The old car: 2007 Jeep Compass Limited 4x4 This car was a dream come true for a year. I got attached, very attached to it. It was fun to drive, getting all kinds of comments, always a conversation piece. I loved the satellite radio, sunroof, leather seats, and it was sooo comfortable. This is now the car that was. The new car: 1998 Ford Escort Wagon This is my new car, ‘nuff said. …

320 individuals – This is the total number of people that I slept under the same roof as in the last year. This could be family members, roommates, friends, or a big sleepover of close to 20 after an amazing turtleneck and sweater party. This comes to an average of 2.83 people/household. Also, 294 of these people I stayed with I had never met before in my life. 130 beds – Between September 8th, 2006 and September 17th, 2007 I slept on 130 different beds! …

I finally feel that I’m getting my sanity back …at least however much of it I have left. This last month of being back has really been a blur. I have only had little moments here and there where I have been able to look back on this trip and take it all in. Between coming home, returning the Jeep, giving several lectures, trying to find a place to live, being broke, and seeing friends it has been a big rush of everything. …

Finally! After 400+ days of being a guest and living in other people’s homes I finally have my own toothbrush holder. That means I am officially no longer a guest. Now that is a feeling of relief. I don’t know many people who have been a guest for over 400 days. The small things are where it’s at! A toothbrush holder! My own towel to hang up in the bathroom. My own bed. …

I saw a lot of houses in this last year, a lot! And if I had to pick just one where I had to live for the rest of my life it would be my grandma’s new house, the Teepee House. How great would it be to write my book there. The house is full of inspiration. In a recent lecture I told a student that the greatest pleasure of this entire trip was taking a huge dream and finishing it, the road to execution through a creative process is amazing. …

This is the story of how a big journal with little words came to be, that journal has been dubbed Daily Fruit since the very first entry on October 8th, 2001. It is now 2192 days later and I have made the last entry into this daily journal that has become somewhat iconic to me and a handful of friends. Daily Fruit was born in the fall of 2001, one month into my freshman year at Michigan State. …

I have to admit it’s been hard to adjust to the post-invasion. I find myself not knowing what to do with myself with a lack of stimulation and new things. In a year full of new things every day I’m now in a familiar place. The greatest thing to mix all of that up has been a couple dozen speaking engagements. From elementary kids to college students I have been able to share my experience with hundreds of people in the last couple weeks (thousands of people when including the dozen or more speaking engagements I had at the beginning of the trip). …

September 28th was one of the more difficult days of this last year; the day I had to return the Invasion Mobile. This was my house for a year, ever more than that, a home. For one year I lived out of this car. I hauled my duffel bag, camera bag, and laptop bag in and out of it daily. All driving time totaled this year and I spent 1/12 of this entire year sitting in the driver’s seat of that 2007 Jeep Compass. …

There became times on this trip where I sort of forgot what I was doing. No matter how exciting something is, or even when things change so much from day to day, you can still find yourself lost in what you do. It can still become “work” or became “just another day on the trip.” The reality of it all is that it is a well-lived dream. Two years ago I had this wild idea of this trip, no idea how to make it happen, and no idea that it actually would happen. …

One year ago today was my last night in White Bear Lake, MN, one of the best stops of the trip. What a memorable day that was. I drove my car in the high school homecoming parade, watched an awesome homecoming football game, and when on to have a very memorable night with a scary carbon monoxide incident. That was one year ago today, September 29th, 2006. That’s just one example of looking back a year ago, one. …