across the united states
In January, Tom and I drove a friend's car across the country. We's been in Washington state for Christmas. It was wild to drive away from Tom's brother's house in Washington and then drive right up to my house 8 days later. We saw many beautiful sights and I wish we could relive the week . Many who heard about our trip were concerned about snow, since parts of the country was being iced and snowed upon, but the very first precipitation we went through was in Frederick, Maryland, less than one hour from home (so the car was pretty salty and dirty by then, ha).
Hours were spent silently sunbathing, drinking gas station coffee (which was sometimes shockingly great and sometimes laughably disgusting), stopping at pretty places, napping, and talking. It was less glamorous than the photos, but the memories have become more precious as time passes. Meeting and visiting internet friends and some of our faraway family was an incredible blessing. Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who hosted us, whether it was showing us around your town, sharing a meal, or letting us stay overnight. You know who you are.
We used Airbnb for about half of our stops (before we realized that we actually did have friends through photography in every stop we made). I (and Tom, for one or two of the photos) shot these with a Canon 5D Mark II and 50m 1.4 lens. The states we stayed in were: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, West Virginia, and Maryland.
Some observations: the USA is very big, but also very small. It's also more beautiful than expected. People are more generous than I often give them credit for. Traveling together makes you more comfortable with a person. The car is a good space for talking together, reading the Bible together, but also being silent together. You can survive on a cooler of sharp cheese, cured meat, nuts, and dried fruit for quite a while. When exploring, walk softly and carry a big water bottle?
I should stop rambling and let you see the photos now.