Gary outdid himself on dinner tonight, serving up an absolutely amazing appetizer of a roasted bell pepper stuffed with real crab and veggies and topped with browned cheese. What a treat after putting in a full day at transcription! I’m really going to miss my dinners at Gary and Jody’s when I hit the road in the spring. I have suggested that they follow me so Gary can cook me dinner every night, but that only earned me a laugh. Darn! 😀

After a delectable four course dinner (did I mention we had chocolate parfaits for dessert?), Jody pulled out some maps and we started to look at my possible itineraries for the spring, depending on weather, budget, and my being allowed into the States. To say that I am eager to get back on the road is an understatement! Last night, I stayed up late making the list of things I need to attend to before and during my first few days back in the rig.

The fun part of looking at a map with a like-minded friend is sharing road stories. Jody has seen at least as much of this continent as I have, so we can share our experiences of places we’ve both been, from the Grand Canyon to Gran Manan Island. I have to say that I’m looking forward to getting back to the east coast so that I can see familiar landscapes with a new perspective, but I am a tad nervous about RVing out there as the east is a lot less RV (read boondocking) friendly.

This spring’s itinerary has only two certainties in regards to two destinations I want to reach, but otherwise I don’t want to make firm plans until I’m across the border and have a better grasp of the weather I’ll be facing. I could end up having to stay in Canada, which would mean an extra month in Alberta to give the weather a chance to clear across the Prairies and northern Ontario, or I could find myself shooting straight south to sunny climes, or I might just shoot directly for the east coast at a diagonal.

I have loose plans/itineraries for each scenario, but having been on a bit of a tight schedule for a year, I look forward to going back to life at my own pace. What I am ultimately facing is what will amount to a year to do the round trip back to southern Alberta. Now that I have a very reliable source of income suited to my mobile lifestyle, I will once again be able to travel without the stress of getting to a particular destination. I want to savour the fruits of my labour and take a couple of months to just breathe once April comes!