Call of the Open Road

I just finished reading Lost in America: A Dead-End Journey. It isn't a happy story or really that compelling of a book. But, something about the blunt honesty of the writer combined with the characters he meets on his journey across America finding work and finding stories really hit home for me.

As I read it, I came to the realization that I've never read On the Road which inspired the author's journey, but maybe I should now because the call of the open road, the desire to throw my stuff in a car and hit go is stronger than ever.

Several of my friends and I have mused about taking photography road trips and yet we've never done it. We've all got families, jobs and other commitments that make it hard to make happen. Yet, we've also only got a limited number of days walking the earth too and yet that doesn't seem to motivate us enough to just do it.

I've got this fantasy of taking two weeks next year and driving across the country. Connecting with photographer friends in different cities and taking photos with them. Finding stories of inspiration for a new video project I'm working on and just taking in parts of America that I've never seen.

Of course the people that come to mind that I want to do this with are in cities not exactly in a direct route. Places like Boston, New Jersey, Chicago, Houston and San Diego.

I keep telling myself that if I get my act together perhaps this could become a reality as part of my next book tour. Then the idea of finding sponsors to help make it happen starts to bounce around in my head. Who knows, maybe I can make it happen.

Fueling this desire further, I was introduced to the Destee-Nation Shirt Company T-Shirt Road Trip and accompanying photos. These were like pouring hot sauce on chili for me. Making everything more vibrant and ready to happen now.

The call of the open road is always there in the back of my head. Part of my never ending wanderlust wants to see this great country of ours. Meet the people that keep it running. Drink cheap coffee, sit on old diner stools and get my hair cut in a hundred year old barber shop. All of this will happen. I just need to make it happen.

I'll let you know how it goes.