Road-Warrioress Life Not for Wimps

I was talking recently with an acquaintance about her 20-something daughter, a young woman who needs minders.  We’ll call her Mel: Phi Beta Kappa, jobhunting MBA grad, deemed exceptionally “bright” and “promising.”  Except she cannot make her way through Grand Central Terminal even when Mom puts her on the right Metro North train to Manhattan.

Granted, GCT is a bit of a zoo, but signs are clearly posted everywhere.  But to someone who mastered the maze of Moscow underground armed only with a map printed in Cyrillic, knowing not a symbol of it, it’s inexplicable that a brilliant woman cannot make it a mere 25 miles from home to get to a job interview on time!

Mel will never survive if she has to travel for a job.  She cannot drive herself to a doctor’s office in the small exurban town where she grew up without getting lost.

What does it take to wander the world on your own?  A good sense of direction certainly helps!  Spatial Intelligence, the ability to orient oneself in space, to read a map, is an underrated skill.  But it has proven vital countless times and places.  I've never met a Perpetual Traveler who could remain on-the-road without this skill - without it, they give up and go home.

What other attributes make a difference between disaster and survival, even enjoyment, of long-haul travel?  Independence, self-reliance, curiosity, a sense of adventure: these I regard highly.  Flexibility and adaptability help you surmount cultural differences and difficulties, and a sometimes weird array of challenges.

Fearlessness is irrelevant, even counterproductive.  Fear is a useful signal of danger, and alertness, even wariness, can protect you from various dangers.  Courage – the ability to go out and “get it done” despite fear – matters.

The Road Warrioress life is too challenging for the hopelessly helpless Mels in this world.  There’s no room for wimps on the road. 

What traits do you find essential to success as a Road Warrioress?  Share, share!

May your road rise to meet you!

Ann

New Novel’s Scenes Set at NYC’s Library Hotel

One of my favorite hotels in the world, The Library Hotel at 41^st Street and Madison Avenue in Manhattan, is featured as a setting for several scenes in a recently published novel.  Jennifer Jeppison, the novel’s main character, sometimes with members of her extraordinary extended family, sojourns at The Library Hotel for several NYC trips in Make Me Beautiful by Kelsey A. Campbell.

Jen, an artist, particularly loves the Painting Room, of course!  And the hotel’s wealth of books everywhere from the lobby to the 14^th floor Writers’ Den Jen finds particularly useful while recuperating after surgery in a New York hospital.

The real hotel is a gem located just one block from Grand Central Terminal and one block from the famed New York Public Library.  It’s part of the HK Hotels chain, which also includes the Casablanca Hotel near Times Square.  Great place, lovely facilities for anyone who loves a good book, and fine service are hallmarks of this elegant little boutique hotel.  I can hole up there in vast comfort for days, just as the fictional Jennifer Jeppison does!

The book is available as an Amazon Kindle Edition, published by AngeLines Publishing.  Look for Make Me Beautiful by Kelsey A. Campbell, and load up your Kindle.  Great bedtime reading for a Road Warrior, and you can dream of traveling to places like New York, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Cambodia along with Jen.  It’s the “Ultimate Makeover” story, tremendously uplifting and inspiring, and a joy to read.

May your road rise up to meet you!

Ann