Off-Road Adventures!

Due to Charley’s hectic work schedule, we don’t have much chance to “get outta Dodge.” But our new Range Rover provided us with a great excuse to get up to Carmel by the Sea, four hours from our home in Southern California. We bought the Rover specifically for its off-road capabilities to accommodate Charley’s love of photography (he was a pro photographer for many years before we met). Landscapes is one of his specialties so we really needed a car that would safely take him to roads less traveled.

 

Seems that there are only three Land Rover training locations in the U.S. and the only one west of the Mississippi is in—you guessed it—Carmel! Which happens also to be the home of my wonderful brother Mark and his lovely wife Barbara, whom we visit whenever we get the chance.

 

 

Land Rover is the parent company, Range Rover being one of its models. Here we are after our Experience, none the worse for wear and happy, happy, happy!

 

After a leisurely trip there—we’re usually in a hurry—we settled into the Quail Lodge, a beautiful place that happens also to be home of the Land Rover Experience which was on Sunday, and what an adventure it was! Not ten minutes into our all-day driving experience, Mark, our instructor, had Charley jigging, dodging, darting and maneuvering down a steep hill—with his foot off the brakes! What?! Seriously?!

We soon discovered that once programmed, our “beast” was capable of driving over many kinds of terrain—with little to no intervention from the driver! Wow! Scary at first, but what a hoot! The rest of the day was spent tilting to the side at a 45° angle, going through muddy water up to the top of our tires, making sharp turns and avoiding trees after cascading down more steep and narrow trails, perching on boulders with only two tires on the ground trying to figure out where to move next. So much fun!

The trip was primarily for Charley to forward his desire to get back into the photo biz. But I ended up having such a great time—not just watching his excitement and full-throttle enthusiasm and sharing in his joy—but having my own wonderful and adventurous time. While most of the time was spent with Charley behind the wheel (as I intended), I got my chance to drive, too! I had an amazingly good time discovering all the things we both can now do with our car.

And if that were not enough, the entire trip was yet another wonderful chance for Charley and me to just be together, sharing our dreams and passions, talking away about everything under the sun, moon and stars, enjoying each other’s company as if we hadn’t seen each other for years.

We still marvel at how much we love each other after 28 years. Having this sort of relationship where you love seeing your mate happy, even doing things in which you are not directly involved, is such a blessing and so much damned fun!

When I tell people that my purpose is to see others happy in their relationships, to have them experience the distinct pleasure of having such a relationship, it may sound too altruistic, but it is true. That I get paid to follow my passion is a bonus.

Yours in love,

Tanii