We returned last night from a long weekend in Joshua Tree National Park. While there, we were admiring the many different homes-on-wheels that people had crafted for themselves, spanning the spectrum from shiny new Airstreams being pulled by luxury brand SUVs to rusted out jalopies with the passenger seat removed to make room for its occupant’s sleeping pad and bag. There were Sprinters housing climbing guides and college kids packed into their parents’ minivans and retirees in 40-foot RVs. There were full-timers and weekend warriors and every build out you can imagine. It was inspiring to say the least.

It also started a conversation about the parts of road life that almost never make it to social media or blog posts. I actually don’t think it’s because everyone is attempting to cultivate a “highlights reel” of perfection. I think it can feel really wrong to “complain” about the hard parts of road life when so many of the people doing it won’t hesitate to tell you that they feel like it is a huge privilege to be able to choose to live like this. And that’s the catch, right? This life is a choice and it is often a lifestyle for which sacrifices were made in order to make happen. So complaining about some of the “hardships” (which for the most part are more often actually just inconveniences) can feel a little whiny and gross.

But we should share them...