It's all about the peanut M&M's

I've driven cross-country on my own a few times. The Summer after I graduated from university, I headed East for a tour of the Maritimes, then followed the sun to the West, heading all the way to Tofino on Vancouver Island. I loved that big ol' cross-Canada road trip, and would enjoy a special sense of serene as I crested a hill and saw the bright lights and tall buildings of a new city off in the distance. I remember listening to Kylie's very first album (in casette tape format -- it was 1989, after all) and knowing all the words as I crossed the Prairies, progressively hitting Winnipeg, Saskatoon and, eventually, Edmonton. There was something about the vast expanse of the Prairies that made me feel powerful, in command. Having the right music to empower that sense of ownership was very important. Somehow Kylie fit the bill.

And that, my friends, is yet another example of just how gay I really am.

In those days, I used to power myself with Diet Coke and peanut M&M's. Appropriately stocked up with these necessities, I would, at times (usually when traversing the flatlands of the Prairies), pride myself on the number of hours I could drive without stopping for nothing but a Formula 1 pitstop -- pulling into a gas station, letting some kid fill the tank and check the oil, me never even leaving the car, in and out in about 2 minutes flat. This would happen every 500km or so, but other than that, I was glued to my seat and testing my limits. Ah, the stupid things we do when we're kids! It's no wonder I have back problems today -- I would literally sit in the driver's seat for up to 14 hours without getting up and stretching anything!

Let me clarify that there were times and places when I would do just the opposite -- driving from Jasper to Banff, for instance, took me hours and hours and hours because of all the hundreds of stops I made to take pictures of this, that and the other thing. Damn, I love the drive along the Icefields Parkway or whatever it's called. And in other places, I was a bit more normal in my stopping patterns. But something about the vast expanse of nothingness known as the Prairies and Northern Ontario made it easier to just put your mind on auto-pilot and drive. And drive and drive and drive. Sorry to anyone from the Prairies -- hey, that's me! -- or Sault Ste. Marie, but it just ain't exciting landscape.

A couple of years later, when I moved from Ottawa to Whistler.....

Oh my God, I just had a lightbulb moment. One of those times when you realize something monumental that you think is really cool. Stay with me here for a moment, folks.

Get this: I'm leaving on my road trip to San Diego today. It's January 6, 2006. EXACTLY 14 years ago today, I left on my road trip to start a new life in Whistler. While that may not seem so significant to some, anyone who knows me really well knows how much of an impact that move had on my life. I started a new life, found an amazing career, learned tons of new things about life and love and laughter, grew the confidence to keep moving onward and upward, both professionally and personally. Anyways, I digress somewhat, but I'm kind of enjoying this stream-of-consciousness writing. Jeepers, 14 years ago TODAY. I think of all the great people I've met as a result of that brand new start, and it's overwhelming. But in a really good way.

So anyways.....back to the post. When I moved from Ottawa to Whistler and did a road trip in the dead of Winter, I did the US route: crossing the border at Detroit, heading around Lake Michigan, through Chicago and Milwaukee, across Minnesota, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho and Washington State. I encountered some of the coldest weather I had ever experienced in my life, and Minnesota in January ain't a place you want your locks to freeze, like mine did. Luckily, I made it across to the mild weather of the West Coast without incident.

So today sees another road trip. And, like all of my other road trips, I'll have plenty of my Diet Coke and peanut M&M's with me for fuel. Unlike the road trips of my younger years, however, I don't plan on driving for excessive lengths of time without getting up to stretch. When I floated this idea past her a few months ago, Luscious Lorna, in all her wisdom, pointed out to me, "You aren't as young as you used to be!" Damn, that girl is always right!

Nevertheless, I'm excited about hitting Portland tonight and catching up with Blossom for a long overdue visit. Following Portland, I'll head south (duh, I am going to San Diego!) and I plan on seeing how things go. I'd like to do the Oregon coast, but my biggest priority is making sure I take my time to do the California coast south of San Francisco. I want to see Big Sur, where my friends, the Scaryredwinegirls, have raced the marathon relay before.

Eventually I'll make my way to La Jolla. I don't have to be there until the evening of Jan. 10 (is that Tuesday night?), so I've got plenty of time to meander my way there. Powered with Diet Coke, peanut M&M's and a digital camera, I plan on drinking in every moment of this trip and living large along the way.

I think I should be buying peanut M&M's in bulk.