"California, here we coooooome."

Twenty pages into On the Road by Kerouac--the original scrolls, that is--and I'm really taken in by the book. It's not what I'd call artfully written--he keeps my interest; however the plot doesn't seem to be going anywhere in particular, unlike most acclaimed books that I read, the author didn't seem to have written the prose with a plan. But it doesn't matter. This is one of those novels that survives on sheer storytelling. It's like listening to your guy friend talk about his summer vacation and it's entertaining because he remembers all the quirky little details.

To hell with professional goals--I want to hit the road and experience life like this beatnik writer, America's first well-known hippie. Five or six guys and girls, one rundown van, lots of good music, and not a single plan or obligation on our minds. Taking and experiencing America for what it's worth. Driving out to California without deadlines or expectations, and doing it for not a whole lot of money. That's a trip I've got to take before I'm out of college and have a real job.

Things have changed since Kerouac wrote his modern travel epic, that odyssey of road trips. Hitch hiking--once the past-time of adventurous college students and thrifty travelers--has been left for the crazy homeless and the serial killers. The prototype of the curious roadie has changed a little bit as well. Once reserved for low-income drifters--all male--my guess is that "the road" is populated by a wider variance of types (and both sexes) these days. 

I guess a lot of my interest for this free spirited traveler stems out of an admiration for the balance in his story--the ability to do it all and then some. He's an intellectual, yet he never passes up an ability to have a good time. He seems to approach life with fun as a main priority, but never fails to learn something important from each situation. Truthfully, that's exactly what I'm trying to do.

I'm anxious to see how this story develops--the people he'll meet and the random happenings that will befall him as he attempts to observe life in a new place. A good piece of literature can make a reader feel like she's there, and until I can embark on my own cross-country trip of discovery, I'll have to be content with Kerouac's account.