Weekend Roadtrip Perfection - Two Weeks and I'm out

Here's the link to my pictures from the most perfect weekend in months:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shaynakatherine/sets/72157594202783132/

Jeff, Ryan, Kyoko and I headed north last Saturday evening. We set up camp at a state park north of Lake Pontchartrain. That night we cooked, ate and drank among the mosquitos. The heat of the morning sun awoke us. With nowhere to be in particular we moved slow.

The sun beat down. Hot and exhausted. We sat drinking strong morning coffee. Moving slowly. Enjoying our serene surroundings. Finally we found the energy to pack up and pile back into the car. Heading to ... ?

At Abita Falls we came across the UCM Museum (self proclaimed Louisiana's Most Eccentric Museum). The little local boy working the desk there pointed us to the Abita Brewery and to nearby river swimming.

We just missed the tour of the brewery by a half hour, but we still managed to sneak into the plant through the back door. Once inside, a man directed us to the tasting room. Through an unmarked door, around the corner and between two vending machines we discovered a small room full of people and 4 taps flowing with free beer. FREE GOOD BEER!! man, could this day get any better? We chilled for a while and drank our beer. mmmm. At the brewery we made a pact to keep the dream alive, stay away another night and head back to the city early Monday morning.

From there we headed out to find the swimming spot. It was along a back road, below the overpass for highway 12. There was a rope swing suspended from a tall tree, a ladder constructed along the wooden trunk and a platform placed 30 feet above the river's surface. Boats sped past while cars cruised above us on the highway. We were otherwise surround by trees, water and sky. more glorious nature.

While we were there, the sky started to darken. Thunder claped in the distance. Soon rain began to fall... harder, faster, larger drops. The sky opened dumping buckets of water onto the earth. Lightening ripped through the atmosphere, charging towards the ground. Thunder roared. We all jumped with surprise. We were surrounded. Warm rain continued to pour down in sheets. Already soaked from swimming, I felt connected to it all. listening carefully to this southern sky's song and smiling with the sky. It was a power that I held, that held me, and we were part of the whole, oneness with nature. powerful and real.

Finally we took refuge in the car. It was almost 4:30pm and we hadn't eaten since breakfast. We hit the road again in search of a burger. We drove and drove, singing along to the cheesy radio songs. We were heading East. nothing. nothing. nothing. We were in the middle of fucking nowhere... heading into Mississippi.. We finally found some Pizza and took it to Bay St. Louis (another area hit really hard by Katrina) Many places were still closed and the bridge along the coast is still down. We devoured the pizza peacefully overlooking the Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.

The beach was closed to the public. It was getting dark. Near the beach we found an emergency free kitchen. They let us set up camp on their site. Exausted from the road and still in awe of the perfection of the last 24 hours, I finally closed my eyes to sleep.

At 5:30am we woke up and headed back to the city. Hearts sinking, I realized how much I hate spending soooo much time my job. It's been sucking the life out of me. And I haven't felt this alive in weeks. The open road and the prospects of the unknown excite me.

This morning I decided to put in my two weeks and quit my job. ... FREEEDOM! July 31st will be my last day at Praline Connection. I was going to quit anyway, maybe just not so soon. I'm leaving on good terms. And maybe I can give New Orleans another chance in the fall. Or maybe I'm not meant to settle anywhere. I don't know.

I also made a pact to myself. I will make that drive cross country. don't know when, how, or with who... but it will happen. This morning I promised myself that.