Why I Drive

Back when I started to consider this trip and I hashed out a rough budget (that's everyone's first step ... right?), it became pretty clear that I could have flown somewhere. Gone on a cruise. Taken a train ... somewhere.

Somehow, the drive still won out.

Don't get me wrong. I like anything that lets me see the world, particularly the parts I haven't seen yet. I even enjoy airports. [Well, not O'Hare, but that's normal.] But it's probably clear to most of you that I have a supreme weakness for road trips. I love open highway, roadside diners, even drive-thru coffee. (Okay. I accept drive-thru coffee.) There's more to it than that, though -- I like the process of getting somewhere, the real feeling of arriving that is denied by strapping yourself into a time machine/commercial airliner. I like the opportunity to stop and see what's around me instead of just passing obliviously over.

And above all, when I start down the highway I love the feeling that I control my destiny. There will be problems, delays, mishaps, accidents -- bad meals, creepy motels, near-misses that leave the adrenaline pumping -- and in the end my destination might not be quite what I had in mind.

But ultimately, the direction is entirely up to me. All I have to do is get in the car and go.

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