After a week of hanging out with my aunt, uncle, and cousins in California, I am all packed up and ready to head back home to New York City. My 13-year-old cousin will be joining me, which gives me the perfect excuse to play tourist for the two week duration of her visit. Yes, you might see me on one of those red double decker buses hitting all the sights of the city in one day. And yes, that will be my cousin and I in those foam Statue of Liberty hats. Of course, we will be asking you to take a picture of us.
Before all that begins though, I got to do something I've been looking forward to all week. My uncle took me for a spin in his 1957 Ford T-bird. As we walked out the door, my aunt asked casually, "Are you taking her by the A&W?" My uncle said yes, but I thought he just planned on getting me more food after a week of seeing how happy being fed makes me. Little did I know what was in store.
Driving in a convertible on a nice California night was a treat in and of itself, (though I will own up to the fact that I couldn't figure out how to use the seatbelt without a demonstration.) After about ten minutes, we drove by the A&W. The parking lot was full, so we drove around and parked on the street. Getting out of the T-bird and walking into the parking lot was like walking into 1957.
There was music from the 50s with a young, poodle skirt-clad girl dancing. All the chidren were playing limbo or dancing, while their parents and grandparents sat in lawn chairs next to their classic cars. The parking lot was packed with all sorts of cars that I can't name, but can appreciate.
My uncle met a couple who also owned a T-bird and began talking with them. The man was named Smitty, which on any other night I would consider to be the best thing that happened. But not tonight. Because tonight, this little parking lot party was hosted by not one, not two, but THREE Elvises. My uncle refused to take a picture with me and one of the Elvises (Elvi?) which might have been the only slightly disappointing thing of the evening. Other than that, I highly recommend that if you're in Modesto on a Friday night, you get yourself to the A&W.
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Saturday, July 08, 2006
Friday, April 21, 2006
Hesitant Re-entry
I am in a computer lab at the University of California - Riverside campus, procrastinating on work that I have due on Thursday back in that distant land of Queens, New York. My friend, who goes to school here, will be back in 2.5 hours to pick me up. So, this will be brief.
My friend Sharon and I just re-entered the real world last night after 6 days of camping/backpacking/hiking in the Joshua Tree National Park. It was absolutely phenomenal. I feel rested, re-centered, and happy.
I also learned many new things:
My friend Sharon and I just re-entered the real world last night after 6 days of camping/backpacking/hiking in the Joshua Tree National Park. It was absolutely phenomenal. I feel rested, re-centered, and happy.
I also learned many new things:
- (Prior to the flight to California, I went to my first Passover dinner with my friend Sharon's family.) Almost every part of the dinner was wonderful. I will never eat gefilte fish again. No matter what Sharon's dad says...
- You can in fact, eat an entire apple, including the core. This is a new favorite hobby of mine.
- L.A. is not as evil as I once thought.
- Heavisome is not a word.
- The desert, while a dry heat, is still very, very hot.
- When you think you have gotten a good tan, but you've haven't showered in five days, most of the brown color washes right off of you.
- When without a corkscrew, you should not push the cork into the bottle of wine, unless you enjoy being splattered in the face. (Fortunately, I learned this lesson by watching Sharon.)
- Wild desert turtles are the most chill creatures on the face of the planet. But if you're not paying attention and you scare one, the sound of the turtle withdrawing into it's shell sounds just like the hiss of a snake.
- When you've hiked for six miles and finally find the oasis you've been searching for, nothing beats cold water, crackers with cheese and mustard, and laying on the sand underneath tall palm trees.
- There are no unattractive men who are serious rock climbers. (Why this is, I have no idea, but I'm fairly certain that it is completely true.)
- When you've been on an amazing vacation that truly lets you forget all your worries, it's hard to go back to the real world. Especially when it's a grey computer lab and your textbooks you hesitantly packed eight days earlier. So much for being brief...
Monday, September 05, 2005
Home and Back
I am back in my little apartment in Queens, half-heartedly trying to make myself realize that vacation is actually over and I have to go back to work tomorrow. After an internet-free week, I have decided that updating my blog is the perfect way to stay in vacation mode for a just a wee bit longer. So a few highlights from my Arkansas trip:
Wednesday Arrive in North Little Rock around 9 p.m. For the first time in my entire life, I was actually met at the airport. For some reason, people are always late or lost when they are supposed to pick me up. This was a huge turning point for me! I was ecstatic to see my mom, and almost as ecstatic to meet her new dog, Charlie. If you've kept up with my blog, (or have known me for more than five minutes,) you already know that I think my mom is the coolest mom in the world. I have now come to realize that she has the coolest dog in the world.
