For nearly 3 years I've been paying weekly visits to my friend Ruth. This was our last chat before I set out on what was to be a 9-month trip around America in my '72 VW bus.

Nearly a year later, I'm still on the road. I've decided to keep going through 2004, possibly beyond. The Greatest Year of My Life has turned into a transcendent 11-month odyssey...and counting.

Things have changed for Ruth, too. This week she found out the cyst under her eyelid is cancerous. She'll know whether it's malignant in 7 to 10 days.

Good luck, Ruth.