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Do something good on your road trip
Instead of taking a road trip for personal reward and fun, go do something rewarding with your spare time. Help clean up after a catastrophe, work in soup kitchens, re-build a whole community, or help spread a message.
After a long week in the office, just one weekend out there could renew your appreciation for the life you live, and all that you have been blessed with. The best part - you don't have to spend a dime, if you don't have one.
These kinds of expeditions are a great way of uplifting your own spirits. You truly do get so much more than you give.
Catastrophic weather
Recent tornadoes in Kansas and Missouri have wiped out entire communities - I'm sure they would really appreciate the help. Even if all you have to offer is your kind words and a helping hand, every little bit helps.
You could also offer your time to any aid programs already there, such as the Red Cross. The more people they have to distribute supplies, the faster everyone can get on with their lives. If you can't make it there right after the event, it does take a very long time to rebuild. The mess will still be there when you have a chance to help.
Another idea is to document the cleanup while you are helping. When you come back to your life, spread the word about what is really going on. If you plan on returning, you might have a few more people joining you.
Everyone deserves to smile
There are soup kitchens and homeless shelters all across the country that would love the extra help. Or you could just hand out food at disaster sites - maybe the firefighters in Florida and California could use a lunch. Good cheap options are oatmeal, crackers with peanut butter, and the all time traveler's favorite - granola. Ample quantities of water are also a great idea.
Help spread a message
If you're looking to lend a hand with a bit of adventure, small-time underground musicians appreciate patronage too. Follow a band as they tour across the country, perhaps even one with a humanitarian message or that regularly contributes to something you believe in. Bands have a way of drawing in the masses if they already have a mass following them - why not help them help the world?
The largest phenomenon was the "dead-heads", followers of the Grateful Dead. Dead-heads would follow the band around the country on tour, camping, sleeping in their cars, doing whatever they could to be at every show. This phenomenon has continued on with some other bands, including Phish and String Cheese Incident.
Advance science and knowledge
If you are up for a real adventure, and are willing to risk your neck, contact a storm chasing group and see if they need hand. Some groups need another person with a vehicle to help carry equipment, and in any case more eyes on the lookout for danger are always a good thing.
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Letters and comments for August 26, 2010
I’ve taken many road trips over the years without much mechanical trouble. Always in the back of my mind lurks my worst nightmare: a breakdown in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere and not knowing anyone local.
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