Thursday Wake up early, go for a five mile run with my mom in Emerald Park, where I am reintroduced to hills and humidity. Later in the day, my mom had to go to work, so, left to my own devices, I allowed myself to be reintroduced to the television. Who knew watching stupid tv could provide such bliss? The people my mom work with covered her shift so we could hang out more. She came home early, and we got Chinese food - Arkansas style. I love eating in New York, but sometimes you want something that is as far away from authentic as possible. I have come to terms with the fact that people in China don't eat crab rangoon, but I still say it's my favorite Chinese food!
Friday Wake up early, go for a six mile run with my mom and a few of her friends. This time I am better acquainted with the hills and humidity. My mom had to go to work that afternoon, so I let myself get better acquainted with the tv. (I have come to the conclusion that this little contraption is quite dangerous. I don't understand how it can just suck me in like that!) That night, my brother took me to Carlisle, Arkansas (about the furthest you could get from New York City) to show me his new house and take me to a Carlisle High School football game. I was bitten by at least 147 mosquitoes while my brother and I played our favorite game of "What Do We Have in Common?" We have yet to come up with an answer, so if anyone would like to pose a guess, you're welcome to do so!
Saturday My mom and I go volunteer with Katrina Assistance and Relief Effort. It was amazing to see so many people working so hard to help those who have been displaced after the hurricane. In the few days that I was in Arkansas, I saw countless groups who were raising money, collecting donations, and opening up their homes to refugees from Louisiana and Mississippi. There were many families and children helping out in our location alone. In just one hour that we were there, we unloaded at least 30 cars filled with all sorts of supplies and received over $1400 in donations. And that's just in one small location in Little Rock! There is so much good being done that is not being covered in the media right now.
After working for a while, my mom and I decided to go and buy supplies that seemed as if they were being overlooked. We loaded up her Jeep with dozens of bags of pet food and feminine products. My favorite comment from volunteering was a little girl (she couldn't have been more than five) unloading a box of pads from our car, and turning to her mother "Ooohh...baby stuff." Unfortunately, I didn't get to hear her mother's entire explanation.
Afterwards, we ate lunch at Corky's (oh, how I've missed pulled pork,) then two of my friends from my Memphis days, Eve and Katrina, came for a visit. We spent the rest of the day laughing, eating, and exclaiming over Katrina, who will be a new mom in five short weeks! Favorite quote from that evening comes from my very sweet, non-drug-using friend Eve: "If I was a drug addict, I'd be a huffer. I love the smell of bleach." Close second came from Katrina, who was responding to Eve telling us about a book she read in college where the women withheld sex so that men would stop going to war. Katrina: "Oh, no no no, not me. There would just have to be war."
Sunday We take Charlie for a hike up Pinnacle Mountain. I took a ton of pictures so my friends (all Arkansas virgins) could get a little peek at what it's like down there. Later, my mom and I spent much time laying around the house. After spending so much time in the one bedroom apartment that I share, I was really loving having so many choices for rooms to sit in. So we migrated from room to room, and talked nonstop. That evening, we went to a Hash House Harriers run. I don't even know how to describe it, but it was a blast. Let's just say that after three miles of running around (somewhat lost), we ended the run by drinking beer, singing the most sexually explicit songs I've ever heard, and dodging water being squirted from one runner's penis-shaped watergun. It was a unique experience all-in-all.
Monday Leave North Little Rock at 5:30 a.m. For the first time, as I'm flying into NYC, we actually fly over Manhattan. It was great to see the five burroughs from 39,000 feet. I could see the Verrazano and Hell's Gate bridges, both landmarks near places I've lived. I flew over Central Park, and directly over the Hudson. It is remarkable how small this city actually is! And, I was two for two...my roommate was at the airport to pick me up. We went directly to lunch, at Himalaya, a restaurant that's been open for all of eight days and serves authentic Tibetan food. My first hour back was fabulous!
This is my longest blog, and if you made it through it all, congratulations! I could write a lot more, but I'm going to take my hands off the keyboard for now, and get to work preparing for the new school year.
