s a
stream of piss!!! The little bastard is pissing on my tent!!!
It took a split second for that to run through my head, and
I pounded on the tent wall. I think/hope it scared the effing creature so much
that I didn’t even hear it scamper away. The “zipper” sound stopped and so did
the footsteps.
In the morning, I awoke, and sure enough the tent was
covered in dew, and there was one spot in the back where the water pattern was
just a little different. I rinsed it off with water and attempted the semi-futile
effort of trying to fold the genius pop-up tent.
Oh, and I said a special prayer (and by prayer, I mean
curse) for the previous occupants of tent site #26 at the Panther Creek State
Park campground in Morrisville, TN. For dumping your leftover vegetables in the
drainage ditch by the woods, may a thousand raccoons piss on your home. You are
truly idiots.
Dateline: Panther Creek State Park Campground, Morristown, Tennessee
Somewhere along the line, I lost the post for Roanoke. Sorry, Steve!
It’s been a long time since I went camping. I actually got
settled a lot faster than I expected, and there was more sunlight than I
expected when I was done, but I still would not have liked to go further. The
next camping opportunity we would have had would have been past Knoxville, and
I am pretty sure I would have run out of daylight by the time I got settled
there.
This is fine. This is a nice park, a bit out of the way, but
that is OK too. Peace and quiet -- and did I mention peace? -- is good.
Oscar and I went on a little hike after we arrived, and he
got to smell a new smell: deer! He was all for tracking the loping creature
through the woods, but I didn’t think that was wise. Of course, it’s not nice
to harass wildlife, but it is getting dark and there are people (and park
rangers) lurking about. Oscar always comes when I call him at home, even if he
is on a scent, but no. We’re not chasing deer in the state park tonight. Sorry,
boy.
Once again, the driving today was all interstate. I didn’t
leave Roanoke until about 10:45, which was perfect since I was up late last
night talking to Steve. I met my friend, Sherrie, in Blacksburg. Sherrie worked
with me at UGA, and we had lunch together. That was really a special treat.
Seeing Sherrie was a treat, indeed, but she works at the Maryland Virginia
College of Veterinary Medicine, which is on Virginia Tech’s campus, so Oscar
and I got a tour of their (pretty incredible) facility there.
We also met Terry (I think that was her name), a veterinary
toxicologist at the school. She told us about a discovery made at the school
recently showing that common household cleaners cause damage to reproductive systems in mice. That’s pretty big news. One thing I have enjoyed about
working at a university is access there is such a diversity of cutting edge
information.
Unfortunately, my friends in Asheville are currently in
Seattle, so it didn’t make sense for me to drive down to North Carolina. I have
seen the Blue Ridge Parkway many times, and it was trying to rain for a while
today, so I just stayed on I-81 and went straight to Tennessee.
When I did my Southeast USA road trip in March, I went
through the Smoky Mountain National Park. Plus, my friend, Rusty, has a cabin
just outside Gatlinburg – it’s for sale, if anyone is interested! – and I have
been to the cabin with him many, many times. For all those reasons, I’m not too
sad about moving quickly through this part of the country or staying on the interstate.
I am not sure when I will run into any more friends. Maybe
not until I get out west. This part of the country still feels very familiar,
so I am sure the full effects of hitting the road won’t sink in until at least
Friday or later.
It’s 9 pm here and the crickets are singing in harmony. The
sun is completely down, and I am sure it will wake me when it rises, so…until
tomorrow, good night.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Day 1 - The Route
Go ahead. You can tell me I am crazy. I feel like I am crazy. Of course, some in my circle of friends think that crazy is the only way to be. Sometimes I believe that too. Actually, most times I believe that. You can't inspire change in the world unless you're doing things a little differently.
So...Oscar and I are embarking on a pilgrimage. We're taking the next month or two to drive around the USA and Canada. We'll cover about 8,000 miles. It's the old fashioned contemplative kind of pilgrimage where you try to find answers to life's hard questions. It's also a modern kind, with the benefits of America's interstate system and a nice black steed in the shape of a Ford Fusion. I am going to camp wherever I can, and while I have a general path and direction set out, I'm planning to stop along the way and take scenic routes and state roads when the whim strikes.
