Sprinter Life Family Letters #3

4-7-11 - Hi baby. Greetings from the Northwest where I've been getting my Seattle lurk on. It's cold and rainy here, but only for 23 hours a day. The sun shot through the clouds at around 2:15 this afternoon so we all ran outside for 4 minutes. It was rad.

4-8-11 - Dear Lover, Today was great. We all went to Joeys for lunch. Adam's knee is doing much better and this was his first outing since the surgery. In addition to a great meal, we also learned proper urinal etiquette. Now you'll be able to take me anywhere! I also stumbled on my Mom's Peru guidebook which clearly demonstrates her enthusiasm to come visit us. My mom has invented a breakthrough color-coded horizontal to vertical exterior notes indexing system which cross references multi-colored highlighted passages from inside the book. Don't get any ideas Sprinter Life readers. I've already patented this system and plan to release it as a "How To Travel" Kindle book later this summer. Yeah, I just made a million.

 4-8-11 - Hey Baby, This part might sting a bit. What can I say, my sis wanted to buy me a bottle for my birthday. We went to a great wineshop and ordered a Cuvee Old Vine Zin to drink while we browsed the main selection.  Seeing all those bottles reminded me of our amazing wine tour bender of 2010! I walked the aisles and had it narrowed down to two bottles. A St. Innocent Pinot Noir and the L'Ecole Apogee. I know how much you love both. The Pinot is hard to get and was looking good, but it was an 08 and we both know that 02 and 06 were the years for Pinot in the Willamette Valley. So I went with the big juicy Apogee. I will try to bring this bottle home, but I just don't know if it will survive the family over this weekend.

I love you like crazy and miss you so much. One week down, one to go. XOXOXOXOXOXOX - TREE

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A Moment of Clarity...

A moment of clarity. That's all it takes to change your life path forever. The power of clarity is unmatched. I don't think anyone has ever said it better than Jules...

VINCENT: So you're serious, you're really gonna quit? 
JULES: Most definitely. 
VINCENT: So if you're quitting the life, what'll you do? 
JULES: That's what I've been sitting here contemplating. I've decided, basically, I'm gonna walk the earth. 
VINCENT: What do you mean, walk the earth? 
JULES: You know, like Caine in "KUNG FU", just go from town to town, meet people, and get in adventures. 
VINCENT: So you decided to be a bum? 
JULES: I'll just be Jules -- no more, no less. 
VINCENT: No Jules, without a job, residence, or legal tender you're gonna be a bum! 
JULES: Look my friend, this is just where you and I differ -- 
VINCENT: And when did you make this decision -- while you were sitting there eatin' your muffin? 
JULES: Yeah. I was just sitting here drinking my coffee, eating my muffin, when I had what alcoholics refer to as a "moment of clarity."

I've been back in the States for less than a week, and I find myself answering a lot of questions over and over again. Let's just get these out of the way once and for all.

"Why would you want to drive around the world?" I honestly don't know how to answer this. I find it hard to believe that so many people find it hard to believe that someone would voluntarily want to do this. I guess because we really like driving?

"Was it hard to leave your life behind?" Well, we're fortunate. By giving away half of Stevie's wardrobe, we actually freed up enough space to take our lives with us.

"Don't you guys want to have kids someday?" Yes, we sure do. Kiki has agreed to share her little cubby hole. And let's face it, diapers take up hardly any space.

"Enjoy it while it lasts. Everything changes when you have kids!" Ok, it's not a question but this one actually drives me crazy. Why do people say this (yes YOU Mr. Dentist)? I'm certainly no child expert, but I'm pretty sure that giving up your dream when you have a kid is NOT the example you want to set. The one thing I hope to pass on to my child is that anything is possible, including alternative lifestyles.

In short, I guess I could answer all these questions with one answer. Since we hit the road Stevie and I have been living in one extended moment of clarity. Now we're kinda addicted to it. Clarity is nice. It's authentic. So I think we'll keep driving. TREE

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Sprinter Life Family Letters #2

I heart you

Dear love,  it's been strange without you here.  I thought that after spending twelve thousand nine hundred and sixty hours nonstop together inside the van that I'd appreciate this alone time a little more. Finally, I can putter my way through the day without having to hear you say, "Where's your list?"  I can read my Kindle until the wee hours without you complaining that it's past nine o'clock.  Too bad your loofah isn't here for me to use, or else I could have a real party!

But, sadly, doing all of the above is no fun when you're not here.

Kiki misses you too. I tried to do your special thing with her this morning, but she wasn't convinced. I just don't have that 'morning person' personality.

I got my hair cut. Pretty spiffy, right?

There was a party in the house. Katie, Zach's sister, hosted a fiesta for her boyfriend's birthday. She prepped, primped, and preened all day, and the busyness made me miss you more.  I love doing things for you, for Kiki, for us. It's the inches and seconds that count most in life, and I feel like without being able to show the enormity of my love in little ways, I begin to fade away. If Descartes believed that thinking proved his existence (Cogito Ergo Sum), then I'd have to say that scratching your head proves mine.

Poor Kiki is taking the brunt of this. It's been a long time since she's had to endure all my scrumptious lovin' and honestly, I think she feels a bit smothered. It's hot. She doesn't want to cuddle. She can't wait for you to come home.

Veronica and I have been friends since high school. She's brilliant, brave, beautiful, and unapologetically herself. I love her dearly. And, she's our first official Sprinter Life visitor!! One day she hopes to buy the Sprinter and start her own Pan-American adventure. More to come on that later....

