Couchsurfing, the New American Dream
When I was in the planning stages of my trip east to check on the vacant (not) lot I was faced with many decisions. Do I fly and rent a car? Do I get an extended stay hotel? Do I get in my neighbor’s hot tub time machine and never bid on the property. Scratch the flying…about the hot tub? No no that’s ridiculous no one uses a hot tub in summer!
I run the numbers and decide that I would rather drive and enjoy all the hours with myself on the open highways and byways of America aka ‘Murika. Land of my people. Now hotels and motels are pricey and we’ve all had the Facebook friend post Oprah’s warnings on bed bugs and worse at even the finest establishment. This leaves one obvious option…couchsurfing.
I have been a member since 2008 and only started hosting mid 2013 and I loved the interesting people it brought right into our sitting room. I have never actually couchsurfed up to this time.
I start planning my trip and itinerary based on miles per day. I want to get across within a week but not become big rig wrangler. Capiche? So I decide 5 to 6 hours a day of driving is the range I’m looking at and choose cities I want to visit.
First stop out of California. Phoenix. I glom onto my thoughtful, fun, generous, and did I mention fun cousin Doug. Hey Doug I’m coming your way for the first night! He quickly reminds me the epic saga of Trail of Two Brothers is about to commence in Cleveland so I have only a very small window of days. Okay okay I can do this I tell myself. This is the same self who told me to buy the vacant lot.
On the Couchsurfing.org website I begin to plot out my trip by searching for hosts with an available couch, have high response rates, positive ratings and sound like my definition of cool people I’d want to hang with before retiring after my long day. I’m also hoping they have hot water for showers! Great profiles and interesting people on here I think as I scroll through the myriad choices in big cities, and much smaller group of hosts to choose from in places like Albuquerque and Lexington. I begin by writing why I will be in that town and then another essay on why I want to stay with a particular host. I send off several for each town with a flexible date range. and wait for the responses to come in…
Next up… (cue music here) Heading out on the open road.
My Mythic Journey
What began as an attempt to find a future from my past, became a lesson in moving forward, literally.
During the past few years I have cared for my elderly parents in our family home. A fulfilling time and one which often left me too exhausted to think of what I should be doing to keep my creativity unfolding.
Soooo here I was trolling the internet and auction websites when I spotted a vacant lot in the town next to where my favorite former boyfriend lives. My thought was, hey maybe I could plant a native apple orchard and set it up low maintenance and let a local permaculture group or food bank tend it and keep the produce. *Let me interject here it is clear across these here United States from where I live and my pony lives. So with a giggle the universe grants my ridiculous wish and I find myself the owner of a very cheap lot in a suburb of Pittsburgh. Brilliance or lunacy? We shall see.
Over the next months my folks are aging faster and the complications of life which come along with this keep me from thinking about the lot. The tax bill comes and frankly it is a bit high for I assume is a vacant lot in a rust belt town. I pay it and again forget about the property. Over the winter I convince two friends to drive down from Pittsburgh to check on said property and take some photos. Here is what they sent.
NOT pretty and clearly NOT VACANT! Oh my said I! What have I gotten myself into? So now I realize this idea falls under the heading of lunacy. I begin to think I need to go and settle this matter and make a decision about the future of this “investment”.
Meanwhile my folks are reaching the end of their lives and I put this on the back burner. Over seven weeks in the Spring I lose them both. After the memorials are over I realize I need a vacation to clear my head and I need to go handle the vacant lot (NOT) situation.
Obvious solution…roadtrip! I could easily have a booked a cheap ticket on SouthWest airlines and squeezed my horse riding booty self into a toddler sized seat in a flying tin can for a few hours with affable flight attendants bearing cookies and cocktails after a solid groping by the TSA’s finest, or…I could drive my trusty nine year old Acura RSX Type S car across this beautiful country, visit places, folks and meet new friends. I chose to take the longer route. Was it cheaper?…not by a long shot. Was it a fulfilling adventure I will cherish forever? Yes.
