Tips For Road Trips

As you might know from following recent blog posts like this one, or even this one too, my husband and I just moved from the Denver, CO area to Florida.

We traveled in a Uhaul across Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, a small part of Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, and of course Florida! The time spent on the road was about 32 hours. Behind the Uhaul we pulled my jeep on a trailer, because that way we could spend time together and also not pay for gas twice.

After our "epic road trip adventure", we realized/learned a lot of things that might be useful for future road trips. There were so many small things that we learned along the way, but, for your reading pleasure, I've summed everything up into a few short and fairly easy to follow items.

Here are our

Tips For Road Trips:

Roll With the Punches

Most likely you will arrive at your destination unscathed, but know that sometimes issues will creep out of nowhere and surprise you. Try not to be too surprised, because setbacks will happen.

Take, for instance, the flat tire we experienced in the middle of nowhere Arkansas. (We were actually smack dab on a busy interstate during the day, but to us it felt like the middle of nowhere). I think it was close to about 903 degrees outside, and we were a bit worried that we might die of a zombie invasion before anyone could save us. After about 10 seconds of panic, or maybe it was only 10 minutes (let's pretend it was only seconds, okay?), we took a breather and called the Uhaul roadside assistance number located on our paperwork. After probably 15 minutes of trying to explain what our location was, we waited for help inside the toasty interior of the Uhaul. Luckily we had water and snacks to tide us over! In case you were wondering, we also avoided a zombie invasion.

After that minor setback of about an hour, we were on the road again. Rubber tire pieces had littered the highway for what seemed like the entire state of Arkansas, so I guess maybe a blown tire should not have been a surprise.

We laughed about the situation after the tire was fixed and we had been on the road again for a little while. (Is anyone else singing Willie Nelson in their head?) Thank goodness the blown tire didn't happen to us in the middle of the night. You know, that's how bad scary movies begin!

Sometimes you just have to roll with the punches and expect the unexpected.

Don't Push It, Be Safe

This tip is really important, because you do want to reach your destination safely after all. Use some common sense, and trust your gut.

My husband's dad and step mother came to Denver and helped us load the Uhaul, and his dad recommended that we keep in touch and he could set up a hotel room for us along the way. Not only is it a good idea that someone know where you are, it's also a big help *knowing what towns have accommodations and which ones do not. You would hate to get somewhere in the middle of Mississippi and find there are no hotels for hundreds of miles. Having someone keep us informed was a big help.

* You could also do this research before leaving for a road trip, but we had very little time to plan our trip so this was a huge help.

If your schedule allows, make plans to take a certain number of days but possibly leave an extra day in there just in case.

If you get tired, sleep!

If you get hungry, eat!

Don't push it. Compromising your safety is not worth getting there a couple hours sooner!

Truck stops are great places for breaks, because they are usually busy and have many options for food, gas, and resting.

Have Fun!

Like everything in life, don't take it for granted. I think this might be one of the most important tips for a road trip, because you might take just one in your life. So have fun!

We listened to music, took pictures, and sang songs. The song singing was probably one of the most fun parts, because it let us make light of our surroundings a bit. It's too bad we didn't have something to record the songs with (I should have listened to my aunt and taken a recording device!).

Taking a recorder might be an extra part of the "have fun" tip, because when you're in a Uhaul for 32 hours some really funny things come out of your mouth.

Another part of having fun is looking for goofy signs along the way. We saw signs for places like "Toad Suck Park". Imagine our confusion by that sign. Both my husband and I agreed that we should stay away from that place, because again it sounded like a scene from a bad scary movie. Thankfully we had no scary movie incidents.

So if you take a road trip, please make sure to have fun!

The "We Put Meat On Your Buns" BBQ sign. Don't eat too much! (:

I hope you're enjoying your week,

and if you take a road trip I hope it's a safe and fun one!

Diary of a Traveling Coffee Addict

As you might know, my husband and I just moved across the country from Colorado to Florida. We arrived in Florida after three days of driving in a Uhaul "Easy Rider Van" across parts of eight different states! (More on that later). The road trip was a once in a lifetime thing!

I have a lot of stories and photos to share with you all, but my husband and I are still not settled in to our new apartment yet. I'll do my best to keep up from the laptop. I've missed you all!

I've also really missed keeping current with blogging, and I have a lot of catching up to do. Before I do that though, I wanted to tell you about my uncontrollable little coffee problem.

Apparently I have a mild addiction to my daily cup of Starbucks coffee. We usually make coffee at home since it's way cheaper than buying a cup from the store each day, however, traveling cross-country in a Uhaul did not afford us the luxury of making our own cup of hot Starbucks coffee at home each morning. As we drove east out of Denver, the frequency of seeing a Starbucks on the road dwindled quickly. I soon realized that most of the country does not view the importance of Starbucks the same as I have learned to view it. This was a teensy problem for me to deal with while driving across the southern part of the United States.

This entry from my travel journal is a piece from day 2 of our road trip:

" Nine hours and counting since we've seen a Starbucks. It's consuming my every thought. I keep thinking I'll see one around the next bend in the road. I might have a problem! You really don't know what you've got until it's gone. I definitely took having a Starbucks on every third corner, like they were in Denver, for granted. I really hope we come across a Starbucks soon! "

On our third day of driving, we came across a Starbucks just south of Birmingham, Alabama. You have no idea how delighted I was to sip that sweet nectar from the coffee gods! Three days without a Starbucks coffee is like the equivalent of three months to a coffee addict. I really hope to not go three days without a perfect cup of Starbucks coffee again. Friends, I have a serious coffee problem!