Wednesday Arrive in North Little Rock around 9 p.m. For the first time in my entire life, I was actually met at the airport. For some reason, people are always late or lost when they are supposed to pick me up. This was a huge turning point for me! I was ecstatic to see my mom, and almost as ecstatic to meet her new dog, Charlie. If you've kept up with my blog, (or have known me for more than five minutes,) you already know that I think my mom is the coolest mom in the world. I have now come to realize that she has the coolest dog in the world.
Thursday Wake up early, go for a five mile run with my mom in Emerald Park, where I am reintroduced to hills and humidity. Later in the day, my mom had to go to work, so, left to my own devices, I allowed myself to be reintroduced to the television. Who knew watching stupid tv could provide such bliss? The people my mom work with covered her shift so we could hang out more. She came home early, and we got Chinese food - Arkansas style. I love eating in New York, but sometimes you want something that is as far away from authentic as possible. I have come to terms with the fact that people in China don't eat crab rangoon, but I still say it's my favorite Chinese food!
Friday Wake up early, go for a six mile run with my mom and a few of her friends. This time I am better acquainted with the hills and humidity. My mom had to go to work that afternoon, so I let myself get better acquainted with the tv. (I have come to the conclusion that this little contraption is quite dangerous. I don't understand how it can just suck me in like that!) That night, my brother took me to Carlisle, Arkansas (about the furthest you could get from New York City) to show me his new house and take me to a Carlisle High School football game. I was bitten by at least 147 mosquitoes while my brother and I played our favorite game of "What Do We Have in Common?" We have yet to come up with an answer, so if anyone would like to pose a guess, you're welcome to do so!
Saturday My mom and I go volunteer with Katrina Assistance and Relief Effort. It was amazing to see so many people working so hard to help those who have been displaced after the hurricane. In the few days that I was in Arkansas, I saw countless groups who were raising money, collecting donations, and opening up their homes to refugees from Louisiana and Mississippi. There were many families and children helping out in our location alone. In just one hour that we were there, we unloaded at least 30 cars filled with all sorts of supplies and received over $1400 in donations. And that's just in one small location in Little Rock! There is so much good being done that is not being covered in the media right now.
After working for a while, my mom and I decided to go and buy supplies that seemed as if they were being overlooked. We loaded up her Jeep with dozens of bags of pet food and feminine products. My favorite comment from volunteering was a little girl (she couldn't have been more than five) unloading a box of pads from our car, and turning to her mother "Ooohh...baby stuff." Unfortunately, I didn't get to hear her mother's entire explanation.
Afterwards, we ate lunch at Corky's (oh, how I've missed pulled pork,) then two of my friends from my Memphis days, Eve and Katrina, came for a visit. We spent the rest of the day laughing, eating, and exclaiming over Katrina, who will be a new mom in five short weeks! Favorite quote from that evening comes from my very sweet, non-drug-using friend Eve: "If I was a drug addict, I'd be a huffer. I love the smell of bleach." Close second came from Katrina, who was responding to Eve telling us about a book she read in college where the women withheld sex so that men would stop going to war. Katrina: "Oh, no no no, not me. There would just have to be war."
Sunday We take Charlie for a hike up Pinnacle Mountain. I took a ton of pictures so my friends (all Arkansas virgins) could get a little peek at what it's like down there. Later, my mom and I spent much time laying around the house. After spending so much time in the one bedroom apartment that I share, I was really loving having so many choices for rooms to sit in. So we migrated from room to room, and talked nonstop. That evening, we went to a Hash House Harriers run. I don't even know how to describe it, but it was a blast. Let's just say that after three miles of running around (somewhat lost), we ended the run by drinking beer, singing the most sexually explicit songs I've ever heard, and dodging water being squirted from one runner's penis-shaped watergun. It was a unique experience all-in-all.
Monday Leave North Little Rock at 5:30 a.m. For the first time, as I'm flying into NYC, we actually fly over Manhattan. It was great to see the five burroughs from 39,000 feet. I could see the Verrazano and Hell's Gate bridges, both landmarks near places I've lived. I flew over Central Park, and directly over the Hudson. It is remarkable how small this city actually is! And, I was two for two...my roommate was at the airport to pick me up. We went directly to lunch, at Himalaya, a restaurant that's been open for all of eight days and serves authentic Tibetan food. My first hour back was fabulous!
This is my longest blog, and if you made it through it all, congratulations! I could write a lot more, but I'm going to take my hands off the keyboard for now, and get to work preparing for the new school year.
