As a fellow environmentalist cultivating an ecological reserve in Maine, I love this SO much!! It's inspiring to learn about other passionate people committed to helping the planet. I loved learning about Janet's skoolie and her efforts to educate the public. Thank you for sharing!!!
Thanks Joan for the offer. I am planning my next trip which will include Michigan and beyond! Can you message me thru my Facebook account? It's Janet Westervelt. You should see my bus to know you have the right one. Sounds like fun! 😊 thanks
What a great share -thank you Janisse. My friend Kelly -now retired is traveling the states via van and I have shared your story with her. Mary in Augusta
I used to be friends with an artist who got really into collage, and had her little group of friends doing visioning collage. It was more powerful than I would have thought, though mine consistently ended up being about the world I want to see alongside the world I want to change, and very little about myself. I was never sure what to make of that. Then she was working with a course on doodling and it turned out exactly the opposite.
I like this perspective on women's independence. There's a lot of understanding in figuring out how deep caregiving goes in many of our lives, and how much it takes.
My mother’s a huge reader! It would be impossible to pin down. She speaks four languages and is a singer-songwriter. She loved the Russian Silver Age poets, Boris Pasternak, James Welch, uuuhhh … I’m trying to picture what’s in her house. (She’s also a hoarder and, um, an interesting person, so it’s difficult.) Also mysteries like Louise Penny and P.D. James. David James Duncan, Debra Magipie Earling (they’re old friends), Tolkien, … I don’t know. She reads a ton!
I continue to be amazed about the phenomenon of six degrees of separation and my relationships. I know Gretchen Staebler, through the church I attend here in Raleigh and Gretchen's previous involvement with it. Within the past year or so, I was part of a West Coast zoom call and a discussion with Gretchen where she discussed her experiences with an aging parent, which she wrote about in a book. Thank-you Gretchen for your valuable input and sharing your most recent experience with letting go.
Greg! How nice for a connection here! I'm glad you enjoyed the book discussion (Mother Lode: Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver). I'm kinda, sorta working on another memoir about hiking: solo on the trail and solo in life. Hence, my presence on Trackless Wild!
This past autumn, at 71, I completed a bucket list solo road trip adventure to visit California's nine national parks in my Nissan Rogue, outfitted for van camping. It didn't all go as planned, but that's part of the adventure, right? Letting go of attachment to outcome. It was fabulous.
Gretchen, I'm not an expert, LOL, but if you go back to the original post, you can see all the comments. Greg knows you & gives you a shoutout. If all else fails, go to tracklesswild.substack.com, Go into the post about Janet's mini-bus, and go from there.
So inspiring! My 40-year-old stepdaughter, who's single and works remotely, is considering van life. I also have a client who spent six weeks on the road last year in her converted minivan. She'd do it permanently if she weren't married. She told me she connected (online) with a huge community of women who are out there living on the road, mostly in the western U.S. Your assessment that this lifestyle appeals especially to women is spot-on!
Van life has been whispering my name for the longest time. As my youngest child grows older the whisper grows louder.
As a fellow environmentalist cultivating an ecological reserve in Maine, I love this SO much!! It's inspiring to learn about other passionate people committed to helping the planet. I loved learning about Janet's skoolie and her efforts to educate the public. Thank you for sharing!!!
An ecological reserve! That shoots you to the top of my hero list. Thank you, Samantha.
Gosh, how I love you both! You nourish my soul. 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽
Thanks Joan for the offer. I am planning my next trip which will include Michigan and beyond! Can you message me thru my Facebook account? It's Janet Westervelt. You should see my bus to know you have the right one. Sounds like fun! 😊 thanks
What a great share -thank you Janisse. My friend Kelly -now retired is traveling the states via van and I have shared your story with her. Mary in Augusta
Her story would make a wonderful memoir!
Safe travels Janet!
What a resourceful woman. If Janet swings through Michigan, she can camp on my farm.
I'll make sure she sees that invitation, Joan. Visiting you would be a treat.
Would love to know where Janet got her USA Map/Magnets. I love it.
I got the sticker map (not magnetic sorry) on Amazon. Just search RV USA Sticker Travel Map and there are a lot to choose from. It helps me keep up!
Hopefully she'll be reading this.
I used to be friends with an artist who got really into collage, and had her little group of friends doing visioning collage. It was more powerful than I would have thought, though mine consistently ended up being about the world I want to see alongside the world I want to change, and very little about myself. I was never sure what to make of that. Then she was working with a course on doodling and it turned out exactly the opposite.
I like this perspective on women's independence. There's a lot of understanding in figuring out how deep caregiving goes in many of our lives, and how much it takes.
Have I ever told you how much I love your name? It's so literary. And thank you for this vote of confidence for Vision Boards. I want to make one.
Very kind. :) I was named, as you might guess, after the Willa Cather novel My Ántonia. It was my mother’s favorite book at the time I was born.
OMG. It's one of my ALL TIME favorite books. Do you mind telling me what other books your mother loved? She sounds like my kind of reader.
My mother’s a huge reader! It would be impossible to pin down. She speaks four languages and is a singer-songwriter. She loved the Russian Silver Age poets, Boris Pasternak, James Welch, uuuhhh … I’m trying to picture what’s in her house. (She’s also a hoarder and, um, an interesting person, so it’s difficult.) Also mysteries like Louise Penny and P.D. James. David James Duncan, Debra Magipie Earling (they’re old friends), Tolkien, … I don’t know. She reads a ton!
Janet is one special person...enjoyed reading this :)
As are you, my dear.
I continue to be amazed about the phenomenon of six degrees of separation and my relationships. I know Gretchen Staebler, through the church I attend here in Raleigh and Gretchen's previous involvement with it. Within the past year or so, I was part of a West Coast zoom call and a discussion with Gretchen where she discussed her experiences with an aging parent, which she wrote about in a book. Thank-you Gretchen for your valuable input and sharing your most recent experience with letting go.
Greg! How nice for a connection here! I'm glad you enjoyed the book discussion (Mother Lode: Confessions of a Reluctant Caregiver). I'm kinda, sorta working on another memoir about hiking: solo on the trail and solo in life. Hence, my presence on Trackless Wild!
Gretchen, can you send me your email address privately? I'm at janisseray1 at gmail.
We're gathering the community in...
This past autumn, at 71, I completed a bucket list solo road trip adventure to visit California's nine national parks in my Nissan Rogue, outfitted for van camping. It didn't all go as planned, but that's part of the adventure, right? Letting go of attachment to outcome. It was fabulous.
Gretchen, did you see Greg's comment below?
I didn't. I don't even see mine. Maybe because I'm not a paid subscriber? (I was surprised I was able to leave a comment.) Oh, found it!
Gretchen, I'm not an expert, LOL, but if you go back to the original post, you can see all the comments. Greg knows you & gives you a shoutout. If all else fails, go to tracklesswild.substack.com, Go into the post about Janet's mini-bus, and go from there.
I couldn't see comments on the post, but did when I followed the thread on the email with your comment. Thank you for the heads up, Janisse!
So inspiring! My 40-year-old stepdaughter, who's single and works remotely, is considering van life. I also have a client who spent six weeks on the road last year in her converted minivan. She'd do it permanently if she weren't married. She told me she connected (online) with a huge community of women who are out there living on the road, mostly in the western U.S. Your assessment that this lifestyle appeals especially to women is spot-on!