This is the tentative general plan:
Begin in Washington, D.C. - Almost all of my worldly possessions are in a storage unit in Michigan, so I have some borrowed things and some new purchases of duplicate things, and a secure knowledge that I really don't need much.
I don't have a car of my own, so I rented one from the car rental place at the corner. It's a place that I walked past every day on my way to work. One day, one of the workers said as I was walking by, "Good morning, beautiful!" I remember that day very clearly. He really did make me feel pretty that day.
The same guy remembered me today when I walked into the store. He jokingly asked if I came to see him, and I smiled and said, "I came to rent a car!" He was happy to help me. And by "help" I mean upgrade me a level (or two), give me free Sirius radio and a half tank of gas. He hugged me three times and gave me a peck on the cheek, wishing me luck on my journey. Later he called me, from his cell phone, just to make sure I liked the car, and so I would have his number...just in case I wanted to call.
Drive to Asheville, NC via the Blue Ridge Parkway - I can't think of a better way to start this trip than by stopping to see my friends, Brian and Jenny Lumb at Nourish and Flourish in Asheville. Their comfort, perspective, wisdom, good humor are all going to be so great as I embark on a journey like this. I am soooo looking forward to seeing them again. Jenny's organic juices are super too.
Drive through Memphis, TN - I am going to skip Georgia this time. I was there in March and May already. I love it there, and I have soooo many friends. Athens and Atlanta are very comfortable, but I'm all about doing new things on this trip. I've never been to Western Tennessee, and I am told that everyone needs to go to Graceland at least once.
Drive across Arkansas - There are only five U.S. states where I haven't set my feet upon the soil, and this is one of them. I have to do it.
Drive to Albuquerque, NM - I took I-40 across the USA in 1993, when I moved out to Los Angeles from Michigan for grad school. There wasn't much to recall about Oklahoma or the Texas panhandle, except the billboards that went on forever challenging you to eat the 72 oz steak at The Big Texan Steak Ranch. Once I realized that 72 oz was 4 1/2 pounds of red meat (plus a salad and potato, I am told) I got disgusted just thinking about the waste, the gluttony, the indigestion. I am not sure even Oscar could eat 4.5 pounds of steak. He'd like a chance to try though. (Not gonna happen.) Well, this will be a good stretch for thinking.
I remember having the thought, as I drove I-40 into New Mexico in 1993, that it was a travesty that the young United States paid almost as much ($10 million) for the 29,670 sq. mile Gasden Purchase in 1853 as we paid for the entire 828,000 sq. mi. Louisiana Purchase ($11 million, plus the cancellation of almost $4 million in debt) because as far as I could tell, there wasn't much to see in New Mexico.
Well, one summer night, I got off the interstate and went to Sandia Crest, near Albuquerque, to watch a sunset. I still remember how it made me feel. It was one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen. I fell in love with the desert southwest that day, and I think that Gasden Purchase was a pretty smart thing. (Never mind the contribution to peace after the Mexican-American war. I'm all about the scenery.) I can't wait to get back to New Mexico. I might stay a few days.
Oh, and the night skies in New Mexico and Arizona are absolutely spectacular.
Drive to San Diego, CA -- Once I get past Flagstaff, Arizona, I'll find some path to San Diego, where a few of my best friends live. I haven't decided about stopping at the Grand Canyon. I've rafted through it, and I have to say that seeing it from the rim -- which I have done a couple times -- doesn't do it justice compared to passing through it on the river for days. I remember on that rafting trip, someone said to the guide, "It's Sunday! We're missing church!" The guide looked at this guy like he was crazy and said, "Look around you, man! If you can't see that you're surrounded by the hand of God in every direction, you need to look a little harder." Amen.
I might like to go to Death Valley just because I haven't been there yet.
I might sojourn down to Tijuana just to do it.
