life is a highway...i'm taking it from here to portland!

i don't know about you, but i have ALWAYS wanted to drive across the country. the idea of spending 5 days in a car, going from sea to shining sea pretty much makes me giddy with excitement - and there aren't a whole lot of things that can do that to me. so a friend of mine is moving across country and over dinner last week, she and i were talking about how fun it would be if we could do the drive together and see some places we've both never been to before. at first it was just a joke, but when she said, no, you really should come with me, it occurred to me that there was really nothing standing in my way. i mean, i have a dog, but outside of paying my relatively low rent and a few standard bills every month, i haven't had the kind of freedom that i have now since i was in college. i've never seen most of the states out west and my boss was perfectly fine with me taking a few days off, so i really couldn't think of a reason why i shouldn't go. we are leaving on thursday. i am going to need a LOT of music and a LOT of snacks (because as much as i love driving and road trips and being in the car in general, i HATE eating crap fast food for days on end). i am also going to need a LOT of valium to get on an airplane to fly 3,000 BACK across the country. that part i am not looking forward to. but it's a new year and i have a new lease on life and i'm not going to let my fears stop me from doing things that i want to do. so. look out, corn palace...i'll be seeing you soon. first stop is nashville...kate and i are convinced we'll be "discovered" before we have a chance to get out of town. well...maybe kate is convinced of that.