If you were to get in your car and just leave everything behind

[RetroLounge]

and I mean everything, except what could fit in your car.

What would you take, where would you go?

RL

[Droopy]

1. I've done that

At least for a short period of time- about a week. I live in Ohio and I ended up visiting relatives in Tennessee and South Carolina as well as driving down to Key West. I decided to become a trucker after that trip and I've since seen the lower 48 and most of Canada. I now do a local deal that gets me home every day as that is more importantant to me now that I've seen it all.

[fudge stripe cookays]

2. My genealogy files and my laptop.

I'd head for Madison, WI so I can finish my book. Who knows. I may be doing it soon!

[TOhioLiberal]

3. funny you should ask...

...as I am just about at that point. I would take my clothes, bubblewrap my motherboard and hard drives (I can build another computer) and just go. Stop in Wooster, Ohio to see my son and daughter-in-law and head south. maybe see a few DU'ers along the way. End up in Louisiana with my sister.

I've had a lot of 'alone time' to contemplate just that. x( It didn't have to be this way.

[realisticphish]

35. stop by on your way through Columbus

:hi:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

4. Oh, my dear Retro...

My essential clothing...

My laptop...

My medications...

My cell phone...

My camera...

My sanity...

My checkbook and credit cards...

And I think you know where I would go....

Godspeed, my dear Retro....

I keep you in my heart always, sweetie........


:hug:

:cry:

[RetroLounge]

7. Good list.

My essential clothing...(Yup. Pack light, bring layers)

My laptop...(Now if only I can get my wireless working again)

My cell phone... (and charger!)

My camera...(Good call. Almost forgot to pack it)

My sanity...(long gone...)

My checkbook and credit cards...(Yup. Glad I had a garage sale today)

and a pillow and blanket. Might be sleeping in the car occasionally)

RL

[rug]

5. I'd bring a buck to a meeting.

[RetroLounge]

8. I got that covered...

lots of singles for the basket...

RL

[SPKrazy]

23. Hey!

be cool man. Lots of places to go to find those baskets too! ;)

[KitchenWitch]

57. I love that there are baskets EVERYWHERE!

:)

[Justpat]

70. I love the baskets in the keys in the winter.

And the baskets everywhere else I have ever been.

If I took off I would take:
my laptop
some changes of clothes for different seasons
my favorite metaphysical books that I can't be without and a few favorite poets.
favorite music CDs
and what money I happen to have left in the world.

I have thought of this so many times.

I am basically a wanderer at heart.

[SeattleGirl]

6. I did that when I moved to Seattle from Eugene years ago.

Brought clothes, photos, a few keepsakes. Moved in with a friend of mine for a few months until I could afford my own place, then the family donated furniture, and one of my brothers brought it up.

Was going through a divorce at the time, and needed to move on.

[RetroLounge]

10. ding ding ding

we have a winner...

and coincidentally, I've always wanted to see Seatle sober...

Only time I've been there I was on a bender for 3 days.

RL

[Flaxbee]

14. you know, places I've enjoyed in the US:

Bozeman, Montana and Sedona, Arizona and the Black Hills in South Dakota. I've also wanted to see New Mexico. If you go east, cruise around the outer banks, down to Charleston and Savannah.

Just get away from the familiar for a bit. Be alone, without being lonely, if you can. It may be really hard to do the first few days, but then it does become easier, if you can get back in tune with yourself. Stay sober, at least most of the time. Doesn't really count, otherwise (at least in my opinion it doesn't...).

Anyway, best wishes to you on your travels. I hope you come out the other side feeling much better. :hug:

[SeattleGirl]

20. Woohoo!

And RL, if you ever do get back out this way, I'd be happy to be your tour guide! (And you really should see this place sober......)

[Left Is Write]

9. I know where I would go.

I can't answer beyond that, because I really don't know beyond that.

[RetroLounge]

11. I know where I want to go...

Not sure if just showing up is the best idea...

But we'll see.

RL

[Critters2]

12. Me, three cats and a beagle

with food, water, and cat litter in a Ford Focus. There wouldn't be room for much else. But at least I'd have the important things.

