“Art is how we decorate space, music is how we decorate time.”
DZ is a veteran traveler who likes to fill his ear holes with tunes. Not just any tunes. But tunes he likes. So whether he’s flying abroad (pre-Covid) or roadtripping across the U.S., he breaks out a couple of second-hand iPod Minis, each loaded with a thousand or so tunes – from RHCP to Beck (and Jeff Beck) to Beethoven. He’ll plug in the pod in and queue up his music.
Which got us thinking: How important is music to the traveler?
Passengers in airports sport their Beats like athletes making the pre-game locker room walk. Wooks and heads heading to a music festival call up the playlist someone’s no doubt curated of the acts they’re gonna see. Heck, the Merry Pranksters took a whole entourage on the road with them on their trips.
Frankly, it just makes living easier on the ears and soul.
When Barry decided he wanted to be prepared to take his travel trailer off the grid and boondock when the spirit moved him, he first wanted to install a solar system to ensure he had the creature comforts only power can provide.
There’s a scene in the sitcom “Home Improvement” where Tim Allen’s character tells wife Jill, “You know why I like tools? Because they fix things. You tear down a motor, see the problem, it’s right there – boom; it’s fixed.” Hey, DIYers, workshop fixer-uppers and RV and tent campers, you nodding in agreement? Projects, renovations and “honey dos” pop up. Things – slides, awnings and other devices – break. The campsite could use a little boost in livability, whether speeding up raising and lowering scissor jacks or putting in or out the awning, or adding some stereo sound, extra light or a fan to cool the still air.
For most RV campers, “boondocking” is a mythical form of camping. Disconnected, off the grid, separated from other campers – just you and your crew deep in the state or national park or out-of-the-way getaway where no power, water or sewer lines can reach. Just like the pioneers used to do. But glampers aren’t pioneering woodsfolk, unless the pioneers had their own memory foam bed, and shower, and fridge, and solid roof and door to keep out the elements and creatures. Modern boondockers want the creature comforts only power can deliver.