A combination of brutal cold, long driving days, sporadic internet access, and simply having too much fun has kept me from keeping myself or anyone else up to date. And now there is so little time before tomorrow, and tonight’s sleep calls urgently. But I am safe and sound in a Houston suburb in the driveway of dear friends, after a wonderful, warm afternoon and evening; warm in so many ways, not the least of which was ambient temperature. At last the cold I’ve been fending off since the first of the year seems to be on its way out of me, after two relatively warm days and today at last a genuinely warm day driving across central Texas, an afternoon in a sunny yard, a night with windows open, and the warmth of old friends.

Here is the trip so far of the Mothership, launched January 21, 2013, destined for the Northern Neck Peninsula of Virginia, via Ajo, AZ, Houston, TX, and various points in Florida.

Sakyong Mipham, the leader of Shambala, counsels that “The discipline of not resisting circumstances is how we drop our concepts and move forward,” and that “having an inviting situation is incredibly important because we already have plenty of difficulties and obstacles to overcome.” His latest book Ruling Your World gave me great support as I read it during my preparations for this journey, and validated my choices to adapt my plans to circumstances twice so far on this journey, putting me twelve days behind at this point; but keeping my calm, relaxed, in good weather, and enjoying the trip. An auspicious beginning indeed.

Monument Valley in the distance, snowmelt glistening on the road, the first day of travel went well.

From my campsite at Goulding’s campground. The first night temperatures dropped into the teens, but a little electric heater kept us all warm in the Mothership. Puma handled the travel well, and came out tentatively from under the bed shortly after we docked.

And the rest of the story will have to wait. I have overloaded the system with my enthusiasm to post too many photos at once, and they have stalled in uploading. It’s too late at night to wait up for them, so I will go with the flow of circumstance and try again later. But at last I’m in the warm and sunny zone I’ve been seeking for weeks, the auspicious beginning has flowed into a comfortable middle, and I can only hope for the best for the rest of the trip.