Drive to Vancouver, BC via the Pacific Coast Highway -- After I leave San Diego, I fully expect that this next stretch will be a big portion of my trip with many stops and detours. I spent four years living in Los Angeles, and I love California for a lot of reasons. A young woman I met earlier this year in Los Angeles and I are collaborating on a leadership development project in Africa, so I'll see her. I've been talking with someone in LA about a corporate job too. Maybe I can see her. One of my buddies from Afghanistan lives near Sacramento, so I will see him. I love Big Sur and Carmel-by-the-Sea. I'll have to see the seals. I'll spend some time in Napa Valley and among the Redwoods. The Oregon Coast is a special place. I have relatives in Washington state, and it sure would be great to get together if our schedules mesh. I also have friends in Vancouver, whom I have been threatening to visit since we attended a seminar together in January. I have been told I can't miss Vancouver Island.
Drive to Calgary, AB - I had a trip planned in 1998 to go to the Canadian Rockies, and I ended up moving from Los Angeles to Detroit instead. (Weather wise, LA to Detroit was not one of my smarter moves.) I would really like finally to see the Canadian Rockies, including Lake Louise and Banff and maybe Jasper, and to see Western Canada.
Drive to Winnipeg, MB via the Trans-Canada Highway - It's where I need to turn to get a few more of my missing states.
Drive to Council Bluffs, IA - On the way, I pass through North Dakota and Nebraska, two more of my missing states. Iowa is another one. After that, I am only missing Rhode Island, and I won't make it there on this trip.
Drive to Warren, MI - I'll pass through Chicago and visit with a friend or two. I will stop at my parents' house to get my mail, take care of some errands, see my family and celebrate my step-father's birthday.
Drive to Washington, DC - Perhaps I'll go by way of Toronto (to see friends) or maybe by way of the Jersey Shore, where some other friends have invited me for a week at Labor Day. We'll see how road weary Oscar and I are feeling by that time.
So that's the plan. Hopefully I can get some clarity about what's next in my life. I kind of feel like I am crazy for quitting my cushy, high-paying government job with nothing to go to, to load up a car with my dog and drive across the country, but that's what I am doing. Personally, I was not fulfilled in that job, and I happen to think I have a lot more passion to share with the world.
Carpe diem.
So...Oscar and I are embarking on a pilgrimage. We're taking the next month or two to drive around the USA and Canada. We'll cover about 8,000 miles. It's the old fashioned contemplative kind of pilgrimage where you try to find answers to life's hard questions. It's also a modern kind, with the benefits of America's interstate system and a nice black steed in the shape of a Ford Fusion. I am going to camp wherever I can, and while I have a general path and direction set out, I'm planning to stop along the way and take scenic routes and state roads when the whim strikes.
This is the tentative general plan:
Begin in Washington, D.C. - Almost all of my worldly possessions are in a storage unit in Michigan, so I have some borrowed things and some new purchases of duplicate things, and a secure knowledge that I really don't need much.
I don't have a car of my own, so I rented one from the car rental place at the corner. It's a place that I walked past every day on my way to work. One day, one of the workers said as I was walking by, "Good morning, beautiful!" I remember that day very clearly. He really did make me feel pretty that day.
The same guy remembered me today when I walked into the store. He jokingly asked if I came to see him, and I smiled and said, "I came to rent a car!" He was happy to help me. And by "help" I mean upgrade me a level (or two), give me free Sirius radio and a half tank of gas. He hugged me three times and gave me a peck on the cheek, wishing me luck on my journey. Later he called me, from his cell phone, just to make sure I liked the car, and so I would have his number...just in case I wanted to call.
Drive to Asheville, NC via the Blue Ridge Parkway - I can't think of a better way to start this trip than by stopping to see my friends, Brian and Jenny Lumb at Nourish and Flourish in Asheville. Their comfort, perspective, wisdom, good humor are all going to be so great as I embark on a journey like this. I am soooo looking forward to seeing them again. Jenny's organic juices are super too.
Drive through Memphis, TN - I am going to skip Georgia this time. I was there in March and May already. I love it there, and I have soooo many friends. Athens and Atlanta are very comfortable, but I'm all about doing new things on this trip. I've never been to Western Tennessee, and I am told that everyone needs to go to Graceland at least once.
Drive across Arkansas - There are only five U.S. states where I haven't set my feet upon the soil, and this is one of them. I have to do it.