[RetroLounge]

13. Gotta leave the dog...

hope the STBE takes it in...

RL

[Critters2]

16. Bummer.

Is the STBE likely to taker him/her?

[barb162]

17. I was just thinking I couldn't leave for those exact reasons

The animals. By the time you get all their stuff, would you keep them all in cages in the back seat? Mine hate to travel, etc., so forget about taking off. I couldn't do that to them.

[no name no slogan]

15. LOts of weed and/or crack and or metH

I'd sell it at overinflated prices to the rubes in the sticks and use the $$$ to by a 1972 Winnebego, which I would promptly turn into a production studio for adult and/or "reality" fillunms.

Then I would retire.

[RetroLounge]

18. Dude. The Ambien sounds good!

:hi:

RL

[no name no slogan]

19. Interestijngly enouhg, it's the least stressful part of the day

:party:

Glad to see the bookstore's up and running!!! That totally rocks!!! :hi:

[otherlander]

21. I would take a camera

and a big, thick notebook
with a wire spiral binding it and
a box of yellow pencils like they used to tell us
to bring on the first day
of school to second grade
when they were still teaching us
things we'd need to know: writing and
math, before it was just a way
to keep us off the job market.
Then I'd head off into a world of people
who will never need to know anything
about the internal organs of frogs.
I wouldn't forget a pencil sharpener,
and origami paper, for leaving
peace cranes to be found
by the lonely strangers who inhabit the earth
and who I am one of.
Don't worry about water. Most towns
have libraries. Most of them
have fountains, right outside of the bathrooms.
Free.
I'd take oranges, whole wheat bread,
peanut butter, one extra summer outfit,
a pair of jeans, a thick sweater,
toothbrush, toothpaste, pads, lip balm,
matches, flashlight, books:
The Tao Te Ching, Yertle the Turtle,
The Adventures of Augie March,
Ishmael, Howl and other poems,
Of Love and Shadows,
On The Road.
(Burning people
are the only people for me.)

I'd head to New York, rushing
upstate in the morning light that makes
evanescent Edens out of the roadways
and the waterways for wanderers.
Maybe I could get a job on a farm
if not
there's always Woodstock to make the trip worthwhile.
Head West, see the Rockies
live with people in the mountains
who are used to a different sort of air,
move on to San Francisco
and Oakland.
Maybe Mexico next, maybe Chiapas
and Oaxaca, but
hide the camera.
It would make me look too much
like a Person Gathering Information
which is not a safe thing to be
in Oaxaca at the moment.
If I decided to leave the continent entirely
maybe Argentina
maybe I could get a job with some anarchists
making ceramics of some sort.
That wouldn't be a bad job,
but not my true calling either
which is to keep moving, forever
constantly revealing to myself
more of the beauty of strangeness.

[Norwood]

22. My dog and 2 cats

Nothing else, I would sell everything I could and head to Seattle.

[Omphaloskepsis]

24. If I left my mattress behind everything I own could fit in a car.

I would go to Austin. I have a few friends that would let me stay with them there.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

25. Hmmm, I have a question......

How do ya drag along a full sized black upright piano behind the car? It has wheels, but I don't think that'll work too well........

Not to mention the four violins that crawled into my house over the years.

[Lyric]

26. I'd take ThinkBlue1966, OktoberKid, a cooler full of

bologna and rum, my clothes, a LOT of books, and some cats. :hi:

[Rhythm]

47. Sounds good to me... "heads" Carolina, "Tails" California?

Wherever you are is good with me... :loveya:

[bluedigger]

27. I pretty much live that way now, actually!

I started renting my first apartment in about fifteen years last fall, but since it was (minimally) furnished, I could probably cram most of my stuff in my vehicle anytime I need to!

And eventually I will...

What would I take?

Clothes, my pc, cds and whatever I'm currently reading, a box of kitchen stuff, a couple personal relics/curios, and that's about it.

Where would I go?

Wherever I can make a buck. (OK, I've worked in 23 states and am trying to "go west" for the variety.)

Not the whimsical answer you were looking for, I'm sure, but I'm a "for-real" road warrior/vagabond/vagrant/whatever...

