Over a year ago Matt and I pinky swore over some beers that we’d quit our jobs and take some bike adventures across the good ole USA, today in a surreal culmination of a pinky swear coming to fruition, we’re jobless and happily in our van and on the road, right now near Kokomo Indiana! Dreams do come true! Thanks to so many friends and family and careful planning (mostly on Matt’s end) we are able to make this a reality and I can’t wait to explore so many places with my best friend! I also swore to some people on digits other than my pinky that I’d attempt to blog about our adventures, so here I am trying to keep my end of that bargain too. Today as Matt packed the van with all our bikes and camping gear it took me back to my childhood, and the multiple van trips my family did from Mexico City to New Albany Ohio. My dad would do most of the three -day drive in our brown Aerostar, or “the lords ford” as my dad called it sometimes 3 times a year with us weird Mexican kids piled in the back on our bed made out of all the American snacks our Grandma would send back to Mexico with us. They were some of the best trips, with lake swimming, fried chicken, cactus army fights and the alphabet game and singing along with cassette tapes of Donna Summer.
I’d spent most of the time in the back fighting with my siblings, waiting for night time to see any city lights or my favorite of all, pretending to be asleep when my dad would stop for snacks and then wake up conveniently when he’d crack open the bag of chips or cookies and say “mmm, smells like Dominick’s” and demand he share some with me.
Over 30 years have passed since those days but I can assure you that this will be my same travel plan of attack on this year off with Matt, to fulfill my duty as the snAcker! While Matt spent the last couple days and morning packing the van, making food, cleaning our bikes, mapping our route and other essential trip plans, I partied with the dogs, watched Survivor and my other shows, and mostly have been snacking and snoozing already on our 4 hours in to our year-off adventure! I’ve already polished off half a bag of jalapeño chips, double fisted some frig newtons, and spilled some of Matt’s tasty pasta salad on the one pair of jeans I’ve packed for the next 3 weeks. It’s how I roll! We’ve been chatting about all the fun riding we’ll be doing this weekend with friends in Brown County, then some hill climbing in Tennessee then more mtn bike braapping with other friends in North Carolina! I feel so lucky! Now and back then, living the van life with my loved ones, and the snacks I love as well, thank you all.
Alrighty, I never promised this blog would be pretty, it’s mostly the ramblings of my thoughts and my thinks in my brain compartments and departments, I might try to edit and clean it up later but for now I’ll leave it as is
buttcrackjenny 