2019 | Chasing Your Joy
"What is art, if it's not connection and love."
(Brené Brown)
On December 31st, 2018, I left my established job of 10 years to live semi-full-time in an eighteen foot travel trailer with my wonderful dog, Hiker. I downsized a very full suburban house of mostly useless stuff down to the minimalist utilitarian basics (a profoundly freeing experience). This has been the most amazing year of my life and I have been so blessed to do, to experience, and to grow so much in this time.
So, we've had to unplug from the previous definition of success that worked really really well in suburbia , because it's so measurable. The measurables are so obvious - it's like house, it's car, it's clothes, it's things; and the game is played very simple - the more you have, the better you're doing. And I think for us, we reached a point where we had played the game for long enough that we knew we would never want to stop playing the game, I mean that's what it was. It was like, wait a second, this is never going to do it. It wouldn't take very long before we wanted something newer of something that we previously wanted. The moment that I was aware of that circumstance, the moment I realized this was just the newest version of what I wanted previously, and I was going to want another one after it, the moment the game became less fun to play. - Marc Leach (Keep Your Daydream)
I Volunteered to Start the Year
To start off this adventure, I was privileged to participate in the Rubber Tramp Rendezvous (RTR), and dry-camped for the first three months of life on the road.
I Have Been to 18 States This Year and Traveled Over 10,000 Miles
(in order: SC, GA, AL, MS, AR, OK, TX, NM, AZ, CA, UT, CO, NE, WY, SD, ND, MT, NV)
South Carolina | Arizona | North Dakota
North Dakota | Colorado
Colorado | California
I Have Three Travel Nursing Assignments Under My Belt
I am finishing up my third travel nursing contract and have had the privilege of working
with some of the most awesome people imaginable.
Bismarck, ND
Avon, CO
Fort Bragg, CA
I Obtained My California Nursing License
(and re-certified in BLS, PALS, TNCC, and ENPC this year)
I Have Visited 58 Parks, Monuments, Recreation Areas, Etc.
Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area
Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield
Horseshoe Bend National Military Park
Brices Cross Roads National Battle Site
Guadalupe Mountains National Park
Natural Bridges National Monument
Four Corners National Monument
Manhattan Project National Historic Site
Valles Caldera National Preserve
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve
Scotts Bluff National Monument
Fort Laramie National Historic Site
Agate Fossil Beds National Monument
Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
Mount Rushmore National Memorial
Devil’s Tower National Monument
Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site
Mississippi National River Recreation Area
Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area
Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area
Curecanti National Recreation Area
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Hanging Lake (Glenwood Springs, CO)
Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
MacKerricher State Park | Glass Beach
MacKerricher State Park | 10 Mile Beach
Sonoma Coast State Park | Portuguese Beach
Russian River Gulch State Park
Jug Handle State Natural Reserve | Jug Handle Beach
Van Damme State Park | Little River Punchbowl
I Have Bagged Three More State Peaks
(including my first 14’er)
Colorado - Mount Elbert (14,440')
North Dakota - White Butte (3,507')
Texas - Guadalupe Peak (8,751')
New Mexico - Wheeler Peak (13,159')
Tennessee - Clingman's Dome (6,643')
North Carolina - Mount Mitchell (6,683')
South Carolina - Sassafras Mountain (3,554')
I Have Rafted the Colorado River Through Glenwood Canyon
I Have Read and Listened To Some AWESOME Books
Ranger Confidential - Andrea Lankford
The Knowledge of the Holy - A.W. Tozier
The Four Loves - C.S. Lewis
Self Discipline in 10 Days - Theodore Bryant
Formula for Fitness - R.E. Hunton
Younger Next Year - Chris Crowley, Henry S. Lodge M.D.
The Miracle Morning - Hal Elrod
Outliers - Malcolm Gladwell
Eat THAT Cookie! - Liz Jazwiec
Hey Cupcake! - Liz Jazwiec
Great by Choice - Jim Collins, Morten T. Hansen
This is Water - David Foster Wallace
The Willpower Instinct - Kelly McGonigal
The 5 Second Rule - Mel Robbins
The Happiness Advantage - Shawn Achor
The Imperfect Disciple - Jared C. Wilson
The Dip - Seth Godin
Creative Calling - Chase Jarvis
Random Things I've Learned This Year
How to tow a trailer
How to drive cross-country
How to do the national parks in a government shutdown
How to find places to camp for free
How to deal with a traffic ticket (u-turn with a camper in AZ)
How to boondock/dry-camp
How to get packages on the road
How to get water while traveling
How to re-fill propane
How to empty black and gray tanks
How to land the first travel nursing assignment
How to winter in a 3 season camper trailer (in North Dakota)
How to modify a camper trailer for better living
How to re-seal a camper trailer roof
How to re-plumb a bathroom
How to lay vinyl floor tile
How to start a blog
There's a ton more but it all blurs together after a while . . .
Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you've imagined. As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler. (Henry David Thoreau)
Here's to another year of adventure . . . of change . . . of exploration . . .
SOME AMAZING THINGS COMING IN 2020 . . .
- STAY TUNED -
#ICreatedThisForMeAndILoveIt #NPS #StartSmallAndStartNow #KeepYourDayDream #LifeNotPossessions #ChasingYourJoy #ForestRiverRPOD