Sometimes life takes us down roads we can’t understand until we have driven over them. What I got in the long run from a late night auction mistake moved me forward and left the past on the road behind me.
Next episode…planning the trip and why I chose to use Couchsurfer.org as my hotel accommodations.
Yeah I might have watched him sleep…
So remember when I finally boarded the veryyyy late flight back to Paradise , otherwise known as my hometown but, I digress. So the super reedonqulous hot man I sat next to in the wing aisle (double score) was so hot I found myself nodding off (I was operating off about 12 hours sleep over the past three nights in Vegas) facing Hottie McPottiepants and totally enjoying the view. Thankfully I was not busted in said activity and was able to talk to him when we were awake (not much of the time). I never felt the need to ask his name or tell him mine but just enjoyed the view from my aisle seat as I headed home…
Viva Las Vegas
Last weekend I was flown to Las Vegas by a friend for his 50th birthday party. Now previously I have only been to Las Vegas for trade shows and a short lived wedding of a relative (we shall not discuss here).
Beautiful rooms at the Golden Nugget awaited us as we all flew in from various locals in California. My bff bought herself a ticket from Phoenix and joined me there. Can’t waste a great room on just me right? So I spent Friday whizzing down the pool slide through the shark tank and generally relaxing after the town car ride in from the airport. I have noticed that although they do not post sale signs most large hotels and resorts usually have a pretty good markdown section if you ask about it and I did. I bought a tiny silk tank in peach with beaded straps for $25 marked down from $88. A classic score I will wear often.
Around 9:00pm my friend arrived and we headed out to hit up a dance club. A short stroll through the 80’s on Fremont street and we decided to try out the Gold Diggers club in the hotel. We danced the night away with many partners and a few too many tequilas and magically made it back to the room. Lesson; don’t drink while traveling…expensive, dangerous and a hangover is not nearly as much fun as Bradley Cooper makes it out to be. We did not marry anyone, steal a cop car or find a tiger in the bathroom…thankfully since we were in need of our bathroom…often…
Saturday night was my friend’s birthday dinner and I barely made it there still not sure if I could even eat the delicious food laced before me at Del Frisco’s. Thankfully the company was so charming and the food so delicious I came out feeling 95% better. By late evening my bff had recovered sufficiently for us to tour Fremont Street, see the neon museum and gag at the mere thought of alcohol…we are amateurs for sure. Not drinkers so we don’t have the sense to know when to stop or even what to drink…So we don’t. We met up with some Aussies who were in pink boa trimmed cowboy hats and pink shirts who went on about “roasting” and I don’t think they meant a piece of beef **wink wink. I think it may have referred to a sandwich of some sort…
Come Sunday and most everyone headed home while we hopped on the bus and headed to the strip to our final night’s destination…the Motel 6 on E. Tropicana. 2.5 miles from McCarron airport we thought since we had 6:00am flights back to our towns this would be a good choice…and mostly it was.
Lunch at Hooters and we were ready to check in. Whoaoaoa whoa whoa what have they done to the rooms? Judy Jetson must have been the interior designer! The shower we renamed hot-shower-time-machine, and the flat screen TV gave the whole place a “modern” feel. Hey $45 across from the MGM and we felt pretty smug. Dropped off our backpacks and headed to the strip. After seeing a few characters from Venice Beach transplanted to the strip we moved on through the MGM and out in the bright daylight on Sin City. We found our Holy Grail in the form of an area which housed Prada, Gucci, and Mastros as well as a Kiki, a Pucci and Louis Vuitton. Several hikes through these retailers of quality and refinement left us famished. We dined at Mastros on lobster mashed potatoes (amazing) and fresh crab gnocchi (unbelievable) and a salad of a soft Italian cheese with heirloom tomatoes and fresh basil with a basalmic reduction and olive oil. A stroll back and we were ready for the icy swimming pool.
Bff’s flight left on time but, mine did not. Three times mine did not due to fog here in Sunny Diego. The upside is I sat next to the most handsome man on the plane. A very good end to a delightful fun weekend.
Zen Life 