Being at School of the World has been awesome. Veronica gifted me a couple surf classes, and she's imparted much wisdom concerning the world of self-publishing. I'm feeling very inspired about some secret projects that I can't wait to share with you in person.

On a side note, I now have to take not five but ten photos of myself before I find one that I like. I hate aging.At least you and I are growing old together. Somehow that makes it more appealing. LOVE ALWAYS + FOREVER FOREVER FOREVER, STEVIE.

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Sprinter Life Family Letters #1

4-2-11 - Hello Sweet Lover, Well, I’m back in the USA. Of course I arrived wearing board shorts, flip flops and a t-shirt. It’s freezing cold here. I didn’t even bring a jacket. What was I thinking? On the flight back I gazed out the window and watched the countries pass by. The distance that took us 6 months and countless memories to drive was a mere 3 hour and 57 minute blur heading back. What a difference in perspective. I reflected on what an amazing adventure we’ve had and how much our lives have changed. Our world has opened up. I stared at the horizon and day dreamed about all the places we'll still go. I love our life together. XOXOX TREE

4-3-11 - Hi Baby, I spent a lot of time researching new homes this weekend. We’ve got a lot of options since there are so many different companies building 4x4 overlanding RVs. Based on the research and suggestions from Sprinter Life followers I am thinking that the 4x4 truck with custom built camper might be the best rig for around the world travel. I am considering flying out to Missouri next week to meet with the owner of Global X. They have a new rig they are releasing at Overland Expo and it sounds like something we'd be interested in. Tomorrow I'll head into Outdoorplay and open 6 months worth of mail. Joy. Miss you and Kiki so much. XOXOX TREE

4-4-11 - Good Morning Love, You would have been very proud of me yesterday. Adam and I went to have a wine taste at Marchesi. Upon arriving they told us it was the last day of the annual wine passport event. For $15 you can taste at all the wineries in the Columbia Gorge. I quickly started doing the math to determine if we could style it. It was already 1pm. Most tasting rooms close between 4pm-5pm. We were centrally located at Marchesi. My brother was driving a large vehicle with a top city surface speed of around 40mph, however road conditions were good. Neither of us had eaten since breakfast so we were guaranteed a buzz. Based on my Jedi ninja skills acquired during our 2010 wine bender tour (learn more here), and given all the data available, I quickly determined that we could absolutely kill it on this passport deal. I paid the $15 and we were on our way. We managed to hit 7 wineries before throwing in the towel. I was very proud of my brother's effort. I bought you a bottle of your favorite Viognier from The Pines, and 2 bottles of chewy 2006 Zin from Quennet. I miss you and Kiki so much. Have a great day. xoxox TREE

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Sprinter Life tour of Costa Rica's pacific coast

Wow, where does time go? We've already been in Costa Rica almost 3 weeks! It's been a good country for us so far. We've driven the entire pacific coast from top to bottom and we like what we've seen so far. Yeah, there are plenty of super touristy played out beach towns, but there are also some amazing out of the way secret spots with secluded coast lines buffered by dense jungle and great waves, (sorry, can't name them on the blog, email us for details).

Our tour of the pacific took us down a lot of bumpy dirt roads. The rain is now showing up daily. This is a reminder that we are rapidly approaching the rainy season, which we will endure from April through August and which will follow us into Panama, Columbia, and Ecuador. Bad muddy roads, here we come...

We really enjoyed the 10 days we spent in Pavones down in southwestern CR. We worked hard on our computers, ate great food, and I surfed every day. Below Stevie says goodbye to our friend Elisabetta...

An unexpected highlight of our pacific tour was meeting Travis, Pilar, and baby Maya. Our friend Leslie back in the US made the introduction via email and on our way through Uvita we stopped by to say hi. We hit it off right away and ended up hanging out for several days. These guys are wicked cool! We plan to head back down and hang out with them more when we  return.

Travis owns Bodhi Surf School, which is located in Uvita in Bahia Ballena (Whale Bay). This is one of the most beautiful places we've been to on our entire trip south of the border. It is the only marine national park on the pacific coast. The shore shoots out into the shape of a giant whales tail. Bodhi Surf operates right inside the park on the right hand side of the whales tail. The wave is perfect for beginners and the setting is paradise. Travis opened his doors to us and took us surfing everyday. What a great guy!

 We stayed at a cool little hostel in Uvita called the Tucan. This was a great spot to base while we explored the area. Below the Sprinter Life posse gets deep in the jungle of Costa. 

When we arrived at Playa Hermosa we got a tweet from PanAmNotes.com. Brianna and Logan left San Francisco a few months ago and we've been tracking each other's blogs. We almost connected in Granada, just missed them in Tamarindo, but were finally able to hook up last night in Hermosa. We had a lot of fun getting to know these guys. They're legit nomads for sure. We drank a few too many beers as captured by the photo below. We'll see you guys in Columbia. And SLOW DOWN! The best month to arrive in Tierra Del Fuego is February, not November!

We're back in Jaco now prepping for my departure to the US. I will be flying back for 2 weeks to work at Outdoorplay headquarters in Hood River, OR. Stevie and Kiki will stay here. They have a great room set up at School Of The World, thanks to our friend Zach. I owe you one buddy. Just keep those young Tico instructors away from my wife por favor.

This trip will be a bit strange because Stevie and I have spent 24 hours a day together for as long as I can remember. When you live in a van out on the road, that's just kinda the deal. Now we'll be apart for 2 whole weeks. Hopefully the time goes fast. When I return we plan to explore the rest of Costa Rica before moving south into Panama. Good times. TREE

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