What's Next?

Just about a month ago both my husband and I became two more of the millions of unemployed. After six years at a start up, Mr. B furloughed his staff and himself. Given the choice to stay on in someone else's position or leave, he felt the right thing to do was to leave. After two year's at a different start up, my boss informed me that he was closing it's doors. Both companies moving to/coming to a sad, quiet close.
We had a trip planned well before these recent events. So we packed up and flew to Colorado to see friends and then onto Ohio to see family and attend Mr. B's high-school reunion. Folks at home, in Colorado, and now here in Ohio are asking "what's next?" 
So what is next? We had been talking about traveling. Pretty good prices to Hawaii. Maybe Southern California to see my family. But we've left our dogs quite a bit this year and miss them (also some guilt there.) Mr. B suggested renting an RV and taking the dogs. We've toyed with the idea before, but never seriously...at least not on my part. See, I'm not a car person. After about three hours I'm looking for a rest stop, a vista, an attraction, an asylum. I just don't "do" car well.
As a kid, my dad, God rest his soul, drove us across country...twice. Neither time was a leisurely trek. We were in the car for 10-12 hours every day. There was the rare stop to see family or a historic site, but mostly it was to get from one coast to the other. I learned to loathe car travel and rest-stop toilets. As an adult before my marriage, if the drive was longer than 4 hours, I'd fly. 
My dislike of car travel was met with a bit of sadness from Mr. B. He grew up with a car-camping family and had many fond memories of playing driving games, fighting with his big brother, seeing beautiful national parks, roasting hot dogs at the campgrounds. These were the childhood experiences that formed his love of driving.
He tried often to change my opinion. Short, scenic drives along the coast. Three or four hours to an overnight or weekend location. Then about six years ago we drove to the Southwest. Out to the farthest point east we didn't drive more than 8 hours in a single day and never more than four at a stretch. We stopped frequently to see people, places, things. It was a grand seven days, and then in a lapse of judgment Mr. B convinced me that we could make it home in one day from our last stop. Thirteen and a half freakin' hours later we made it home. I was miserable out of my mind, but I didn't whine about it because I truly believed as I stepped out of the car at midnight I would never, ever, ever do such a thing again. Never. Ever. Ever. And for six years, with the single exception of a 5-1/2-hour drive to a memorial, our drives have been three hours or less.
Now, the open road and an RV awaits us. Mr. B just booked the rental for September 25, 2012. We'll have two weeks to decide our route and make any reservations we can. We are shooting for 4(!) weeks on the road. We are experienced travelers, were experienced campers/backpackers, but we are RV neophytes. Hence, the title of our blog.
So, I think we're nuts, but this is what's next...at least for the near term. And while Mr. B and I will look for jobs while on the road (the interwebs is everywhere), most of the next six weeks will be spent planning and completing this adventure. We'll blog as we go to keep family and friends up to date with where we are and what we do and see.
I do think we will have a wonderful adventure, but wish us luck anyway.
The RV Neophytes