Drive to Albuquerque, NM - I took I-40 across the USA in 1993, when I moved out to Los Angeles from Michigan for grad school. There wasn't much to recall about Oklahoma or the Texas panhandle, except the billboards that went on forever challenging you to eat the 72 oz steak at The Big Texan Steak Ranch. Once I realized that 72 oz was 4 1/2 pounds of red meat (plus a salad and potato, I am told) I got disgusted just thinking about the waste, the gluttony, the indigestion. I am not sure even Oscar could eat 4.5 pounds of steak. He'd like a chance to try though. (Not gonna happen.) Well, this will be a good stretch for thinking.
I remember having the thought, as I drove I-40 into New Mexico in 1993, that it was a travesty that the young United States paid almost as much ($10 million) for the 29,670 sq. mile Gasden Purchase in 1853 as we paid for the entire 828,000 sq. mi. Louisiana Purchase ($11 million, plus the cancellation of almost $4 million in debt) because as far as I could tell, there wasn't much to see in New Mexico.
Well, one summer night, I got off the interstate and went to Sandia Crest, near Albuquerque, to watch a sunset. I still remember how it made me feel. It was one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen. I fell in love with the desert southwest that day, and I think that Gasden Purchase was a pretty smart thing. (Never mind the contribution to peace after the Mexican-American war. I'm all about the scenery.) I can't wait to get back to New Mexico. I might stay a few days.
Oh, and the night skies in New Mexico and Arizona are absolutely spectacular.
Drive to San Diego, CA -- Once I get past Flagstaff, Arizona, I'll find some path to San Diego, where a few of my best friends live. I haven't decided about stopping at the Grand Canyon. I've rafted through it, and I have to say that seeing it from the rim -- which I have done a couple times -- doesn't do it justice compared to passing through it on the river for days. I remember on that rafting trip, someone said to the guide, "It's Sunday! We're missing church!" The guide looked at this guy like he was crazy and said, "Look around you, man! If you can't see that you're surrounded by the hand of God in every direction, you need to look a little harder." Amen.
I might like to go to Death Valley just because I haven't been there yet.
I might sojourn down to Tijuana just to do it.
Drive to Vancouver, BC via the Pacific Coast Highway -- After I leave San Diego, I fully expect that this next stretch will be a big portion of my trip with many stops and detours. I spent four years living in Los Angeles, and I love California for a lot of reasons. A young woman I met earlier this year in Los Angeles and I are collaborating on a leadership development project in Africa, so I'll see her. I've been talking with someone in LA about a corporate job too. Maybe I can see her. One of my buddies from Afghanistan lives near Sacramento, so I will see him. I love Big Sur and Carmel-by-the-Sea. I'll have to see the seals. I'll spend some time in Napa Valley and among the Redwoods. The Oregon Coast is a special place. I have relatives in Washington state, and it sure would be great to get together if our schedules mesh. I also have friends in Vancouver, whom I have been threatening to visit since we attended a seminar together in January. I have been told I can't miss Vancouver Island.
Drive to Calgary, AB - I had a trip planned in 1998 to go to the Canadian Rockies, and I ended up moving from Los Angeles to Detroit instead. (Weather wise, LA to Detroit was not one of my smarter moves.) I would really like finally to see the Canadian Rockies, including Lake Louise and Banff and maybe Jasper, and to see Western Canada.
Drive to Winnipeg, MB via the Trans-Canada Highway - It's where I need to turn to get a few more of my missing states.
Drive to Council Bluffs, IA - On the way, I pass through North Dakota and Nebraska, two more of my missing states. Iowa is another one. After that, I am only missing Rhode Island, and I won't make it there on this trip.
Drive to Warren, MI - I'll pass through Chicago and visit with a friend or two. I will stop at my parents' house to get my mail, take care of some errands, see my family and celebrate my step-father's birthday.
Drive to Washington, DC - Perhaps I'll go by way of Toronto (to see friends) or maybe by way of the Jersey Shore, where some other friends have invited me for a week at Labor Day. We'll see how road weary Oscar and I are feeling by that time.
So that's the plan. Hopefully I can get some clarity about what's next in my life. I kind of feel like I am crazy for quitting my cushy, high-paying government job with nothing to go to, to load up a car with my dog and drive across the country, but that's what I am doing. Personally, I was not fulfilled in that job, and I happen to think I have a lot more passion to share with the world.
Carpe diem.
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