Take One

Day One: Jamaica Plain to Alexandria, VA

The idea for this trip is probably one of my better ideas ever. My past ideas include, but are not limited to:

-wanting to become an alcoholic so that I could go to AA because I missed group therapy;

-going two hours out of my way on a California coast road trip so that I could stop in Calabasas with the hopes I would be adopted by the Kardashians;

-starting a night out in PTown with two dirty martinis.

So clearly I am not holding my ideas to very high standards. But this trip will be different. This year will be different. I don't even have many expectations for this year, I simply want to BE; to LIVE. I want to learn how to be alone, and give myself a chance to think. I want to appreciate the amount of beauty in this country. And, amongst all this self-indulgence, I want to help others.

This is the first blog I've ever attempted to write and DISCLAIMER there will be typos and grammatically incorrect sentences (sorry t.e.s.), and it's because I went to a hippie school that did not teach grammar. But it will be one of many firsts this year. This will be the first time I travel alone, the first time I volunteer in New Orleans. As much as I could (and still possibly will) turn this blog into a run-on sentence of cliches, I'm going to try to keep it as light as possible.

Today was my first day on the road. 8 whole hours by myself. I had amazing music to keep me company, and tried to just cruise and enjoy the road. And for the most part I did, except living and loving does not exactly mesh with trying to drive through New York and New Jersey. Between keeping my eyes peeled for Snooki and trying to get out of the way of the Cubana bus line (which runs from New York to Miami! I must take this at some point) this drive gave me a run for my money. But the music kept me going. I knew the powers that be were smiling down on me when right after I crossed the Jersey line Miss Sue's CD came on (I'm methodically going through my CDs in the order the great Julia S. arranged them in my case.) Miss Sue is the biggest Bruce fan I know, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that her CD got me all the way through NJ, right up to the Delaware line. I would usually make something like this up, but this was serendipitous.

I thoroughly enjoyed my quiet, alone time today and am looking forward to more of it. But I was overjoyed when I saw my college roommate get off the Metro, and I cannot wait to meet interesting and dynamic people along the way! On to Asheville tomorrow.
This trip will be like therapy.. I guess I don't need to become an alcoholic after all.

This is the soundtrack to my life:

Lauren M.- great driving music, got my trip off to a jammin start; Will M.- Passion pit and Jackson 5 = genius; Katie S.- avett bros and lily allen; beautiful and talented Vineyard girls serenading me with their angelic voices; Miss Sue- see above; Bidou- how could I have forgotten how phenomenal the Beatles are?!; Emily B.-rad.

live
love
e
xo