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It's still a little hard to believe that we live in Florida now. We move into our apartment soon, and I think it will seem more real once we settle into our own place again.

There are so many stories and pictures that I want to share from our road trip across the country. Also, I just bought a Flip video recorder today, so I hope to share some videos of Florida with you too! I've been on the hunt for "gators" lately, and I saw one but it was too small to catch on video from the car while we passed it. I hope to get a video of an alligator soon. (:

Hope you are enjoying your week!!



Quick Update

This morning my husband and I are leaving Alabama. Yesterday we drove through parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi... and then into Alabama. Tonight we expect to arrive in Florida, but as we found out yesterday things don't always go exactly as planned.

I promise you lots of stories, pictures, and funny things in the next week!

I also promise to be a better blogger, read your blog posts, and get back to regular commenting again soon!

Memorial Day

This morning I was thinking about Memorial Day and what it means. They kept flashing pictures of soldiers from Colorado who have lost their lives. I can't help but being sad for those who have lost their lives fighting. However, I think that we should remember those we've lost but continue to be thankful for everything that we do have as well.

Over the past few days, my husband and I have been in the car for over 16 hours. When you cover vast amounts of this country by car, you realize how amazing and resilient this land and its people can be. We have seen so many different types of landscapes and economies. From the dusty deserts of Nevada to the lush green springtime mountains in Colorado and back to the agricultural plains in the east. While driving across this gorgeous state, I could hardly keep myself from tearing up at the thought of leaving, but I am also really excited for new experiences that lie ahead. The fact that my husband and I have the freedom to choose as we please and move across the country for new opportunities and excitement is something I am incredibly thankful for today... and most every day.

This morning I was in the mood for the Zac Brown Band song "Chicken Fried" so I thought I would share!

 

Today we're in eastern Colorado, and we're going to watch my husband's grandfather take part in the Memorial Day events. It's a bittersweet time to remember those who we've lost but to be thankful and honor those who have served and are still with us today.

Hoping you have something to be thankful for today!

Piloting Life Cribs: The Crashpad Tour

I wanted to give you all the tour of where I have been residing for the past few days and nights.

This crashpad has been "home" to my husband for the past six weeks.

My husband's crashpad currently has a rotation of about eight guys "living" here. You'll find pilots, a TSA worker, and an airplane mechanic all under one roof. I find it sort of discomforting that anything relating to aviation/pilots has the word "crash" associated with it, so I tried coming up with a different name for the crashpad. All I came up with was "overnight pad", but obviously that sounds rather "feminine" if you will. So crashpad it is. After all, it is a place for crashing each night.

My husband and I have been sharing his twin size air mattress, so that's fun. Really heated, or not heated depending on who wins the blanket, tug of wars ensue shortly after we both fall asleep. Not to mention the battle for space. Fun times. No magic happens here. Just sleep.

It's almost like we're sleeping in the cockpit of an airplane...

Flying high in the living room

In the "living room" you'll find posters of the cockpit where my husband and two other new hires studied throughout their training. Next to the cockpit you'll find a random palm frond. I have no idea what that's all about, but it adds a little color to an otherwise "vanilla" room. Who can argue with that?

 It's all about the coffee

The kitchen centers around the coffee pot. It's a staple at the crashpad. Coffee pots outnumber cartons of milk around here. You'll also find plenty of foods for grilling and the microwave, because we all know that when the women are away the men will eat foods not allowed at home. Let's be honest, there aren't a whole lot of fruits and vegetables in this crashpad kitchen.

The backyard has a few resident black widows, so watch where you step. You might also find some great smells floating from the grill. The crashpad is usually pretty quiet with people in and out at all hours of the day, so try to keep it down out here. That's the crashpad, folks!

I hope you enjoyed the tour...

Now get out of here!  ;)

At Home in the Journey

Journey: an act or instance of traveling from one place to another :

Lately I've been questioning the definition of "home".

Is home the town where I spent most of my young life growing up?

Maybe home is the roof over my head?

No. These don't seem right, because lately I haven't been able to define home.

Sometimes things we think we know change.

Last week, I wrote about how the journey is more important than the destination. I find that idea very interesting, because in the past month or so, I feel much more at home while on a journey than I do once I get to where I'm going. Something about flying and traveling makes me realize that "being in between" is okay. We don't always have to know where we're going as long as we're moving forward.

While flying from Denver to Las Vegas, I spent my time, like I usually do, gazing out of the window to the right side of my seat. With each passing moment, my attention was fixed on what was outside of my window at that very moment. There was no worrying about what I would see next, because all that mattered were the gorgeous views at that moment. Every passing second, peering from an airplane window, is like a snapshot image at high speed framing a moment in time.

Sometimes it's sunrises, sunsets, or white fluffy clouds.

At other times it's storm clouds, lightning, and rain.

No matter what, I love every second.

I took these images over Lake Mead with our trusty Canon point and shoot. These pictures were very hurried, because we were descending quickly through the storms. Lake Mead is beautiful even with rain clouds overhead.

In The Art of Travel, Alain de Botton writes:

"When feeling sad at home, I have often boarded a train or airport bus and gone to Heathrow, where, from an observation gallery in Terminal 2 or from the top floor of the Renaissance Hotel along the north runway, I have drawn comfort from the sight of the ceaseless landings and takeoffs of aircraft."

I have a feeling that Alain de Botton and I have something in common. Although I enjoyed my time watching small airplanes at Centennial Airport in Colorado. London or not, takeoffs and landings are a constant in life. The only constant in life is change.