Travel days mess with the travel writing

This life on the road has been an adventure. A good adventure mostly. We often speak about how grateful we are for how well it is going. Before we started, we really had no clue if we would even like the vagabond life - which is why we chose to think about this as a time of exploration. It is also why we searched for an older relatively inexpensive RV. It seemed wise to try out the life before investing lots of money in travel equipment.

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Of course, there were lots of factors to consider...


The small space
Would we be able to survive living in such small quarters? We seem to have adjusted quite well. Probably the most difficult thing is changing the sheets in such cramped quarters


A new place each month
What would it be like having a different address every month or so? Many aspects of that are rather enjoyable. We have discovered that a month is long enough to get a feel for a place and a sense of whether it could ever seem like home. But it is also short enough to not feel like a prison sentence if we really don't connect with the place. It has worked well to try out different areas. That experience can now inform our brainstorming and decision-making about future plans.


Our day-to-day schedule
There was some question about what hubby would do all day long - without a house to maintain, a farm to run or wood-working tools to build things. But his camera and his "photo lab" have facilitated many hours of photographic work. By the way, some of his photos have been published by BBC Travel in an article about the Dominican Republic. He also brought his piano and "recording studio" on this trip, so music has occupied many of his days. (His lab and studio are both contained within his computer.)

Finding something for me to do was of little concern because that never seems to be a problem. More often I have the opposite dilemma - not being able to keep up with all of the projects I want to do. As long as I have a writing notebook, a few books to read, my computer and decent internet access, I can carry on with most of my normal work. My relationship connections around the world and my writing all work fairly well from the road - as long as the internet can keep me connected. What we suspected has turned out to be true; I have no problem finding things to do. And sure enough, I am usually working on more projects that I can possibly keep up with.


Writing projects
For example, I have grand ideas of writing awesome riveting stories about the people and places and cultures we encounter in our travels that will grab an audience of people who can't wait to read the next piece. Of course I planned to post them with consistent regularity. Yah, right. Instead I seem to write mildly interesting posts with sporadic frequency. I'm pleased with much of what I write, but I get discouraged about all that I don't get written. I often feel like these places are slipping by my window and I just can't capture them all. Certainly the best time to write about a place is while I'm living there, but I just can't seem to get 'er done. So then I fear that I will lose it. Lose the memory, lose the moment, lose the beauty of the setting or the fun of the story. And then I feel sad.

At those moments of sadness or discouragement, I sometimes remind myself that John Steinbeck didn't write a single word of his classic Travels with Charley while on the road. Nope. He traveled the country on that epic journey without even beginning to write the story. It was all written after the fact. After the trip had ended. Well, that's a relief! If Steinbeck can do it, maybe I can do it. Of course, I am now already a couple epic journeys behind.


Travel days set me back
I feel pretty good about my writing schedule - WHEN we are in camp. But on travel days... Oh, those travel days and travel weeks - like this past week. They really sabotage my schedule. Funny how travel days mess with the travel writing.


Another journey behind us
And so here we are. Back in Michigan after another epic journey through eighteen states. Places that I want to write about, but have only begun. It seems that I am destined to be behind schedule. All the time. Nothing new about that.

Sure enough; life on the road is pretty much like life anywhere I've ever lived - in that I always bite off more than I can chew. And I am always trying to keep up.

So I keep writing. I keep trying to recall and capture at least some of those moments and some of those glorious scenes. Like scary mountain roads. Like wandering through the stacks at Bart's Books, the world-famous outdoor bookstore in Ojai, California. Like breath-taking moments along the Alaska Highway. Like the interesting people we meet along the way. Like the beach that hosted both sunrise and sunset. Oh, so much to write about. I have barely scratched the surface.

And, on those travel days... Well, I just shouldn't expect to do much writing on travel days. That's just the way it goes. And I guess that's okay.