well hey there! I used to be sooo much better at blogging consistently, and I miss this long-form way of processing and sharing thoughts. I veered away from it during the last several years, because I always felt this pressure to produce something deep and profound, while experiencing such huge shifts and changes with my mom’s illness. but I’m going to take the pressure off, and just start writing again for fun 🙂
how about starting with an overview? here’s what the last ~four months~ have been like since Kenny and I left Colorado (where does the time go??!). we hit the road searching for more adventure, time outside, new places & experiences, and a deeper appreciation for each other & the world we live in. and I’m happy to report, this truly has been the adventure we needed.
I’m currently in the passenger seat of #HarveytheRV while we drive through West Texas. we left El Paso and are heading toward some National Parks (Guadalupe & Carlsbad Caverns). this has become routine for us… Kenny hops up into the driver’s seat and I climb into the passenger seat. he’s the trusted driver of our 32-foot monstrous home on wheels, and I’m the one that goes back to the fridge to get snacks. I navigate, he dodges dummies on the road. he fills the gas, I choose the podcast. this is our new dynamic, and we’re pretty dang good at it. (the other day I realized it’s been a couple months since I’ve even driven a car… oops 😂)
it’s crazy to think back to November, and how all the unknown that was lying ahead is now known. I would stress about the logistics: will it be worth it lugging this motorcycle around? how do we take care of an RV? where will we camp? will I be able to work from the road? we’d look up blogs, watch YouTube videos, seek the advice of those who have done road life before us, but it all felt so elusive and mysterious. we wondered how it would feel, and if we’d be able to figure it out.
spoiler alert: we did figure it out! (or at least we are. ☺️) just like any grand adventure in life, you learn by doing. and as the saying goes: “a single thorn of experience is worth more than a field of warnings.” we can hear all the stories, watch all the videos, ask all the advice, but we truly had to figure this out on our own! it took some time, but we’re finally finding our own routine, our own rhythms, our own priorities to this new life on the road.
there were so many nerves on Nov. 11, as we said goodbye to my dad and drove away from my his house, waving goodbye to Colorado for a while too. it was our home the last 5 1/2 years, the place I grew up, the place I last held my mama. in the coming weeks, all these feelings of ‘leaving’ would flood back in waves. I was so focused on the excitement of the next chapter that I forgot it meant the closing of this chapter. but I took those feelings in stride.
our first destination was Moab, UT, which already has a special place in my heart. but it felt like the perfect first stop to winter camp. there’s nothing like that first night setting up camp, the realization that you’re not just here for a couple days, heading home after the weekend. this IS your home! and you can take it with you anywhere. that first Monday, when I clocked in for work from the desert of Utah, it began hitting me that this was our new reality.
of course, there have been ups and downs. it’s challenging to leave everything we know behind–the comforts of a home and friends we love, and dad in the next town over. it’s challenging to squeeze all your belongings in a 32-foot-long vehicle. it’s challenging to constantly think ahead to where you’ll sleep tomorrow, and next week, and to make sure you know where the nearest dump station is at any given time. it’s challenging to have a 25-year-old rig when the ‘check engine’ light kicks on, or the AC doesn’t drain correctly, or we find a screw in the tire. but isn’t this life? life is full of challenges, whether you’re sitting in one place or moving all around the country. life will always be hard, but you can choose your hard. and this is the hard we chose.
Harvey the RV has truly become a main character in our lives. it’s either because he has a personality of his own or because we’re constantly talking about the repairs and upgrades he needs… but probably both! we also love having Cody the Moty (motorcycle) to use as a second mode of transportation. we can set up Harvey for the week, then drive Cody around town, through the desert, to a trailhead, or to the grocery store. we’ve already clocked about 3,500 miles total through Utah, Nevada, Cali, Arizona, New Mexico & now Texas, and hopefully LOTS more to go. we’re heading into the south, going up the east coast, then circling back over to the north when summer arrives. there’s SO much to see!
anywayssss, that’s my update! click here to watch some other lessons I’ve learned from road life 🙂 see you down the road!
Ashlee Ginn 