(The key is to have a big car - my VW Golf was OK for a while, but my Grand Cherokee has greatly expanded my carrying capacity!)

[bridgit]

28. bout 4-5 g's worth of electronics, that's where all our work stuff really is + Tim...

and we'd prolly go out to Lock, or Ilseton on the delta somewhere, pick up underwear & tooth bushes on the way :thumbsup:

[EFerrari]

29. I'd take my dog (because I'm her person) and ten books,

my field easel, a bag o brushes and paint, and I'd go straight to Tuolumne Meadows. Which books, you ask.

Hmm.

Works of Frost, Shakespeare, Milton, Didion, Stevens. (You're welcome, Joan.) Both of Vidal's memoirs and his big fat collected essays. JailBird and my notebook.

Damn.

[lutefisk]

30. My first thought was...

...two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high-powered blotter acid, a salt shaker half-full of cocaine and a whole galaxy of multicolored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers...and also a quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of Budweiser, a pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls.

But then I realized that traffic laws are so much more restrictive than they used to be, which is a good thing.

Have a safe trip.:hi:

[davsand]

53. Are you headed to Las Vegas, per chance?

One of my all time favorite inventories, I swear!




Laura

[lutefisk]

65. Yes, that's really the best "literary inventory" for a road trip I can think of...

And ironically, I left Las Vegas (not in a Nicholas Cage way) 11 years ago and never looked back.

[necso]

31. Excluding food/household-stuff,

I could probably fit everything I own in my car. (Were I to take only the "valuables", the front seat. Hell, I could carry everything valuable (useful; item > $25), except my woodstove, $300 car.)

But there's nowhere else I wish to be -- to just be.

[Heidi]

32. I did that as a 36th birthday gift to myself.

Here's what I took with me:

Two forms of photo ID
Cash and a bank card
Map of the US
A blank journal and my favorite pen
A dog-eared paperback copy of "On The Road" and a hardcover copy of "Word Virus: The William S. Burroughs Reader"
My camera
My laptop
Five or six pairs of Levi's 501s
Five men's, V-neck Fruit-of-the-Loom T-shirts
Undies
Toiletries but no cosmetics
Sunscreen
Tons of cassette tapes (my car didn't have a CD player)

[fizzgig]

33. some clothes

laptop, camera, cell phone/charger, discman/cds, books, my favorite pillow and blanket, my teddy bear, my pictures and a cooler. i could probably rig my car so that the cats could come too. then i'd head out west...portland or maybe northern california

[sakabatou]

34. Well...

since i can't drive to my brain injury...

[orleans]

36. a map.

wishing you all the best.

[Guava Jelly]

37. I couldn't go far enough to escape what made me leave in the first place

I have had those feelings before.
For one thing I am not a brave enough man to just hit the highway and see where it takes me.
I think it would be healthier to hop a plane to some place sunny and sit on a beach for a while.
Clear my head.
If i were you and I just had to I mean for sanity sake..
I would move up around the PA area ..I hear they have wonderful fruit filled pastries up there.(obvious hidden message)
Problems are always easier when you work to solve them with someone you care about.
I'll shut up now..

And to answer the hypothetical question..
The older i get the less attached I am to trinkets and possessions..I could leave it all.

[Crabby Appleton]

38. Good luck RL, whatever you do - I've done it before

Have You read Blue Highways by William Least Heat Moon? See if you have it in your store if not.

Book Description
William Least Heat-Moon's journey into America began with little more than the need to put home behind him. At a turning point in his life, he packed up a van he called Ghost Dancing and escaped out of himself and into the country. The people and places he discovered on his roundabout 13,000-mile trip down back roads ("blue highways") and through small, forgotten towns are unexpected, sometimes mysterious, and full of the spark and wonder of ordinary life. Robert Penn Warren said, "He has a genius for finding people who have not even found themselves." The power of Heat-Moon's writing and his delight in the overlooked and the unexamined capture a sense of our national destiny, the true American experience.

