by Ali Filippelli - posted from Dallas, TX
[click HERE to see pictures of our TEXAS life]
There is that blurry line. It is a shadowy, dreamy soft space before it becomes a reality. You are not sure exactly how it happens…but you’re thinking about it, day-dreaming over your bowl of cereal in the morning, going throughout your days being distracted – like something grazing your shoulder and dissipating when you turn around. You are curious and do a little research while absentmindedly petting your cat. Rolling it around in your mind looking for flaws, and then…one day you say it out loud, to your wife, in bed. She looks at you like you are crazy but there is also excitement in her eyes. Barely pausing, she puts down her book and says “Ok, yes. Let’s do it.”
Dallas > Marfa >Rosarito > San Diego > LA > Santa Cruz > San Francisco > Oregon Coast > Portland > Seattle > Orcas Island > Vancouver > Leavenworth > Maryhill > Bend > Hood River > White Salmon > Eugene >-----> Amagansett >----:----- > Indonesia > Vietnam > Cambodia > Thailand > Bhutan > Nepal > India > Sri Lanka > Australia > Tasmania > New Zealand > South Africa > Namibia > Madagascar > Morocco > Spain > Greece > Italy > Croatia > Austria > Germany > Sweden > Norway
That is the general outline of our itinerary. It is a somewhat planned, cobbled together, fingers crossed, we got this, list of places we really want to visit. They are places where we will connect with old friends and places unknown where we will rely on expressive hand gestures to communicate. There will be road tripping, puddle jumping, long ass flying, busing, camping, trekking, motel sleeping and if I have my way a little resort dwelling.
We are leaving our jobs, our friends, our cat (in the loving care of our parents), and our stuff. We are leaving it all behind to travel, our six-letter word for employment over the next year…or so. When you realize that you are spending most weekends away and one of the best things about your city is the airport, it is time to answer the call. When you almost buy a house but don’t because it will tie you down. You start to wonder. Why not wander?
If you’ve met me and Kaspar, you know that we are like two sides of the same coin – married, but contrasting. I’m more of a heads, he’s a tails. Generally speaking - I ‘m the thinker, he’s the doer. I’m charting our trip with annotated post-its on foldout maps with cross-referenced excel docs. I’ve got forever stamps, world stamps, excessive amounts of 2” photos in case I need any id’s made, a small medicine cabinet for every possible worst case scenario. Every time I accomplish some tiny-hugely important task – I check it off my to-do list and then look up hopeful for a big high five but usually get a raised eyebrow instead. You might call me an anticipator- a laid back one, but one nonetheless. So I say to Kaspar, “what are you up to then?” Oh him. He’s cleaning and sorting his skateboards. Packing them carefully and wrapping them in plastic. “But how will everything get done,” I say. “It will,” he says, “trust me.” But how, I sigh to myself. The thing about my husband is that he is a great transitioner, seamlessly moving from one project to another. He doesn’t stop what he is doing in this life so he can start up another, he weaves them together. So really there is no end - just a life with a bunch of beginnings. Which is great because I hate endings.
We do this sometimes too.
So this is probably a good time to mention that we will both be posting here, and that you should expect different kinds commentary. Unless we post together and he tries to fuck with my shit and make it disorganized. Our posts will be a reflection of what we are seeing and thinking- and if you live anywhere in/near any of the places I’ve listed above, look out because you might hear a knock on your door…
You might want to know why we are going on this trip – I’ll let Kaspar tackle that one in our next post. He’s got a few ideas.
photo by Tamytha Cameron
And finally to all of our friends we’ve made here in Dallas. When asked what our favorite thing is about this city, our answer is always, “our friends.” We love you. We will miss you the most.
These are some of the places we are going to check out over the next few weeks. Have you been before? Any suggestions? Let us know your thoughts!
