Sunset Alameda shorelineMonday, I got a text at 6:38 a.m. asking if our place was still available. A young couple inquired over a month ago, but decided to keep looking. They came by and we really like them.

Justin is a vet who works two jobs. Caroline is in culinary school (which is why the love our large kitchen). They met last year in New Jersey and, after Caroline moved out here in September they decided they want to be together. They drove across the country in December and Justin found his jobs and they are looking for a stable place to start their new lives together. We really, really like them. And yes, I am still checking references, which are coming in very positive.

So, we hit the road MONDAY!!! Holy Crap. The BF and I are in a dazed sort of happy state. Our brains are pinging around all the things that need to come together to get out of here and set up travel mode.

I had given up on this working. Old demons were running around my head saying, “See, you can’t have what you want. You SAY what you want, but you never get it.” I was getting more and more depressed. so I gave up.

I told my writer friend Grace this story last night and she said, “You always get what you want just after you give up.” Truth.

Today I am telling those voices, “You LIE. SHUT UP! I will never listen to you again.”

We will be wandering around the US for the next five months. Working from the road. Investigating local coffee shops and culture. Visiting friends and loved ones. Making new friends. And seeing this vast and varied country of ours.

My brain is pinging around, there is so much to do, including registering for an absentee ballot because there is NO way I am missing this election.

After Justin and Caroline left yesterday, we left to have a celebratory lunch. We found them in the parking lot next door, hugging, happy to have found a place. As we got into the car, a rainbow appeared. The BF said, “Happy starts now.”

First stop: Bakersfield