[NMDemDist2]

39. my clothes, laptop, some photos, cellphone and my camera

a couple of family keepsakes (which could double as bedding)a tent and drop cloth, a camp chair and a cooler for snacks

I'd head first to rural Nevada to visit an old pal, then on to Northern California for a visit and some good seafood (MikeC owes me dinner LOL), then turn back to the South. I love schedule free roadtrips and take the road less traveled. My favorite memories are of such trips, with stops at strange places and meeting different people.

but it ain't gonna happen anytime soon for me, hope you don't have too, but if you WANT to, have a blast :hug:

with an attitude of gratitude, any thing is possible

[Callalily]

40. Funny that you

should ask that question. I've been purging my home of stuff, and my criteria for pitching . . . what would I take with me if I were moving far, far away (which just may be a possibility). What is important to me that I would spend big dollars to ship.

Not much:

A few family photos
My favorite, comfy clothes
Some books
Some irreplaceable (sentimental) household items
My bike
Snorkeling gear

Here's one thing that you should take along on your travels. Your address book listing all of your DU friends. I suspect that you could crash at someone's place from coast to coast.

Happy traveling . . . and take care.

[kedrys]

41. Actually been thinking about that lately

If it weren't for the cats, then all my computer gear, some books, some clothes, the entire music library in electronic form, a few gadgets, and a map.

And I'd head north to Canada where my family is.

The s.o. gets to bring the guitars and the studio gear. Hopefully headed north as well.

:hug:

[YellowRubberDuckie]

42. I wouldn't go alone, I'd take my Skippy and we'd...

Take all of our camping gear and I'd have to get a new laptop for the journey. Our digital camera, our mp3 players, some clothes, and food. Our dog Prudence would not be left behind. We'd sell the rest and take off to the great Northwest. Don't think I haven't thought this out. I think about it every other minute. Once our parents are gone, we will probably drop everything and just go...
Duckie

[cobalt1999]

43. First off, I wouldn't take the car.

I'd pile my books, computer, and living essentials into the sailboat and take off for the islands. I plan to the exactly that upon retirement.

[YankeyMCC]

44. Maybe forget the car and pack my backpack...

I'd take a change of cloths (well underwear at least), some of my granola (and a few other snacks), a couple of DvDs of my critical info backed up, my GPS, my White Mountain and Maine Hiking guides, and the Appalachians Trail guide and maps and head towards Ktaadn and hike the trail south (since I don't have a car that would be easiest). Once that was complete I'd pick another trail and repeat.

[asthmaticeog]

45. Clothes, a guitar or two and a small amp, some art books, my computer.

I drive a CRV, so I wouldn't have to travel too lean. So maybe make that three guitars. ;)

Sounds really fucking tempting right now, actually...

[BarenakedLady]

46. I couldn't do it

Not without my kids and my pets.

:shrug:

[Inchworm]

I have come so close to doing this a few times lately

I'm not in a financial position, or physical position to do it though.

I have done what you speak of several times in my lifetime. I've hitch-hiked through the northeast. I "stormchased" as a carpenter. I almost count joining the Navy as that, but it was a wee bit different.

All I have to say is try not to burn any bridges in your home town, and try to keep as much of your stuff as you can. I have lost so many things in "storage" units thinking I'd come back for them.

What to take?.. hmm...

In most circumstances, good walking shoes and good work boots. Depending on how you plan to keep money in your pocket is the definition of "work boots."

Need dress clothes to do temp office work, need hand-tools to do temp skilled labor, need a hardhat... etc... those are your boots. But hec, if you are flush cashwize, nm all this.

The rest is up to you. Send all your pictures and irreplacables to someone you trust and head out.

:hi:

[Sock Puppet]

48. That's a tough one.

Kids can make everything so much more meaningful....and so much more complicated.

:hug:

Wishing you strength and courage my friend.

[reyd reid reed]

49. I have no idea where I'd go...

I'd probably just drive until I couldn't drive any more. And I'd take my kids and my cats and my books (as many as I could, anyway...they wouldn't all fit in my car), a notebook or two and some yarn.

[Fox Mulder]

50. I'd take my laptop and my collection of books.

And I'd head over to Europe...more specifically to England, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, or Romania.

Edit: I'd really love to do this too. There's nothing here for me anyways.

