There is absolutely, positively, nothing better in the world to me than a road trip. I love everything about it - the pre-daydreaming, packing the car, stopping at rest stops, eating at small town diners...ahhhhhhh. Andy and I have put about 70,000 miles on our car in the 3 years that we have had it, and I'd say probably 3/4ths of that is from trips big and small that we have taken all over Western North America. I (half) joke that maybe we should become truckers, criss-crossing the continent watching amber waves turn into purple mountains majesty.
To me, hitting the open road is like a meditation. You are in the moment. HERE. NOW. You become extra-aware of the new sights and smells around you. The world slows down and you catch your breath. You notice the little things in the small towns, in the landscapes, and these things inform how you view your own world, seemingly so small and far away.

Today we are leaving for Banff, up in the Canadian Rockies. More specifically, we are heading to a hostel north of there. The place we are staying is rustic - no running water and only solar electricity - and I can't wait. We are heading for a weekend of looking out the window as the countryside rolls by, snowshoeing, and hopefully, a camp fire or two.
All this to say, the blog will be quiet until next week. I probably should have tried my hand at lining up some guest posts, but I didn't, so there you have it. I shall hopefully return with lovely pictures and tales to share with you all; can't wait!
shanti >> sondra
p.s. YES our beagle, Piko, is coming with us! Eeeeek, I can't wait to see her romping in the snow!
>>original image via; altered by me.