Driving Ambitions
The most common problem writers struggle with is where to start. So in an effort to overcome that issue I have found that by determining the most basic incident brought on the topic of which is to be discussed. By basic I mean, the ultimate inciting incident. In this case it was a need. I had a need for a vehicle. I had been balking at the idea of purchasing a car for a very long time, nearly a decade. I had multiple reasons for this, past tickets, maintenance costs, fuel cost, and general frustration. Unfortunately, I had to come to terms with the fact that I was a parent whose children were fast approaching school age and I was no longer living in the urban infrastructure of the northeast. In New Orleans kids are either bused to school, which wasn't always garaunteed or they were driven by their parents or caretakers, which is far more likely to be my future.
My family knew this, my wife knew this, I refused to believe it. I chose to avoid buying a car like the plague. I preferred the inexpensive carbon free lifestyle of biking to work and the store. I even thought I could get away with getting the child carrier and bike my kids to school that way. My family was not convinced of this plan and set about their own plan of acquiring a vehicle for me. I stubbornly accepted the offer on the condition that I could chose whatever vehicle that I liked. I gave myself a few parameters, V6 engine, manual transmission, less than 100,000 miles and 4 wheel drive if possible. I didn't care about the color or the company that made it but I definitely wanted a manual transmission, I believe it says something about a persons character. After a month or so and being disappointed on more than one occasion the family told me to "get a move on and pick something already". Well fine, a few more hours of googling and I had found my chariot. I called the dealership to confirm that it met all of my criteria and it checked out good. A Nissan Xterra with the off-road package to include a 256 horsepower V6 engine, 6 speed manual transmission and two speed 4 wheel drive. Even less than 100,000 miles and under my budget. There was a catch though, of course, the truck was in Portland. Oregon. I lived in New Orleans. Louisiana. 3,017 Miles or 47 hours apart from each other.
I asked my wife if this was crazy. I have to do that regularly, ask her if I'm crazy, to make sure, you know, that I'm not...well, crazy. The conversation went like this:
"Honey, I found a car."
"Great, when can you get it?"
"Well, next week maybe."
"Why so long?"
"It requires some planning."
"What's not being said here"
"It's in Oregon, I'd have to drive it home it could take, maybe 5 days, if I'm slow, less if we drive in shifts, is that crazy?"
-----long pause----
"Well it's not the easiest way about things and definitely not the most absurd thing you've said this week, lets figure it out"
---short pause---
"Okay, not crazy"
"not overly crazy"
"Good enough for me, let's go to Portland!"
A few hours later, we had come up with a plan. I would have to fly out on Sunday because the deposit I had placed on the truck was only good until Tuesday. I had to make some money during the week which meant I needed to be home in the same week and my wife's birthday was friday so we needed to be home by then. Then the curveball came in we originally thought that she could come with me but a lack of available baby sitters and family members meant that I would have to do the trip solo. There was no way I could call anyone on a friday night/ early saturday morning and ask them to meet me in Portland on sunday morning. Only to drive back to New Orleans just for them to have to fly home from where ever they started. This is the sort ridiculous life the standby traveler leads. It seems to be exclusive to us, Hillary Clinton and Navy Seals. I would make 6,000+ miles by air and land in under a week. Seriously. This was happening.
Marriage is hard. So this trip came a either a good time or a less than desirable time depending on how you look at things. My wife and I had already been "at odds" we'll say to avoid the gruesome details of married life. She felt as though a road trip would give me some time to clear my head, which I tend to believe is probably code for "see things her way". I felt as though it was taking me away from her when we needed to be together the most, even though being in the same room was at times unbearable. I was exactly the opposite of thrilled to be away from her, especially during her birthday week. However I can't deny the minute I saw the idea start to form, I was chomping at the bit for a much need dose of exploration. Travel is my oxygen. I thrive on the chaos and uncertainty of it all. Its been a part of me since I was a child. I sit and stare at maps for hours lost in the names of unknown places. I am that guy.
Sunday morning we left the house at 430 am. I had my ditch bag or otherwise known as my A-bag, terms I carry on from sailing and a former life in the military. The contents of which were as follows
-2 pairs of boxers
-2 pairs of socks
-2 t-shirts
-2 pairs of shorts
-1 pair of sweat pants
-1 undershirt
- toothbrush
- hairbrush
-sound canceling head phones ( a new addition, seriously if you fly a lot, this is a lifesaver)
-laptop and charger
-printed directions
-id, passport and checkbook
-sunglasses
-a book from a friend
I also took a sleeping bag
I must take a moment to talk about an absolutely phenomenal experience. During my flight to Minnesota, where i had a layover, I happened to look out the window. The sky was very dark but with the new dawn colors starting to spread upward from the horizon. Still dark enough to clearly see the stars yet the sun was halfway up in the cloudless sky. I looked down at the ground which was also still very dark and similarly lightening in shades of green and brown creeping from the horizon. Suddenly, almost terrifyingly I noticed that what I thought was ground was in fact twinkling back at me and I experienced a long moment of confusion. The sky fully mimicked by the ground. It took a second ot register that the sun was gently reflecting on the multitudes of rivers, lakes, windows and various other shining objects. All at just the right angle to look marvelously like the sky above me. Honestly it was a beautiful moment. I wish I could have taken a picture. My words do not give it justice. Things like that will renew your faith in God.
