Something We Stand By
Written by Amelia Bice
Photography by Josiah Bice
WEST COAST ONE-WAY ROADTRIP: Palm Springs to Seattle
A friend once told me that the reason collecting vinyl came back as a trend is all due to the thrill of its limitations. In a world where the modern luxury of streaming reigns, there’s something special about not being able to have it all at your fingertips. Vinyl takes patience, investment, and care to acquire. The reward? Pleasure flooding your ears at a level unattainable by your Bluetooth speaker.
Since that conversation, I’ve chosen a version of this theory as a mantra for my life. Convenience and fulfillment are antonyms. A rich life is a life lived in thoughtfulness. More is not always better. Joy is found in the process.
My husband being a film photographer/developer and myself a home-chef, our lives are lived deep within “the process”.
Our trip up the West Coast is a perfect showcase of life like this. The destination isn’t the point; the path to getting there is. We load up our van (Burt) and surrender to what the next week has to offer on our journey from Palm Springs to Seattle.
In Palm Springs, we wind labyrinths.
On Highway One, we drive slow.
In Ojai, we hunt book sales.
In Ventura, we spend too much time.
In Los Olivos, we stop at cherry stands.
In Carmel, we wait for the sunset.
In San Francisco, we pause for tea and cakes.
In Point Reyes, we walk among twirling trees.
In Mendocino, we spend our time in gardens.
In Eureka, we run through grassy hills.
In Portland, we stay with friends.
In Seattle, we wish it wasn’t over.
I go days without washing my hair, but I’ve never felt more beautiful. Self-driving cars zip around us in the passing lane, but we can’t seem to care. The reward alone of using the hand crank window to get a whiff of the redwood trees would make me do it all over again.
Suddenly, I remember that all of my favorite moments weren’t any of the sites I mapped out or the (amazing!) food we ate but the time spent together on the road, cuddling up in the back of the van, the feeling of always having somewhere to go but nowhere we need to be.
It’s once again the proven theory of the road less traveled. We take the long route, invest in the analog process, and are gifted with the satisfaction of rare moments we won’t soon forget.