I'm still planning my road trip back to New Jersey next week. Last month my parents told me they needed to buy a new car for the Winter since my brother smashed up their regular Winter car, and I told them they could have my car since I don't use it that much, and they accepted. They paid for it anyway, so no biggie. I just have to drive it there for them.

I leave this Friday to spend the weekend at the monastery again, which the back of my mind hopes will serve the purpose of keeping me in their minds and letting them know I'm serious, and the plan is to arrive in New Jersey on December 1st, after visiting Meghan in Arlington on November 30th and spending that night in Philadelphia with my brother.

I thought I had an itinerary divvying up the drive by days, but I'm thinking I might spend more time in the American Southwest, Organ Pipe National Monument, Tucson and the Saguaro National Parks, and Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico (I have a National Parks Pass that won't be of much use, I shouldn't wonder, once I get rid of my car). If those take up too many days, I might have to breeze through Austin and Nwalins and beeline towards Arlington to be there by the 30th.

As for getting rid of the car, I'm still filtering what it means to me and why it feels like it's a big thing to be letting go of, even though it's not. It's just a car, a big material hunk of metal that pollutes the environment. It may be just habit of my material-oriented mind to get all worked up about nothing, and once it's done, it passes like a cloud.