My name is Shelly; this is my blog. It’s filled with personal reflections on a lifestyle of travel.
I began writing in 2019 when my husband, Tracy, and I sold our stuff, bought an Airstream, and hit the road with our dog, Banjo. We’ve been traveling the country and living in the trailer since then.
About this Blog
The title, “Going Down the Road Feeling Grand,” is a reference to the traditional song, “Going Down the Road Feeling Bad.” If you don’t know it, listen to Woodie Guthrie’s version, or Doc Watson‘s, or our favorite, the Grateful Dead’s (abbreviated on their bootlegs as “GDTRFB”).
Most posts here are about life on the road, a few are about my obsession with making tiny houses, and even fewer are reflections on grief.
Our Travel Frequency and Plans
Compared to some “full-timers,” we move often, spending entire seasons on the move—a few days in one place, then a week in another. Sometimes we find a sweet place and stay longer. Our preference is boondocking, which means camping on public land in a picturesque place where we’re disconnected (literally) from civilization and can enjoy the privacy of a mountainside or a desert.
We plan to keep on this path until we’re so old we are forced to settle down. In the meantime, we keep an eye open for a cool town somewhere that seems better than the rest.
Our Trailer
Tracy had planned to buy an older Airstream and renovate it the way he’d like, but we took an opportunity to leave unexpectedly, so we bought a new one: a 2019 International Signature 28’ RBQ. For you non-Airstream people, that’s 28 feet from bumper to bumper, with a queen bed in the back.
Airstreamers name their trailers, and we’ve named ours, “The Firefly,” after Josh Whedon’s TV show. A verse from the show’s theme song goes:
Take me out to the black, Tell them I ain't comin' back. Burn the land and boil the sea, You can't take the sky from me.
In the show, the ship’s crew is fleeing from a totalitarian set of worlds, headed for an uncertain but free life in the blackness of space. For us, the black is the open country, away from the craziness that is city life, and the sky is our dream to travel even as the land and sea seem to be boiling around us.
Shiny.
Guest Posts
I’ve been fortunate to add additional writers who represent other ways of living on the road. You can read about them here.
Along with the guest posts in my “Non-Travel” section are photos from my tiny-living hobby, which happens to be making models of tiny houses.
Another non-travel section is personal reflections on grief, called “Wish You Were There.” That section is enriched with guest writers, as well.
Thanks for joining me on this journey. Seriously I’m grateful to be able to share this.
For a funny and sweet song about Tracy and me and our dream to live on the road, check out:
Music and lyrics by the amazing Jonathan Mann.