Georgia Mindset

Oh the horrors of travel! 

You forget the day,

Your location, your destination.

The real world seems wispy and far away.

Vivid dreams blend into reality,

Confusing the mind,

Corrupting the body.

[Current Location: Coastal Georgia]

Where people make eye contact and funny faces at you in the grocery store. 

Where it's laid back enough that you don't feel rushed. 

Who knew there would be remnants of Europe in Southern USA? 

Savannah, GA

Tybee Island, GA

Crossroads & Open Roads

Between jobs again, I chose to have this blank space again to let a few things fall into place, to see where I'm supposed to land, and perhaps who to land with. Life has never dropped an official letter on my doorstep telling me what to do. Sometimes I wish for that. But what fun is knowing the future? You just have to live it.

Sometimes I wonder if it's insane to do the things I do. Like now, following the camper RV dream south with a guy who I met just over three months ago. But he had the idea, I had the idea, and then we met. Dreams coincided. And of course the opening of unemployment. I prefer action to inaction. I don't want to regret neglecting an opportunity presented to me. So I go. I take the road.

So I'm just trying to enjoy the south, and let things land where they may, and keep my openings open. Soon enough a job will line up again, in a place where I hope to stay a while, plant a garden, and make a little life.

Savannah

Wormsloe Plantation.

 I never knew hanging moss could be so romantic.

Backwards records signs.

Coffee purchasing is banned from here after Barista had conniption about my photo of him. Apparently he thinks he is some sort of rockstar. 

JD, the graduate of SCAD. 

 Writing and thinking in good light.

 Gallery Espresso.

 Tour guide, former Savannah local, and old man in background.

Bathroom wallpaperish decor. 

Yes, and this what I am doing, is not a waste of my life. Even if it might seem to be by some. 

 Movies and nostalgia abound.

Transport around town, the folders I found on Craigslist. 

 I love goodwill. I love retro. I love trees.

I love the word linoleum. And Charlie. 

Making toffee. 

And pralines. 

Making wishes. Hoping they come true. 

Waking

Bird chirp symphony [& no other sounds]. Trees dripping with moss outside. Smudgy light seeping in. Nowhere to be. This is the way to wake up.

Charleston Pour House

We wandered into a show with a group from Colorado, Leftover Salmon. The show was alright, the location intimate, colorful, visually up my alley... The door guys let people wander in and out of the venue as the show took place without stamps or tickets or anything, so laid back in a way that no shows I'd attended in Portland ever were. (Usually you could not leave once you enter a show.) 

We're checking out today, and headed to Savannah, only 97 miles down the road on highway 17, aka "Savannah Highway" in case of any confusion of the destination. We're headed to a state park down there. Justin went to undergrad in Savannah & worked there for several years afterward, so these areas are his old stomping grounds, and I'm lucky to have a knowledgeable guide along. 

These days in the camper bleed one into the next. There's an inherent calmness in living a small portable life. It suits me, especially after the crazy rat race of Virginia Beach, and the VA.

Hitting South Carolina

Where we started...

 Never have seen that heading before for drinks

 What else could you want?

 Had lunch here... No Mexican food.

 Travel pardner.

Inching South: Inaugural Walmart Stop

[Smithfield, NC]


Bailey's the laid back attack dawg hiding in the shadows, watching guard over our mini rig as we stopped in Walmart for a few supplies. Not one camper was in the lot when we pulled in, but about two seconds after we parked, four massive RVs from Quebec (one toting a decked out red Mini convertible) seemed to arise from thin air beside us. I was happy to be in our small set up. We pulled into a campground shortly after the Walmart stop. The first night was not without boo-boos but we managed to hook everything up without burning down the place, thanks to a nice camper lot attendant from Columbus, OH, helping us with the set up. Today we'll head for South Carolina.

Running away

I don't care about the real world

Chasing rainbows

And all that crap

I want a dark, dank cave

In the country

Removed 

From all this mess

The Next Adventure... My American Dream

 

Approaching my one year anniversary completely free from debt (the last to go was student loan), I've been reflecting on what it means. No mortgage. No student loans. Owing nothing = the ultimate freedom. This is something I think few Americans experience at my age, or at any age. Since we are a society created on credit cards and mortgages, people (myself included) just automatically sign their name to years of financial burden. 

Almost daily, I'm thankful for my financial freedom, which has again come in handy. Having recently finished a temporary position, I'm in the position to have a month to travel again, this time with a friend's camper which we'll drag up to the Northeastern states and perhaps into Canada. The adventure begins this Monday.