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Home Is Where the Heart Is?
In my case, home is where the lungs are. I'm getting ready to head to North Little Rock for five days and one of the things I will be doing is running with my mom. For many, many miles. My mom and I used to run together when I was in junior high and high school. We'd take a meandering run through Overbrook and talk nonstop the whole time, or go out to the high school track and let the stopwatch and each other push us to go faster. We share a love for the outdoors and anything athletic, so it's wonderful when we're actually in the same city to enjoy it together.
Of course, the flipside of this for me, is that home is also where the stomach is, at least where my grandmother is concerned. I will go to her house and often find homemade macaroni and cheese, rolls, chicken, green beans, monkey bread, a casserole or two, and last, but most definitely not least, an entire plate of deviled eggs set aside just for me. (Nothing can beat my grandmother's deviled eggs. And yes, I always eat every one on the whole plate.)
When I lived at home I took these and other things for granted. Sometimes the predictability of being there would drive me crazy. Now it's that very predictability that I am looking forward to: the runs, the food, watching First Wives Club with my mom, sitting in my grandmother's front yard while she tells me all about the different birds that are eating at her birdfeeders at that particular moment, listening to my brother talk about cars and not understanding a word of what he's saying, going to the Nazarene Church in Beebe and smiling through exclamations of how much I've grown (there must be an age limit on this one), grocery shopping at the Kroger and running into people I haven't seen in years, playing with my little cousins and their John Deere tractor toys...
Okay, maybe my heart is there a little bit, too.
Of course, the flipside of this for me, is that home is also where the stomach is, at least where my grandmother is concerned. I will go to her house and often find homemade macaroni and cheese, rolls, chicken, green beans, monkey bread, a casserole or two, and last, but most definitely not least, an entire plate of deviled eggs set aside just for me. (Nothing can beat my grandmother's deviled eggs. And yes, I always eat every one on the whole plate.)
When I lived at home I took these and other things for granted. Sometimes the predictability of being there would drive me crazy. Now it's that very predictability that I am looking forward to: the runs, the food, watching First Wives Club with my mom, sitting in my grandmother's front yard while she tells me all about the different birds that are eating at her birdfeeders at that particular moment, listening to my brother talk about cars and not understanding a word of what he's saying, going to the Nazarene Church in Beebe and smiling through exclamations of how much I've grown (there must be an age limit on this one), grocery shopping at the Kroger and running into people I haven't seen in years, playing with my little cousins and their John Deere tractor toys...
Okay, maybe my heart is there a little bit, too.
Friday, August 26, 2005
Old Friends
One of the best parts of my North Carolina trip was visiting old friends. The first friend I visited was Lisa--my doppelganger, if I ever had one. A typical Lisa/Sam phone conversation after a brief greeting:
"Sam, do you believe in true love?"
"You mean one true love?"
"Yes, one true love."
"Well, I don't know about one..."
or
"Lisa, do you think people can actually change?"
"Well, how do you mean?"
"Do you think people change or just recognize parts of themselves they were never comfortable with before?"
Other than being my partner in all crazy life-questioning, she is also my partner in eating. In college, we would celebrate the end of the semester by going out to a big dinner and choosing a book for the other to read during the break before class started again. And my favorite thing about our friendship is that we haven't seen each other in a few months, but we pick up as if we saw each other yesterday. We can talk about the most serious of things in such an honest way, but can laugh for hours, too.
I ended my North Carolina trip with a visit to my friend Brooke. I have always admired Brooke because I have never met someone who knows herself so well. She is unbelievably grounded in everything that she does. I saw where she is working and going to school now, and we went hiking with a group of her friends. I told her as I was leaving that it was wonderful to see a friend who had built such a wonderful life for herself. She also convinced me to think of some other career choices for my post-New York life...who knows what will happen then, but I won't be surprised at all if Brooke has some influence on my decision.
And one of the reasons I cut my North Carolina trip short was that my friend Kendra, who just returned from the Peace Corps, is in New York City this week. I haven't seen Kendra since she visited me in Memphis, well over two years ago. She is another one of my friends who consistently amazes me. Two days ago we spent the entire afternoon together, making pasta, going to the park, and talking nonstop about our usual topics: jobs, boyfriends, family, clothes, new words for the dictionary we want to make (not nearly as nerdy as it sounds.) And she still has a few more days here in the city!
