Day 08 — Something I Crave

Yeah, I know....Day 7's post is missing currently because I'm trying to find a specific photo to scan. If I can't find it soon, I've got a replacement in mind...but I haven't given up the search yet.

Anywho...onwards!

I'm taking Mary Kate's lead on this whole craving thing about being something I used to do and now don't, so I miss it...indeed, crave it.

My craving is travel. I've always loved traveling.

Maybe it's the military brat in me. Maybe it's the fact that growing up, my dad would pack us in the car without a map, without a suitcase, without even more than a few dollars and say, "It's time for an adventure!" and we would just drive until we found something interesting enough to pull over and investigate. That's how I found Taiwan (although we didn't drive that day, obviously), Sacramento, San Francisco, the Napa Valley, Prince Edward Island and Anne of Green Gables, deep sea fishing in Dalhousie, and on and on. He instilled in me the zeal to explore which I can only guess came from his childhood in a small Vermont town. His determination to get out and see the world. His desire to see how other people lived, what they ate, what they did for fun.

I used to travel a bit for work. It would have been the best job for a twenty-something, but I was missing out on a lot of Joshua's early years and I didn't want to. So I gave it up. If only I had that job now! I know I would thrive in it. Ah well...

If I didn't have responsibilities and could somehow tap into unlimited amounts of cash, I would totally see the world. I would do it with a backpack and a camera. Doesn't that sound divine, even on some small scale??

This is what I would pack:
Toothpaste and toothbrush (I hate the furry teeth feeling)
Hairbrush (not that I have as much hair anymore, but I'll sleep better knowing I brushed it)
Towel and swimsuit ( I WILL NOT skinny dip, or chunky dunk, as the case may be)
T-shirt and shorts (standard wardrobe for this girl)
Jeans and a hoodie/sweatshirt (I know some places are colder than Texas)
Skirt and blouse (never know when you might have to "dress up")
Appropriate undergarments (natch!)
Socks (1 pair thin, 1 pair think and wooly)
Camera, lenses, battery, flash and cords for re-charging and uploading (VITAL!)
Baby wipes (all-purpose and always needed)
First aid kit (I'm a mom, I'm used to being prepared!)
Lip balm
Passport/ID

This bare-essentials list is the "roughing-it"version. If I were to leave right now, not knowing where I'd end up tonight. Remember, I have unlimited funds, so I could buy what I did need when I got there, right?? Afterwards, I'd donate it to someone or some organization locally that could put it in to good use so that I wouldn't have to pack it, just like "Survivor" does. But I digress...

I love staying in hotels...the fancier, the better. But, contrary to public opinion, I do know how to survive in a tent. I'd just need a bigger backpack. Or a Wal-Mart nearby.

It's not the how that matters in this scenario though, it's more the why. The freedom of exploration. The adventure. Seeing new things, good and bad. I remember the culture shock of living in the poorest parish of the poorest diocese in Mexico for a few months and then returning to my middle-class American lifestyle. Yes, I enjoy my comfortable life in my big house with new things as it is now, but I'm not afraid to live on next to nothing. I've done it before and I know I can survive.

I want to see the places that I've only witnessed in pictures or travelogues or postcards from others living the adventure. I want to be immersed in a different culture, even if it's just in a neighborhood of some metropolis. I want to be surrounded by the culture, art, society of another country. I want to see the natural wonders, and the pop culture references, and the grittiness of life in places I don't know exist. I want to travel Route 66. See the Grand Canyon on a road trip in an RV. I want to while away the days on the beaches of the world. I want to see the phenomenal city in China built in the side of a mountain. (That slideshow is kinda long, but the pictures are incredible.) I want to take my own photos of Bali, Dubai, Athens, Rome, Paris and Sydney.

I want to spread my wings and fly!

There's so many places and things I want to see that the list would become incredibly boring to you.

I just want to feel that little excitement that comes when I pack a suitcase. That hint of anticipation of the what's to come. I want to load up the car with Cokes, Ding Dongs and pork skins. Hit the iPod playlist called "ROAD TRIP!" Play "I Spy" while the center white lines of the highway speed by...or hear the chug of the ship's engine or the plane's motors rev up.

I want to watch the customs agent stamp my passport with a little emblem of proof that I was there on that day.

And then, when it's all said and done...I want to look at the photos and reminisce while sipping a hot chocolate and saying "Remember when..."