[leftofthedial]

51. laptop

guitar

box of photos

a few books

stolen credit cards for gas

.38 and ammo for gas and food

condoms

slim jims

[femmocrat]

52. The dogs, of course. And a big bag of money.

Some documents and family photos. Nothing else matters too much.

[skygazer]

54. I did exactly that in December of '98

I had $300 and a VW Golf I'd paid $400 for.

I took my two dogs, my clothes and my saddle and I drove from Vermont to California where I knew no one except a guy I'd met on the Internet about a year and a half before. I'd never met him in person but he'd told me I could stay at his place if I decided to come out.

I called him from Nebraska and told him I was on my way.

I put the last ten dollars in the gas tank at the top of Donner Pass and was running on fumes when I got to his house.

It was the best move I ever made. (and no, there was never a romantic connection with that guy but he turned out to be a darn good friend)

[philosophie_en_rose]

55. A tough choice.

I'd probably stay with family, though that's not a big drive. Would it be cheating to make multiple trips? :shrug:

If I had to leave the area for some reason, I'd leave my three dogs with my siblings or parents. I'd store my stuff with my family and then take the following:

* my money - credit cards, checks, debit cards, cash, etc.

* essential clothing

* a map

* food & water

* my laptop

* my ipod, ipod dock, ipod charger, and other ipod accessories.

* a few books to read

* toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner (can also be used as a body wash)

* a towel. :)

I'd probably head to Canada and visit family there. Marry some Canadian fellow and wallow in my universal healthcare. :) (just kidding).

Actually, I'd probably like to pack a suitcase and travel overseas. I've always wanted to see Great Britain.

[datasuspect]

56. pick me up on your way out

i'm ready to blow this town.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

58. I kinda just did that...

when we had to evacuate my Mom's house from the Tahoe fire. We got the cats, our family photo albums and the pictures off the walls, the needlepoint work done my Mom, Grandma, and sister, my Grandma's lamp, Mom's computer, and her important papers.

That was it.

When we drove away from the house that night, we looked back and saw the fire racing down the hill towards the house. :( We went to bed thinking everything Mom had left was in the back of the car. We were happy with what we chose.

[Throd]

59. My wife and daughter

I can't imagine life without them

[redqueen]

60. I would never do that.

I have children.

Do they count in the 'everything' that's being left behind, or can they be brought with?

If they can come along... I'd take them, and their pets, and move to Ireland.

[triguy46]

61. The last time I did that was 1976.

It might actually be easier now. having had the experience of "owning" things and chasing things and being envious of things, I'm not sure today I'd need any more than my wallet and checkbook.

Nothing is permanent.

[Dragonbreathp9d]

62. My file of things I've written,

some good books, a few clothes, and a whole lot of dreams

[DS1]

63. Cat, catfood, toothbrush, soap, toothpaste, towel, some clothes, my watch and camerabag

[bluethruandthru]

64. Depends on why I'm leaving.

If it's just for fun and exploration...that's one thing. But if I'm running away from something...that's much different. If I'm running away from something, chances are it doesn't matter what I take or leave behind...the "something" will still be with me.

[Jimbo S]

66. Did this in 1994.

Told the boss to fuck off and out the door I was.

-camera for capturing the memories (wished I had a camcorder)
-sleeping bag and pillow
-credit card
-jacket and a few clothes
-an igloo/cooler

[ceile]

67. My cats.

And one suitcase.

[Myrina]

68. my dogs, my favorite blanket/pillow, keepsake photos ...

... that's about it ... where would I go? Up to the woods - northern MN, ND, MT ... someplace with lots of trees and water and peace and quiet, but few people.

[Deja Q]

69. There is one thing nobody can escape from. One's self.

I stay where I am and hope for the best.

[Joe Fields]

71. clothes, razor, toothbrush, money, maps of western states.

[JVS]

72. My best stuff and I'd never tell here!

[wildhorses]

73. i would go to someone i love

as i have no one who loves me
i have no place to go.
consider yourself lucky
if you have place to go.
i would take an open heart
and an open mind
and a willingness to look
for
what i am seeking to find.