Written By: Kate Goldstein
On JUNE 28th, you may feel the collective spirit of SB get a little freer. Your walkin’ shoes might be callin’ your name, and if you are connected enough, you may find yourself wanting to suddenly quit your job and head North. Whether or not you make it out of Santa Bubble that day, you can live vicariously through two of our own who are Hitchhiking all the way to Alaska, and have plans to spice it up along the way. Suzanne Brown and her boyfriend Shawn Von will set out to Quincy, Ca. to the High Sierra Music Festival. They will leave for their big journey North on July 4th, marking independence from owning a car, renting a home, and living a predictable future. The intention is to ultimately set up a home base in Anchorage, where they will visit Shawn’s sister and poke around to different spots in Alaska.
For the trek, Suzanne and Shawn will camp the entire time, and stay close to the 101 and rivers. They will both have smart phones and plan on keeping up their blog while on the road. Their book, The Lost Art of Hitchhiking, will be on the forefront of their minds while they travel. They are not only documenting the journey, but providing an invaluable point of view onto this community-based way of travel. Before the disillusion that “we were all separate” infiltrated our society; we as a community had compassion for each other and trusted in the kindness of strangers, as the kindness in ourselves. The 60′s and 70′s were an expression of compassion and trust, and the Art of Hitchhiking was actualized. It is the way many of the baby boomers saw the great United States, and I often hear peoples stories of hitchhiking accompanied with a real sense of aliveness and trust in the universe. It is an adventure…it’s the spirit of the road traveler.
At first, Suzanne and Shawn were going to raise money for the book. To print 50 hardback copies will cost $1500. Instead, they are raising money to assist with the cost of travel and food, and to support the documentation and creation of their book. After they travel this summer, they will collect their photos from the journey, collect their thoughts, and create a Kickstarter Page to springboard the book, The Lost Art of Hitchhiking.
Tonight (June 4th, 8pm), at the Mercury Lounge off Hollister, Suzanne and Shawn will be hosting a show and selling art to raise funds for their trip north. The couple created custom postcard sets of 10 postcards featuring original photographs which they are selling for $10.
The night will commence with 4 amazing local bands. All the bands are playing for free and everyone involved feels the generosity from the musicians and artists and the outpouring of support from the community.
The $7 door charge will go straight to Suzanne and Shawn. To see photos of the Mercury Hitchhiking Fundraiser, visit the event’s page on Facebook.
To see what the couple is doing on the road, we can visit them at their blog thelostartofhitchhiking.com.
Thinking about traveling this summer? Keep an eye on what your friends are up to and be inspired to explore a little further. Watch for The Lost Art of Hitchhiking on Kickstarter in a few months and visit Mercury Lounge Saturday night to offer your support!
