What I Listen To, and When I Turn It Off
I gave up on building the perfect road trip playlist somewhere in my second year of driving alone. What replaced it is a scan button, a lot of silence, and a rule about the last hour of the day.
I Stopped Booking Ahead, and Then I Started Again, Sort Of
Not booking felt like freedom until the night it cost me two extra hours of driving in the dark. Here is what I got wrong about flexibility, and the small set of nights I now reserve without arguing.
Sunday Is the Hardest Day to Judge a Town
Arriving on a Sunday morning gives you the worst possible picture of a small town, and I have written off at least four places based on it. Here is what is actually happening behind all those locked doors.
What to Order When You Have No Idea
A four page laminated menu, ninety something items, and a server standing there waiting. Ordering in a place you have never been is a skill, and most of mine came from getting it wrong in front of strangers who were kind about it.
Two Detours, One Worth It
Both turns looked the same from the road. One gave me an afternoon I still think about, the other gave me a locked gate and a headache. Comparing them is the only way I have found to learn anything.
How to Talk to People Without Sounding Like a Reporter
The wrong opening question shuts a conversation down in about four seconds. After years of getting this wrong at counters and gas pumps, here is what actually works and where I still overstep.
Finding a Rhythm When You Drive Alone
Driving solo is a different job than driving with someone. No one to hand the map to, no one to notice you have gone quiet. Here is the shape a solo driving day has taken for me, and the parts I had to build on purpose.
Back Roads Versus the Interstate, Honestly
Everyone says take the small road. I did that for a whole summer and kept notes. The small road is better at some things and genuinely worse at others, and pretending otherwise makes for bad trips.
Breakfast Is the Safest Meal on the Road
Two eggs over medium at a counter at quarter past six, cooked by someone who had been there since four. If I only get one good meal a day on a long drive, I have learned to spend it in the morning, and here is the reasoning behind that.
Old Motor Courts and Interchange Motels: What Each One Is Good At
One is a building somebody still tends by hand. The other is a machine for getting you back on the road by seven. I have loved and regretted both, and I finally stopped pretending one is morally better.