Left and Leaving – Places I'd Rather Go Back to Than Be

My dear friend Ryan was kind enough to do a guest blog for 'Charity Dawn's Big City Adventure'. Please give a warm round of applause to Ryan Hill....

Being away from home makes some things rough, being more detached from a lot of extended family you barely saw to begin with, not being able to store crap in you parent's basement, having to constantly pay rent… it adds up.

I've had a few friends who have headed oversees for school, my sister recently moved to Japan, a colleague at work is moving to San Francisco to get married, I left home for school a couple years ago and haven't moved back home since. There's something about being away.

The initially unfamiliar becomes the new standard. The uncomfortably new becomes the newly comfortable. The process doesn't really take that long. This isn't to say that homesickness doesn't exist – it's just that it's not that big a deal. People drift, they forget who you are and what you're up to. You have to really try to remember when people add you to facebook. It happens – but it's totally fine.

Being away from home often means being someplace you want to be, rather than someplace you just are. It's not that home is bad or a place you don't love, it's just a place you'd rather go back to than a place you need to constantly be.

*be sure to visit ryan at his blog http://saxby.blogspot.com

May 30

i

Matt, Tom and I are driving through Quebec as we speak and are about forty minutes from Quebec City. The drive today has been great. It’s sunny and warm and the roads in Quebec are significantly better than those in New Brunswick. Still windy though.

ii

It's technically the 31st but I haven't slept yet so it still counts as part two of the travel log.

Matt, Tom and I made it to Ottawa. I feel like I've finally made it to the little tree covered island in the middle of the lake. It's such a relief. I feel like these last two days were potentially setting the tone for the rest of the trip. And so far, so good. I feel really great.

Our first night sleeping on our little foam mattress built into the back of the Trooper was fabulous fun. It was a tight squeeze and maneuvering around was precarious to say the least but the stars were bright and obvious, the noises of the quiet campground were creepy like ghost stories. I loved it. Until I had to get up and let Tom out for a pee and drink of water. I'm pretty sure I acquired some bruises during the dismount out of the Trooper bed, on top of almost losing Tom in the darkness of night but we survived and woke rested and ready for a long day of driving.

The day was a perfect day for running away. It was sunny and barren like a good Tom Petty song, which Matt and I listened to a lot of today. We also listened to Stephen Colbert's I am America... and So Can You audio book. Funny. I suddenly feel like hating women and joining the Republican party.


Anyway, I'm done for now. I've drank some wine and ate some delicious pizza and visited with some of my most favorite people. I need to go to bed.

Love you guys and I hope you are all enjoying my crazy, wine induced musings.

xoxo

May 29

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One province down, seven more to go.

It’s a little after 5 o’clock and Matt, Tom and I have finally conquered Nova Scotia and are slowly trudging our way through New Brunswick. The day has been beautiful and sunny with a generous serving of wind, which has caused Matt a good deal of discontent. Although, it is difficult not to think that the wind has conspired to keep us in the maritimes because its been blowing directly at us since the moment we left Dartmouth with little indication of giving up. On the other hand, the truck is doing well considering it is one of the least aerodynamic vehicles on the road. Unfortunately the Trooper is sucking back the gas like I suck back beer… quickly. Very, very quickly. Hopefully a less windy province will help with our gas efficiency.

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Alright, it’s five minutes to nine and Matt, Tom and I have arrived at our first campsite, Mactaquac (or smackacack as I like to call it), in New Brunswick. We almost didn’t make it since that lying slut Matt calls GPS almost got us lost. Fortunately a good old fashioned human being helped us find our way.

Since we arrived too late to buy firewood Matt is trying to make a fire out of the wood he stole from some of the ‘abandoned’ campsites. It’s not going so well. At least the smoke is keeping the bugs away. And I am happily sitting here at the picnic table watching him slave away (just the way I like it), drinking Propeller Beer and eating veggies and dip. So far this trip is awesome.

For some fun, here is a recent conversation between Matt and I:

Charity: What can I write in my blog about today?
Matt: That we drove here.

So, we drove here and that’s about it so far. All I can really say is that the truck is working well, Tom loves riding in his super bed that Matt built in the back of the truck and Matt and I haven’t strangled each other yet. Go us.

Oh. And also, I already have a million mosquito bites.