Last September the kids and I took the perfect road trip down the West Coast. Travel is my passion, but my nesting instinct is strong. Those two inclinations might seem to be at odds, but while exploring the town of Ferndale, CA I saw this hot little vintage set-up parked on the main drag. Bells went off in my head. Like Pavlov’s dog, I started to salivate, and experienced an almost uncontrollable urge to sidle up to it and polish its chrome.
Check out these digs! I peeked into the windows, and decided where I’d put my bookshelves, what kind of coffee I’d stock the cute little cupboards with, how many pairs of shoes I would bring, where I’d pack my kids into this arrangement. And, of course, how to charge my laptop.
There is a time to make tracks. I’ve done the seven countries in five weeks thing, kept up a wicked pace, and lived to tell the tale. I’ve even spent months at a time on the road in an old VW bus, hauling a beat up Apache tent trailer.
As I get older, I want to stop and smell the coffee. One day I’ll take my laptop, and spend a month of the shoulder season at an Italian villa, a thatched roof cottage in the English countryside, or a log cabin in the Tetons. In the meantime, this combo would be just the ticket! I wonder if it comes in purple…
I’m an old dog, but I can still learn a new trick or two. What a wonderful way to cover your miles, fill up your story banks, and crank out that next novel!
Click here for more interpretations of The Weekly Travel Theme: Gloss
Click here for more interpretations of Cee’s Travel Theme: Vintage Cars.
All words and images ©Naomi Baltuck
Writing Between the Lines 