Desert Island Picks for Those Who Harbor Gypsy Fantasies

Every now and again, I have the 'jump in my car and escape into the great beyond and never look back' fantasy. Don't freak out, it's only a fantasy.

In reality, I am enmeshed with a wonderful family, I have a good job, a house with a fixed low mortgage, my car is paid off and I have a moderate amount of credit card debt for someone my age (somewhat comparatively).

In the fantasy, I do not think about my family, my job, my house or my debt; there is no currency in this fantasy world, either that or I am independently wealthy. In the dream, I own a camper. In the dream, Lola is a trained dog who doesn't need to walk on a leash.

We travel around North America in the camper, meeting people. I write. I sing. I busk on corners with my guitar (which, in the fantasy, I can play like a dream--pun totally intended). I document everything with a camera and a digital audio recorder. Maybe video, too.

Back in college, Taylor and I had this grand idea to fill a bus with artists, musicians, writers, filmmakers and photographers, travel around the country documenting beauty and life and wild experience like the Merry Pranksters. The end result would be a multi-media compilation of awesomeness that would make us rich and famous. While that would be cool, too, my current fantasy consists of just me and Lola.

If loyalty to family, home ownership and working for a living were no longer issues I had to deal with, these are the things I would gather (quickly) in a mad dash to the car before making my escape:

Lola
Wallet
Passport & birth certificate
Address book
Cell phone
Crucifix from childhood
Three changes of clothes
Toiletry kit
Dr. Martins
Sleeping bag & pillow
Journal
No more than 5 awesome books that struck me at the moment
Cameras
Guitar
iPod & headphones
Laptop
Photo Albums
My jewelry

Looking at it, these are probably the same things I would grab in a fire, would there be enough time collect all of it. In a mad dash to a new adventure, what would you grab? Post responses in a reply!