I woke up at 4:30 this morning with the trip already on my mind.
I’ve spent a lot of time watching YouTube videos of people traveling across the United States, seeing places I’ve never been and wondering what it would be like to actually do something like that myself.
At some point, you have to stop watching other people do the things you want to do and start doing them yourself. Life isn’t guaranteed. Every day is precious, and I’m trying to get better at making the most of it instead of assuming there will always be a tomorrow.
This Thursday at noon, I finally start.
Now that it’s this close, my emotions are all over the place. I’m excited, but I’m worried too. What is this actually going to be like? Will the truck make it across the country without a problem? Will something break on the RV? Am I going to get a few days into this and wonder what the hell I was thinking?
Part of that is because I’m still pretty new to all of this.
This is the first RV I’ve ever owned, a small off-road travel trailer that looks a lot more experienced than I am, and it really only has about 300 miles on it. I’ve done the 300-mile checkup and taken care of the maintenance that was required. I’ve also done some local camping around North Carolina, so I’ve had a chance to learn the RV a little.
But there’s a big difference between camping a few hours from home and taking off across the country for almost two months.
I’ll be leaving the RDU area and working my way west toward Joshua Tree. My best friend from college is meeting me there on October 6, and we’ll spend a couple of weeks together. After that, the plan is for him to make the drive back east with me.
There’s another part to this trip too.
I’ve spent a lot of my career sitting behind a desk, and these days that desk happens to be at home. I’m hoping to retire in the next couple of years, and I don’t want these last few working years to just be me sitting in the same place waiting for retirement to arrive.
If I can take the desk with me, keep doing my job, and experience some of the country at the same time, maybe these last few years of my career can be about more than just counting down the days.
The trip starts September 24, and I plan to be back the day before Thanksgiving.
The funny part is, I haven’t even done this trip yet. I don’t even know if I’m going to like traveling this way, and I’m already thinking about next year.
I’ve been picturing leaving North Carolina, heading up through eastern Canada, driving all the way across Canada to the west, and eventually making my way back down toward Joshua Tree.
Joshua Tree is one of those places that just feels different to me. There’s something about it that feels almost magical, and I already know I want to keep coming back.
Right now, though, trip number one hasn’t even started.
And I think part of what I’m trying to find out on this trip is whether I actually like this life as much as I’ve imagined I would.
— The Guy Behind the Desk