Oregon
I landed in Portland just after 1pm and caught at cab to the dealership. Eighteen minutes, nearly fifty dollars. Easily the most expensive cab ride ever. I met up with my wonderfully enthusiastic sales representative Krista M. She's a peach and a pistol. Word to the wise people, women who work in a field that is generally accepted to be a man's are probably better and smarter than their male counter parts. Treat them as such. Or you will get rolled. I learned this a long time ago. So we followed what I presumed to be semi-customary/obligatory haggling and about 5 hours later I had the keys and was poor again. The process of course was not without a technical glitches but that is the world we live in now and eventually cash was handed over. Honestly, Krista and her team made the day pleasant when it could have been a nightmare. I am grateful for that. I could have just as easily gotten back on the plane and flown home if things went pear shaped but they accomodated me wonderfully.
I have to add that I showed up to the dealership with the clothes I was wearing, my ditch bag, and my sleeping bag. I imagine the employees will be talking about it for weeks. "Remember that guy who flew in, bought a truck and drove it back to New Orleans....he was crazy." My wife said I wasn't, remember that.
First order of business, establish a working knowledge of the newly acquired asset. The truck. It needed gas, great so it begins.
-I'm just going to stop the questions from coming right here. I paid a lot of money for a lot of gas. At an estimated 21 mpg on the highway the price of fuel ranged thru the trip from $4.87 to $3.37 per gallon. 3,017 miles... you do the math if you care so much, I gave up after the first $65 tank.-
I also needed a way to play my music thru the speakers which meant I needed a second stop. Lastly I needed food and drinks. I planned to drive until I got to the California state line in the first night so I didn't want unnessary stops. This took about an hour or so plus a quick, get my bearings tour ( aka "crap I missed my exit") of downtown Portland. Portland is a really interesting city. I'd like to have been able to hang around and really dig into it but it was getting late and I had a schedule. The road called. I headed south on I-5. I wish it had been earlier, the light that I had from passing cars and the moon suggested a beautiful landscape with tall trees and mountains, things I rarely see in the short flat deep south. I passed thru tiny rural towns one by one in the night. Just past Crescent City I crossed the state line at 2am, two hours shy of having been awake for 24 hours straight. I pulled over into a rest stop and stretched out my sleeping bag. Wearily I searched for a pillow and only found the airline blanket I had absconded on my first flight. The back of the truck was hard plastic but I did my best to sleep. Engine off, windows cracked the smell of the warm forest and foliage. I passed out
Northern California
5:20 am: Startled awake to a blaring car horn, a stream of foul words issued from my extremely bitter subconscious.WHO the F**** is blowing their horn? Don't they know I am/was in here sleeping. You soul less schmuck! Oh wait, I rolled over on the keys and set off the alarm on the truck. Damn it, how do I make this stop? I fumbled in the early predawn light to turn off the alarm which had an immense echoing sound, a very impressive horn. Swung the door open and staggered out on to shaky legs. Having forgotten my pillow I slept fairly contorted and was now paying a brutal price. Checking my surroundings I had parked next to a VW hatchback in the night. In the window I could very clearly see a 20 something woman glaring at me. Guess I woke her up. Sorry I tried to mimick. Inconsolable. It looked like we had been parked in to a corner of the lot by two huge logging trucks whose drivers I had also woken up. They were staggering around the cabs just as I was heading to the bath room. Coming back to the truck I was able to really assess my surrounding. The fog was lifting a bit and I realized I was in a crook of sorts surrounded by steep hills on all sides with the rest stop nestled in the center. Big green odiferous pines trees standing tall with their light brown needle covering the ground. The air was fresh and crisp as I went to sit in the truck and drink the cold coffee leftover from the drive in. I briefly conversed with the couple in the hatchback as we waited for the logging trucks to pull out. They had come from somewhere obscure down in the south and were heading to Portland for a fair. They had opted to sleep in the car same as me and were generally pleasant west coasters. I packed up my very few things and made a mental note to buy a pillow before I stopped for the next night. Waved good by and headed out the way I came and turned south.
To be continued (its quite a long story actually...)
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