Hitting the Road--Destination Albuquerque

West I-40: We pulled out of Raleigh about 9:30 a.m. a little later than we intended, but without stress about it, either. Two puppies in the back of the SUV and a cat flaked out across the stuff packed up to our eyeballs in the back seat. We had a precious full tank of gas, which in this economic climate is equal to a small grocery bill. The morning was mild, but cloudy, really perfect for driving with animals in the Southeast.

Lunch in Asheville, NC

Our first stop was in Asheville. We figured it would be around lunch time. I had a fave bookstore -- Malaprops -- that I wanted to hit and my friend wanted to do a little boutique shopping. We finished up downtown Asheville with a memorable al fresco lunch at Carmel's Restaurant and Bar in Pack Square: tomato basil soup with a chiffonade of spinach salad--delicious. Just as the bill arrived a rain storm blew in, so perfect timing.

Memphis or Nashville?

We continued on I-40 West. It was mid-afternoon. Our original thought was to shoot for Memphis for the first night and plan to stay a second night. We opted to stop in Nashville for night #1. We're at the Best Western Music Row -- our digs for the night. The hotel is pet-friendly, even though there is scant grass right outside the hotel. We actually had to hit a grassy space on the next block for the dogs, but it will work out.

Night in Nashville

It was about 9 pm when we checked in and we were both hungry and cranky. We drove about 10 blocks to the real downtown buzz area and hit the Hard Rock Cafe for a reliable dinner. Tomorrow a.m. we will head to Memphis....blues land.

Get Portable--Prepping for the Next Road Trip

I'm taking to the road again with a travel nurse friend of mine. There are a lot of plans to take care of when you're planning on being gone from home base for a while. I call where I pitch my possessions home base -- it's a room a friend of mine is kind enough to provide for me and my 'stuff' when I need it. But the travel nurse must pack up her possessions, secure a climate controlled storage unit, vacate her apartment (prior to lease end, so if the complex doesn't rent it right away she will continue to pay monthly rent) and get really creative with packing possessions for the road that will fit in her vehicle. But there's more--we will also have two dogs and a cat traveling with us, so there must be room for them, too. Really cuts down on some packing space.

Priority Packing for Life on the Road

When you must pack for a long-term trip possession priorities change and choices are absolutely necessary. For example, this morning when we were getting ready to pull out of town and were creatively packaging her SUV we discovered that her tv and dvd player just would not fit in the vehicle. Her choice? leave them behind. The logic? She could do one of a number of things once at her destination: get a cable converter to run to her laptop, purchase an inexpensive tv for short-term use then pawn it or donate it to charity, or rent a tv and dvd player.

Other tasks that may be commonplace for this type of short-term, possibly long-term road trip:

• Permanent Mailing Address: Make sure you have a permanent address where you can route your mail, complete the change of address form available at any US post office. I use my parent's address because it has been my "home" since I was a child and they are more than willing to sort my important correspondence from junk.

• AAA Membership: My traveling companion finally caved and bought a AAA membership. Well worth the price for a year's membership especially if you're taking to the road for numerous trips--which we plan on. Also membership privileges, depend on the level of membership you buy, but may include mechanical roadside assistance, delivery of gas if you run out, a tow to a service center within 200 miles I think it is and all types of maps and trip planning.