You may wonder why I'm going on and on about my friends. Not only do I feel fortunate to have such incredible people in my life, but I am intrigued by what binds people to one another. Lisa, Brooke, and Kendra are just three of the people who occupied my college bubble: that strange campus-centric community. We have gone in very different directions. It was great to see the way their lives have progressed, the new worlds they occupy. And it was astonishing how different it was from my own world here. I may never know what makes it so that these are three of the people I really stayed close to, as opposed to some others that I thought would be in my life forever but never make appearances of any sort now. But I'm sure that I will be calling Lisa to analyze it more in the near future.
"Sam, do you believe in true love?"
"You mean one true love?"
"Yes, one true love."
"Well, I don't know about one..."
or
"Lisa, do you think people can actually change?"
"Well, how do you mean?"
"Do you think people change or just recognize parts of themselves they were never comfortable with before?"
Other than being my partner in all crazy life-questioning, she is also my partner in eating. In college, we would celebrate the end of the semester by going out to a big dinner and choosing a book for the other to read during the break before class started again. And my favorite thing about our friendship is that we haven't seen each other in a few months, but we pick up as if we saw each other yesterday. We can talk about the most serious of things in such an honest way, but can laugh for hours, too.
I ended my North Carolina trip with a visit to my friend Brooke. I have always admired Brooke because I have never met someone who knows herself so well. She is unbelievably grounded in everything that she does. I saw where she is working and going to school now, and we went hiking with a group of her friends. I told her as I was leaving that it was wonderful to see a friend who had built such a wonderful life for herself. She also convinced me to think of some other career choices for my post-New York life...who knows what will happen then, but I won't be surprised at all if Brooke has some influence on my decision.
And one of the reasons I cut my North Carolina trip short was that my friend Kendra, who just returned from the Peace Corps, is in New York City this week. I haven't seen Kendra since she visited me in Memphis, well over two years ago. She is another one of my friends who consistently amazes me. Two days ago we spent the entire afternoon together, making pasta, going to the park, and talking nonstop about our usual topics: jobs, boyfriends, family, clothes, new words for the dictionary we want to make (not nearly as nerdy as it sounds.) And she still has a few more days here in the city!
You may wonder why I'm going on and on about my friends. Not only do I feel fortunate to have such incredible people in my life, but I am intrigued by what binds people to one another. Lisa, Brooke, and Kendra are just three of the people who occupied my college bubble: that strange campus-centric community. We have gone in very different directions. It was great to see the way their lives have progressed, the new worlds they occupy. And it was astonishing how different it was from my own world here. I may never know what makes it so that these are three of the people I really stayed close to, as opposed to some others that I thought would be in my life forever but never make appearances of any sort now. But I'm sure that I will be calling Lisa to analyze it more in the near future.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
2120 Miles of Solo Travel
8 days
6 waterfalls
2 dances: a hoedown and a shindig
15 miles of hiking
4 days camping in the Pisgah National Forest
3 days visiting great friends
11 hours driving home while singing loudly to my favorite music
1 very happy girl
No wonder I'm having trouble describing this amazing vacation, but I have no doubt that my North Carolina trip will come up repeatedly in future writings. Everyone should spend some time travelling alone.
6 waterfalls
2 dances: a hoedown and a shindig
15 miles of hiking
4 days camping in the Pisgah National Forest
3 days visiting great friends
11 hours driving home while singing loudly to my favorite music
1 very happy girl
No wonder I'm having trouble describing this amazing vacation, but I have no doubt that my North Carolina trip will come up repeatedly in future writings. Everyone should spend some time travelling alone.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
Slight Delay
Due to a prolonged sinus infection recovery, I have been forced to push my trip to North Carolina back one day. I'm stocked up: fruits and vegetables, Dayquil Sinus, Sex and the City season six on DVD, the September supersize anniversary issue of Glamour, water, my North Carolina handbook complete with post-it notes to remind me of all the places I want to go (as if I need reminding), and last but not least, my Kleenex.
I have a habit of getting sick the moment I am on vacation. It's as if my body knows that between school and work, I really don't have any time to be sick. Fortunately, I'm getting better. I've slowed to the rate of about 5 KPH (Kleenex Per Hour) and today, unlike yesterday, I made it down the street to buy a bagel and back home without having to take a nap before eating!
