Living Large in a Mini Van
It used to take me the better part of an hour to scope out a van-camping spot, before finally settling on what felt like “the perfect one.” In the early days, I stayed mostly at provincial parks, and even if I were the only one there, I would race around in a panic, sure someone … Continue reading Letting Go of Perfect
At first glance, I’m challenged to find the obvious tie that binds the 8000 or so souls gathering each year at the Rubber Tramp Rendezvous (RTR) and Womens’ RTR (WRTR) in the Sonoran desert of Arizona. A survey of the parked vehicles suggests membership probably isn’t defined by rig-choice or economics. Large, newer-model, Class A … Continue reading The Nomad’s Front Porch
When the little goobers presented themselves again today in Louisiana, I had no excuses left. Plus I was hungry. I had to laugh, because as I was scooping them out of the vat, a woman came up and asked me what the heck they were, and I got to tell her ALL ABOUT THEM. And … Continue reading Edamame of the South
On my drive today, I began noticing road-side stands for boiled peanuts. More than one sign shortened the name to “P-nut”, which seems to be a preferred spelling for most vendors. Even when the sign was very large and the print very small. I stopped for gas between Savannah and Florida, and noticed a huge … Continue reading Good Goober!
I know most people who do a lot of back-roading are adverse to things that smack of “tourist” but I have a closet love of Trolley rides and double decker bus tours. Yes, they are cheesy. Cheese-Whiz cheesy. But they are also a perfect way to get a birds-eye view of a city when you … Continue reading A Holly-Jolly-Trolley Ride
Following my intuition is so much more fun than following a map. Mine is a magic cocktail blending awareness, body-inclination, and signs. I’m not sure why I felt compelled to come this far south. Or compelled to come to Savannah, Georgia in particular. It’s certainly not along the obvious route from Ontario to Arizona! And … Continue reading Savannah, Ooooo Na Na
Today we made our way south through Pennsylvania, into West Virginia and are now just north of Virginia. I was poky (according to the trip summary below) because I had to do important things like: A) STOP TO REMOVE MY DOWN JACKET, and B) Go for a long walk by a creek WITHOUT MY DOWN … Continue reading How We Roll
It’s not quite dawn and I’m sitting in the van around the corner from my sisters’ house in Oshawa, where I slept last night. Pippa is wondering why we have stopped so soon. I’m waiting for a text from either of my sisters, telling me what I’ve forgotten at their house. I always forget something, … Continue reading All I Need
As soon as I knew I was moving to Cape Breton, I did the obvious and joined a week-long step-dancing program. OK, maybe it wasn’t the most obvious thing to do, but it felt like the most important. So much so, I didn’t even take time to consult my brain or hip, who both had … Continue reading Falling in Step
The Slow Food Road Trip had some health issues from the get-go. I had a hard time leaving family to hit the road again. I’d been away a year; I missed them and they seemed to miss me too. I had a garden insisting to be planted in Ottawa; it felt unusually urgent my son have kale. It … Continue reading Here Lies the Slow Food Road Trip