Road Trips |

Posts Tagged ‘ Road Trips ’

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading?

It’s Monday, What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila @ Book Journey. Want a good book to read? Stop by and see what’s new in the world of literature!

This past week was a great one for reading on my porch. Sunshine, warm breezes, the smell of spring, ahhh… So while I got a little distracted and had to go off and play disc golf every once in a while, it was a great week for springtime reading.

Here’s what I’ve been reading:

Stupid Fast by Geoff Herbach – Felton Reinstein is used to being called Squirrel Nut and being an outsider. But one day he wakes up and realizes he is really, really fast. Soon he’s playing football and being one of the jocks. But Felton realizes it won’t fix everything that is wrong in his life. At some point he’s going to have to stop running and face bigger issues that are going on in his life. Adolescent angst and running? This is going to be a great book. 🙂

Dead End In Norvelt by Jack Gantos – The winner of the 2012 Newbery Medal and the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, Dead End is marketed as the entirely true and wildly fictional story about a kid named Jack Gantos. (Not sure what that means, but someone clearly thought they were being clever…) The story sounds extremely entertaining however with small town eccentricities and exaggerated obituaries. I’m listening to this one on CD and its narrated by the author. A great motivation to drive to work!

The Great American Ale Trail by Christian DeBeredetti – As a beer lover I’m constantly on the lookout for new books that center around the craft of beer making and enjoying. I also love road trips, so while drinking is driving is never good, this book is perfect for when I reach a destination and am looking for restaurants and brewpubs that serve unique craft beer selections. And more often than not, places that serve good beer, serve good food too. I’ve already taken note of breweries and/or brewpubs around my area to visit and can’t wait to try them out.

Hope you’re enjoying this spring weather as much as I am. Happy reading! 🙂

2012: 03/26
CATEGORY: Beer
Books & Media
Food
Monday Reading Blogs
Reading
Running
YA lit trends & news
TAGS: beer
books on cd
Mondays
Reading
Road Trips
spring
YA
9 comments

Why I Love Road Trips

2011: 03/09
CATEGORY: Traveling
Wordless Wednesdays
TAGS: America
Arizona
Golf ball house
Road Trips
5 comments

My Epic Journey

It’s finally here! My epic journey begins tomorrow morning at 5:30am! Inspired by my grandma Louise to embark on a quest to reach all 50 states, I am – if all goes according to plan – finishing my goal by this Saturday. Woohoo! 🙂

I turn 31 on July 10 and wanted to accomplish my quest while I was still 30. I’ve been knocking off the states for years now starting with my family trips to Vermont when I was just a wee babe. I’ve flown, rafted, biked, cruised, climbed, hiked, run, skydived, heliocoptered, and driven by cab, bus, car, train while visiting these great states of America.

And it all culminates into this final journey.

Tomorrow morning (after a mandatory stop at Starbucks) I’ll be driving to the first of my final two – Kentucky. It clocks in on AAA TripTik (a great road trip planning site and iphone app) at 9 hours and 52 minutes. I’m figured with gas and potty breaks it’ll be around 11 hours – ie. The Longest I’ve Ever Driven By Myself. Sweet.

Fear not though, because Day 2 I drive to Nashville to pick up my mom (the aforementioned grandma’s eldest daughter) to finish the last two days of my journey with me. We then head to Memphis for the evening, then it’s Day 3. We zip over the border between the great states of Tennessee and Arkansas and TADA! I’ve hit all 50 states! After I make my mom take epic photos of me smiling on the side of the road in who-knows-what-town, Arkansas, so I am able to pass on these cherished memories to my grandchildren in the hopes that they will one day emulate me, thus continuing the tradition, we head on our merry way to Roanoke.

The cool thing is that when I mentioned my plans to my mom, she said, Oh, your grandma went to school right around there. WHAT??!! What better way to end my epic journey and homage to one of the most influential women in my life than by visiting the school she attended for college. Double sweet. It’s my goal to learn more about my grandma through doing this or at the very least walk in her footsteps. (My mom told me that she was one of the few women who attended school during that time – WWII – and her family saved up their war vouchers – I think that’s what they were called – just so they would have enough gas to drive her down to school in the fall. It makes me that much more appreciative of being able to jump in my car at a moment’s notice and drive anywhere let alone an EPIC ROAD TRIP.) I am very, very pumped about this as it marks the perfect ending to a perfect trip.

I believe that everyone should have at least one EPIC JOURNEY in their lifetime. Something that you can plan for and feel alive doing it. Something you can look back on without regret. A journey that you’ve always dreamed of and weren’t afraid to finish.

What’s your EPIC JOURNEY?