10 Lessons from a Month on the Road

10. Most of our daily morning routine is unnecessary. Showering everyday? Anti-aging creams? Putting on makeup? None of it adds much value on the road, where you are reminded that time is a precious commodity. 

9. Only Americans take pictures of their food on their moblie phones. 

8. There's a lot you can say without uttering a word.

7. Coins weigh as much as rocks. If you wonder what's weighing your bag or purse down, it's probably coins. 

6. If you are lost, walk with conviction. You may not know where you're going, but the confidence will carry you through.

5. No matter where you go, people want to talk about love, love lost and relationships. 

4. Don't underestimate the power of observation. 

3. Going with the flow is essential to enjoyment, however most Americans (including myself) are very "checklist" oriented. When life becomes a checklist, we may get a lot done, but learn nothing about ourselves in the process.   

2. Be open. You may be surprised where the word "yes" will lead you.  

1. Small, seemingly inconsequential interactions with strangers can be every bit as meaningful and impactful as those we have with our long-term friends. So look, listen and revel in the small, beautiful moments life reveals to us. They really are everywhere if we look...

What insights have you gained from traveling?

What I'll Miss About You

I have less than 30 days before I leave. That revelation came as a shock as I was lying in the comfort of my own bed last night. 

Five months is a long time to be gone. Thanksgiving will pass, as well as many birthdays, San Francisco events and annual traditions. It made me wonder what I'll miss most, and well, what I won't miss. It will be interesting to see if this list changes over the course of the trip...

Things I'll miss:

1. Friends: If friends are the family you choose, then I am blessed to have one heck of a large family. My friends add so much to my life and it's going to be hard not to be able to pick up the phone and meet up for coffee, share life's ups and downs and hear a famililar laugh at the end of the line. I'll miss birthdays, celebrations, perhaps even engagements. Yep, needing a tissue right about now...
2. Hugs: Okay, I know this sounds cheesy, but I'm being genuine. My friends are also some of the best huggers I know. Human touch is really important to me. It helps me feel connected and part of something bigger than myself. I'm not sure of the availability of hugs abroad, but I am considering a visit to Amma, the Hugging Saint, in India soley for this purpose.
3. Coffee. Specifically, Philz Coffee: As much as I love exploring new things, I love my rituals equally. There's something about walking to Philz Coffee in the Castro and taking that first sip of my hand-made Jacob's Wonderbar that puts a smile on my face and reassures me that my Saturday is off to a good start. They don't call it "A Cup of Love" for nothing.
4. Hello My Sunshine!Hot Water/Bubble Baths: I admit, long hot showers are my guilty pleasure. It's where I begin my day and my ideas start flowing. And I've never met a problem that couldn't be solved by a hot bath, Mr. Bubbles and a glass of wine. 
5. My Own Bed: I invested in a good bed when I moved to San Francisco 12 years ago. It was the best money I ever spent.
6. Convenience: Within two blocks I can buy my groceries, launder my clothes, cut my hair, buy a new outfit, see live music and enjoy a meal ranging from $3 tacos to $100 Zagat-rated restaurants. I'm curious how I will shift to living with fewer choices and less convenience. 

Things I won't miss:

1. My Neighborhood, The Mission: A friend summarized it best when she said, "People have sucked the life out of the Mission." I moved to the neighborhood when the "Gourmet Ghetto" was still emerging. Now it's exploded: an hour wait for Bi-Rite ice cream, a half-a-block line at 7:30am for Tartine's Bakery and an occasional rope and bouncer at Bi-Rite market. Yes people, a roped off entrance for a grocery store! And then there's Dolores Park. The once mellow, local spot for a Sunday picnic is now a full blown production. By BART and by bus, the gaggles of sneering hipsters flock to food carts, protests, costume contests, random parades, spontaneous 3:00am firework shows and my favorite, the non-stop Saturday techno dance party. After eight hours of boom-boom-boom every weekend, I've come to the conclusion that when religious zealots called music the devil's work, they were referring to techno. Or maybe I'm just getting old.
2. A typical Line for Bi-Rite. It's just ice cream people, I promise!The 101: What other freeway can you merge three lanes to the left only to end up in the slow lane three minutes later? Why do I always get stuck behind some trash truck spewing banana peels and stinking of compost as it makes it way to Recology? Why does it take me 35 minutes to move seven miles? And why do cops constant patrol its lanes (as if anyone is going 65 mph) while shiny new BMWs are zooming at 95 mph down the 280 only five miles to the west? Why? Why? Why?
3. Driving: Perhaps it's becuase I'm always driving the 101. But seriously, I am looking forward to traveling by foot, bike, bus, train, elephant and other forms of transportation.
4. Spending Time Indoors: Am I going to miss staring at a computer under the glare of bad fluorescant lighting for nine hours a day? I don't think so.
5. San Francisco Summers: Mark Twain wasn't exaggerating when he said the coldest winter he ever spent was a summer in San Francisco. The fog. The wind. The cold. The inability to wear a sundress without shivering. I am looking forward to wearing open-toed sandals at night, in August, with reckless abandon.

Tell me, what are some of the things you'd miss or not miss?