Anyhow, laying around at home has given me plenty of opportunity to lay down the details of my trip, so I thought I'd send out a less vague itinerary than most of you have gotten up to this point:
I have a habit of getting sick the moment I am on vacation. It's as if my body knows that between school and work, I really don't have any time to be sick. Fortunately, I'm getting better. I've slowed to the rate of about 5 KPH (Kleenex Per Hour) and today, unlike yesterday, I made it down the street to buy a bagel and back home without having to take a nap before eating!
Anyhow, laying around at home has given me plenty of opportunity to lay down the details of my trip, so I thought I'd send out a less vague itinerary than most of you have gotten up to this point:
- Tomorrow through Wednesday: Charlotte, NC, visiting a good friend from college
- Thursday through Saturday: Camping in and around Asheville, NC, doing a little shopping, checking out Looking Glass Falls and Sliding Rock
- Sunday through Monday: Boone, NC, visiting another good friend from college who has already let me know that she and her friends have planned a hike or two so I can really check out the area
- Tuesday through Wednesday: Heading northeast to Hanging Rock State Park for more camping, hiking, and beautiful views
- Thursday through Sunday: On to the Outer Banks (weather permitting) for some hikes on the sand dunes and hang gliding lessons. And if weather does not permit, I'll be heading back to New York. Otherwise, I'll be home on Monday with an abundance of pictures and some non-stop talking about my trip!
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Freedom
My senior year in college I bought a brand new car. It was nothing too extravagant, a gray four-door Kia Spectra. But it had never been owned by anyone else, and I bought it all by myself. The whole time I was at the dealership, signing papers and whatnot, I kept thinking, "I can't believe they are actually letting me do this. How can I be old enough to buy a car?" Even now, I am sometimes surprised, though it is very clear that I do not own the car, but River Region Credit Union in Jefferson City, Missouri owns the car. And I have believed, from the point when I was driving the car off the lot until about five days ago, that buying my first car would only be topped by buying my first house. Little did I know that something better, and far less expensive would come along.
Every day after work this week, I raced home (I use the word "raced" loosely, considering it's about an hour of bumper-to-bumper traffic on the Van Wyck, and that's on a good day) to see if my package had arrived. And finally, this morning, it came: my Columbia Lost Lake 7' x 5' Backpacking Dome Tent with Vestibule. Sleeps two and weighs in at 6.52 pounds. Of course, I had to put it up immediately, and having no front or back yard to speak of, I put it up inside my bedroom. You might be surprised by how nicely it fits in between my bed and the bathroom door!
I have always loved camping, but I have never owned a tent. After I ordered it, I was talking to my roommate about it. "You know what this means, Sam," she said. "We can go camping whenever we want now." Here I am, a girl in her twenties, who has lived away from home for six years, lived on my own in three different states, made it through my first year of teaching in the New York City public school system, am a third of the way through my masters program; and owning a small structure made of nylon and aluminum has given me a new sense of freedom. It was summed up completely in my roommate's words: I can go camping whenever I want. Just escape, to wherever. Whenever I want!
So, tomorrow I am heading down to North Carolina for two weeks of visiting old friends and camping out. I don't have to borrow any gear, rent any equipment, or worry about knowing what the hell I'm doing. I'm halfway packed now, and ready to hit the road. In my very own car, of course...
Every day after work this week, I raced home (I use the word "raced" loosely, considering it's about an hour of bumper-to-bumper traffic on the Van Wyck, and that's on a good day) to see if my package had arrived. And finally, this morning, it came: my Columbia Lost Lake 7' x 5' Backpacking Dome Tent with Vestibule. Sleeps two and weighs in at 6.52 pounds. Of course, I had to put it up immediately, and having no front or back yard to speak of, I put it up inside my bedroom. You might be surprised by how nicely it fits in between my bed and the bathroom door!
I have always loved camping, but I have never owned a tent. After I ordered it, I was talking to my roommate about it. "You know what this means, Sam," she said. "We can go camping whenever we want now." Here I am, a girl in her twenties, who has lived away from home for six years, lived on my own in three different states, made it through my first year of teaching in the New York City public school system, am a third of the way through my masters program; and owning a small structure made of nylon and aluminum has given me a new sense of freedom. It was summed up completely in my roommate's words: I can go camping whenever I want. Just escape, to wherever. Whenever I want!
So, tomorrow I am heading down to North Carolina for two weeks of visiting old friends and camping out. I don't have to borrow any gear, rent any equipment, or worry about knowing what the hell I'm doing. I'm halfway packed now, and ready to hit the road. In my very own car, of course...
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