Next Step

Today I went to AAA to get whatever info I could from them. I was kind of surprised that they didn't have more to offer me, but they gave me a large map of the USA, which I requested, so that I can plot out the major places that we will stop. They gave me info on upgrading our AAA membership to cover an RV once we get one and info on the AAA auto buying program. I have no idea what the hell that is, but I'll find out. I got info on the auto buying program because in addition to the RV the plan is to have a little car that we can zip around in in cities that aren't necessarily RV friendly, plus once we plant ourselves in a campground for a week or for however long, then we'll save a ton on gas with the little car. This is the plan, anyway.


So I mounted the US map on a corkboard. I was going to just tape it to the wall in the living room, but then realized the pushpins illustrating our path will ruin the paint job that took me weeks to finish. And, I decided to move the map elsewhere. To a glorious place where much thinking is accomplished. Some of (hu)man's greatest thoughts were concieved in this place. The map has been mounted next to the toilet where it will get the attention it deserves. Plus, with all the time that Nick spends in there, he will be forced to daydream about something other than the Maxim and Playboy pin ups.

Ok, I have push pinned the cities of interest for me they are in no particular order:

Virginia Beach VA, Jacksonvile NC, Columbia SC, Charleston SC, Savannah GA, Atlanta GA, Nashville TN, Memphis TN, Miami FL, Naples FL, Tampa FL, Talahassee FL, Mobile AL, New Orleans LA, Houston TX, San Antonio TX, Dallas TX, Austin TX, Albequerque NM, Santa Fe NM, Tucson AZ, San Diego CA, Santa Ana CA, Pasadena CA, Santa Barbera CA, Los Angeles CA, The Grand Canyon (this would definitely be an inspiration stop), Denver CO, San Francisco CA, Portland OR, Seattle WA, and Chicago IL.

That's 32 cities. If we plan to keep this trip in a year, that is 11.5 days for each city and don't forget we still have to travel to and from each city. Maybe this trip will take 2 years! Clearly, we have a lot to figure out still. We might want to spend just a day or two in some cities, while other places may draw us in for a couple of weeks. Having a rudimentary schedule is going to be a lifesaver, but we don't want our existential journey to be dictated by time. That would defeat the point. I could lose 3 days of sleep trying to meet a deadline right here in Philadelphia. When opportunities present themselves we don't want to say, "oh we already have plans".

We want to be open and free as birds to meet new people and be inspired by whatever comes our way.