What I Spent in Iceland Over 8 Days & 1,200+ Miles
August 12, 2025
the latest
HI, I’M TERRA.
I’m a lifelong storyteller, nearing the final chapter of a 20+ year full-time career in the Army National Guard. These days, I’m building something new — one board, bolt and backroad at a time — slowly transforming a Ford Transit into a home.
This site is where I share that journey. You’ll find van build progress, road trip tales, quiet moments in wild places, and thoughts from the in-between.
EXLORE MORE
Things I Bought Myself for My 40th Birthday
When I was younger, birthdays felt so stressful. I remember being anxious about turning 16, as if that was something significant, as if it was a ripe old age. It’s different now. I’m not quite 40, I still have a few more days to soak in the sunset of my 30s, but I’m close enough to know it’s not going to be a significant life event. Still, 40 feels like a big deal, partly because 30 was so awful. Two weeks before I turned 30, my almost ex-husband finally admitted that the real reason he wanted a divorce was because he was in love with someone else, someone who, incidentally, shared my name. I didn’t do much to celebrate 30. I went to a park near Richmond, sat on a
March 8, 2024
February.
February is such a short month. The runt of the litter even in her longest incarnation. All month, the brevity of February felt like it was looming over me, waiting for me to do something, to do all things. Mostly, February felt like it was chasing me. It felt like making your way up a rollercoaster, steady clicks ticking down the seconds, ticking away the time you’ve got left before a whoosh of effort drags you to the end, ready or not. I have arrived here, at this place I’ve been talking about for the last half decade. I am at the point of doing the things, of making the effort, of chasing the dreams I’ve talked about for so, so long, but sometimes the weight of it is a
March 5, 2024
How I Spent 7 Days in & around Moab & Western Colorado
I wasn’t sure this trip would ever happen. I first planned it for the middle of March 2020 and, obviously, had to cancel. I figured another opportunity would come around, but each time I tried to plan this trip, something came up, something stopped me from going. Last summer, I decided to try again. I pulled up the plans I’d made two and three years earlier, booked a rental car and some flights and planned to finally check Arches and Canyonlands off my National Park checklist. But, as my departure date inched closer, the health of my senior dog started to decline, and by the time I was a month out, I was thinking about cancelling so I could be there for whatever time he had left. Then, just a
February 21, 2024
January in Review: My Buick-driving, big ring-wearing era
The thing about 2024 is that it promises to be a really important year for me. I have a lot of big, big things planned for 2025, but in order to make them all happen, I have to spend 2024 making shit happen. I need to spend the year building things, both quite literally and very figuratively. I need to a lay a foundation. I need to prepare. I need to let go of things, of jobs and places and the assorted piles of things I’ve accumulated over nearly 40 years. With all that in mind, I jumped into January with a plan and plane tickets which is, frankly, the best way to start a year. I flew to Houston with my forever road trip bestie, and spent a few
February 1, 2024
23 Things I Didn’t Hate in 2023
MONUMENT VALLEY. I’d wanted to visit Monument Valley since I watched Forrest Gump in 1994, and 2023 was the year I finally made it happen. It was worth the effort to get out there and the moody March weather only added to experience as the monuments shifted in and out of view. BARBIE. I hadn’t been to a movie theater since before the pandemic and I went twice for this absolute masterpiece. THE STATUE OF LIBERTY. One of my best friends has lived in New York City since 2020, I visit her at least once a year and yet I, a National Park nerd, persistent traveler and great-granddaughter of immigrants, had never visited Liberty Island. Until 2023. RELAXING MY GOODREADS GOAL. For pretty much as long as Goodreads has been
January 22, 2024
5 Friday Favorites – 6.16.23
1 – NOAH KAHAN Over the weekend, I popped north to go see Noah Kahan, he of TikTok and Stick Season fame, and y’all, it was incredible. I expect long-time rock stars, to put on a big show, but you never know what you’ll get from a newer artist, especially one very new to playing for crowds of 15,000 and this show went above and beyond any expectation I had. It was a good, good night, and now all I’m doing with my free time is wandering around singing Noah Kahan songs and it is not a bad problem to have. 2 – GRISETTE One of my favorite things about Richmond is the incredible food scene. This city is not huge, but we have incredible talent here and as far
June 16, 2023