tomorrow i am driving to baltimore to visit my friend jane, a roughly 13.5-hour drive that i will be undertaking on my own in one day. that’s roughly double the longest drive i’ve ever done on my own in one go, but i love a good solo road trip and am very much looking forward to it.

i’ve done a lot of long drives over the years and have figured out what works well for me. i will always rather get up early and hit the road at 5am than have to drive late into the night. i carry snacks with me so i can make as few stops as possible. i do my best to stop only when i need to refuel the car and will knock out filling the car, using the restroom, and picking up food in one place*. i’ll play the license plate game against myself [i always win] and if i’m on i-40 for a long stretch i’ll count the number of big rigs i pass.

for entertainment, i always have a lineup of music playlists, podcast episodes, and audio books ready to go. when i need to pick up my energy, there’s the hamilton soundtrack. when i’m in a listening mood, i have an audio book [for tomorrow it’s daisy jones and the six**]. when i want shorter listens, i have plenty of podcasts to listen to. and when i’m driving a particularly scenic stretch and just want background noise so i can pay attention to the views, i have sastri’s 26-hour jazz and funk playlist [it’s pretty great, i’m actually listening to it as i type this]. and i usually schedule a few phone calls with friends or with my mother to provide periodic breaks.

i am one of those people who hates having to drive in a city, but i flourish during a road trip. i love the scenery. i love wondering where other people are going. i love the opportunity to eat the junk food i don’t normally buy. i love the thinking time it provides. i love the energy of a new adventure.

how do you feel about road trips?

xx

*very much a privilege i enjoy because my car gets great mileage, i don’t have to pee often, and i don’t have dogs or children who need longer stops.

**shout out to pat turns for sharing his audible login with me and sponsoring this purchase.