Tabula Rasa RV Tour
Introduction: The Power of Begin Again
“I woke up on the road again today…”
That line, lifted from one of the songs born out of this journey, might be the most honest way to sum up the first three weeks of the Tabula Rasa RV Tour. It’s not just a lyric—it’s a state of mind. The phrase Begin Again isn’t a soft reset. It’s a full-on declaration that the past may shape us, but it does not own us.
The first three weeks behind the wheel of this adventure have been filled with breakdowns and breakthroughs, both mechanical and emotional. Flat tires and flat moods, generator wheezes and late-night gratitude. It’s been the real deal—the journey of someone living the Older Than Average lifestyle, choosing reinvention over resignation, playing the music of his life instead of letting the last chapter write itself quietly.
This post is my field report from the road so far. Part travelogue, part confessional, part pep talk to anyone who, like me, finds themselves asking:
Where do I go from here?
1. The Real First Step: Admitting It’s Time to Begin Again
You know that farmer’s dog story—the one where the dog is lying on a nail but doesn’t move because “it don’t hurt bad enough yet”? Well, Week 1 was my own nail.
Setting out on the Tabula Rasa RV Tour, I knew this wasn’t just a road trip. It was a spiritual declaration: Time to move off that nail. Time to accept what my past taught me and let go of what no longer serves me.
The lesson from Week 1?
The only starting point that matters is the point of starting.
I had to face the truth that my best thinking had gotten me to where I was. If I wanted different results, I’d need different actions—and perhaps even different beliefs. As the OTA philosophy reminds me often:
“Nobody changes their mind—they make new decisions based on new information.”
2. The Action Circle in Motion: Belief → Goals → Action → Results → Repeat
The Action Circle concept from OTA has been my roadmap:
- Why (belief) fuels the engine.
- Goals steer the wheel.
- Actions press the pedal.
- Results measure the trip.
- Evaluation tunes the route.
Each morning, I’ve been asking:
✅ Why am I doing this?
✅ What action today moves me closer to that why?
This isn’t about checking items off a to-do list. It’s about holding my own feet to the fire. Because while life may throw me flat tires, the real blowouts happen when I stop being honest with myself about the gap between my why and my what I’m doing.
3. Life Between the Lyrics: The Songs That Tell the Story
The Tabula Rasa RV Tour isn’t just about the road—it’s about the soundtrack that rides with me.
So far, the music has told the truth about this journey better than I could on my own. Here are a few highlights from Weeks 1–3:
🎶 “Is You Is or Is You Ain’t My RV”
“RV life isn’t a highlight reel. It’s generator wheezes, mystery smells, and coffee gone cold—wrapped in firelight and freedom.”
This anthem is for the lovers (and fighters) of RV life. For those of us who’ve cursed our rigs… and kissed them ten minutes later.
🎶 “Better for Wear”
A liberation track for the bold and the bolder-than-average.
Because, let’s face it: None of us come out of life shiny and new. But better for wear? That’s where the beauty lives.
🎶 “Go With God, My Only Song”
The vow to carry my daughter’s memory with me, every mile, every sunrise.
This song is my road prayer—the reminder that love doesn’t ride in the rearview. It rides shotgun.
🎶 “Sunday Dress for Leather”
Trading safe and sensible for scarred and soulful.
Because reinvention isn’t polite. It’s gritty. It’s leather where there used to be lace.
The songs are my journal entries. They’re what I sing to keep the demons quiet and the spirit loud.
4. Grit and Growth: Lessons from the First Potholes
It didn’t take long to learn what Angela Duckworth calls Grit: passion and perseverance for long-term goals.
What’s grit look like in Week 1–3?
- Sitting up through sleepless nights waiting on repairs.
- Shaking hands with strangers who became lifelines when a tire blew.
- Singing into the loneliness, not away from it.
Anyone living the Older Than Average lifestyle understands grit—but this tour has reminded me: grit has to be intentional. It’s not just survival. It’s choosing persistence over pity. It’s choosing to lean into the discomfort with curiosity instead of avoidance.
5. Attitude Reset: Now Moments and the Science of Stuck
One of the greatest tools I’ve leaned on these past three weeks comes from Britt Frank’s book The Science of Stuck—the reminder that the way forward often starts by simply experiencing and embracing all the Now moments with curiosity and wonder.
Instead of pushing past frustration or pain, Britt’s work challenges us to stay present with it—to let the Now reveal its lessons. Because it’s not about being tough or pretending the nail doesn’t hurt. It’s about asking,
“What is this moment asking of me?”
This attention to Now—not escape from it—is where release, resilience, and real change live.
In the OTA mindset, attitude is still everything.
The tools that keep my attitude where it needs to be:
- Morning reflections using my reMarkable tablet (gratitude, MIT list).
- Repeating aloud: “I like myself. I am powerful beyond measure.”
- Remembering that the fastest way out is often through.
- Choosing to laugh at the setbacks, because if you’re not laughing, you’re leaking.
6. Older Than Average: Reinvention Isn’t a Phase—It’s a Choice
This journey is about rewriting the rules of “what it’s supposed to look like at my age.”
Living Older Than Average means choosing to step forward when the world expects you to step aside. It means making peace with the fact that the road has potholes—and taking the trip anyway.
The OTA notes put it beautifully:
“Freedom. Finances. Fun. For Heaven’s Sake. Forever. Future.”
This isn’t retirement. It’s renaissance.
7. Where Do I Go from Here?
Here’s what I know after three weeks behind the wheel:
🚐 The road will test you.
🎶 The music will carry you.
❤️ The mission will keep you moving.
I don’t have all the answers. But I know the answers have changed.
Closing Reflection & CTA: What’s Your Begin Again Story?
I set out on this tour with the vow:
“Most people die with their music still in them. I refuse to be most people.”
So I’m asking you:
🌱 Where are you beginning again?
📍 What’s your next road?
💬 What would you dare to do if you knew you could not fail?
Share your story below, or drop me a line. And if you need a soundtrack for your own adventure, hit play on the Tabula Rasa RV Tour playlist. The wheels are still turning.