Why this Roadtrip, and Why now?

Some of you have been asking, and well you might, why we're taking this Roadtrip now, when gas is at an all-time high. Curiousity, plain and simple. We've both been cross country before, Jim on a bike and me by car. But we've never been cross-country together, and we've never been cross-country with a dog and we've never been to North Dakota or Montana or Texas together. And sure, there's literary inspiration, including John Steinbeck's Travels with Charlie and Jack Kerouac's On the Road.

Some of the challenges we anticipate include:

The interstate vs. blue highway controversy (ongoing between us - I'm a blue-highway girl and Jim is a get-there-fast kind of guy, but hey, we'll need both: point-to-point efficiency to get to the out-of-the-way places where I fantasize that the most interesting stories, people, and events are.)

The sheer lunacy of traveling with a 55-pound Standard Poodle who thinks he was put on this earth so that we could attend to his every need. (He's already been thrown out of one place, and we haven't even left yet. Not his fault: a C-A-T is to blame.) On the other hand, he loves Road Trips and has a backpack so that he can carry his own provisions (see picture). Plus, we figure he'll give us a fresh perspective- and he's a great conversation magnet.

The anticipated challenge of conducting a marriage for 31 days from the front seat of a Subaru Forester. Think of the metaphors: It's all wheel drive for all road conditions, it has a passenger seat and a drivers' seat, and most of all, it has a roomy luggage compartment for the baggage we take and the baggage we pick up along the way.

Stay in touch via this site, or feel free to email me at lindaleelenzini@insightbb.com. Happy trails!

PS: You can also read essays from previous travels at this address: http://lindastravelessays.blogspot.com/