A Full Schedule, Practicing Joy and My First Day of Driving

It's funny to think that now that I'm driving across country I now have the time to actually write a post. This past week has been non-stop packing and running around finishing up errands for the move. And the last thing I thought as I laid down to sleep last night was that I didn't post about this trip as I had planned.  So I told myself - You HAVE to post once you get to Albuquerque! Which given how long the drive is and the fact that with the time zone change it is so very late I really should be finding my way to bed.

So to get to the point:
The Plan - I will post about my trip along the way.  If I can figure out how to access blogger via my phone (it's acting weird about logging on - I tried today and it didn't work) then I'll do some short posts from the road:).  I will also put some photos (now that I know how easy it is!) that I've taken along the way.

Before the Trip:
I've been visiting with family and friends almost constantly for the last two weeks. And while it's been emotional I have not broken down. It's practically a perfect example of how far I've come in my journey. I cry at the drop of hat. I cry when I'm sad and I cry when I'm happy. I cry when I'm overwhelmed or overjoyed. I cry when I'm angry and I cry when I'm excited. But while I've leaked a bit in the past several weeks I haven't been bowled over by it even when some of my closest friends have been taking it harder than I expected.

And more than that everyone keeps asking me about how my mother is taking me leaving. And she really has been a trooper. When I brought it up to her again the other day (she had kept laughing it off the other times I had mentioned other people's concerns) she finally told me that it's about practicing joy. Being sad has no benefits to it and that I'm going on to the next stage of my life and that she supports that whole heartedly. Practicing Joy. This has stuck in my head for the last couple of days. I like the idea because I ultimately have learned in the past 2 years - that it's a choice to be happy. So the concept of practicing joy just feels very real to me.

Day 1- October 18, 2013 - to Alberquerque:
I got up and finalized my car and set out on my trip! My car is completely stuffed! My parents couldn't believe I packed as much as I did into it.

 

My mom had to leave earlier than when I left but I got up early to say goodbye and give her a hug. She gave me a prayer for the road that my grandfather used to say in his benedictions. I'd write it here but I left it in my car and I may want to keep it for myself... it was emotional but again I kept it together.

My step-father almost got me though... he was doing the "Dad" thing checking my engine and tire pressure. I had to step away and not dwell on it or my practicing joy might not have worked very well. I finally gave him a hug and hopped in my car, but not before almost pulling away with one of my doors open!!!

Ahh! The drive... it was good up until the last 2-3 hours. Then it just got weird. I stopped and got a photo of a land formation. And then when I got back on the road I missed the welcome to New Mexico sign as it must have literally been where I stopped but didn't realize it!

I then got turned around in Gallup, NM when I stopped to get gas. Which had me driving in the opposite direction for about 8 miles until I could exit and turn around. I still had 2 hours to go until Albuquerque and my reservation so I just kept at it. But it wasn't that bad because even though it was late I got to stare into the craziest thing: the full moon.

When it finally got dark it was like a flashlight on the road in front of me. SOOOO Bright!

Anyways, I finally arrived in Albuquerque thinking I did well considering it was 8:30 when I check in - only to walk into the hotel room and see the clock read 9:30... oh wait I'm in a different time zone. I forgot to take that into account :(...

So even though I normally stay up for another hour or so I'm thinking I should hit the sack because tomorrow is going to come way too soon.