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AT HOME ON THE ROAD
EMILY DONOVAN
edonovan@kansan.com
Sometimes when Brian Devine looks in his rearview mirror, he realizes, "Oh yeah, I'm driving my house."
He and Maria Scarpello, nomadic University alumni, have visited 288 craft breweries since ditching their townhouse, buying a recreational vehicle and heading west in August 2010.
The first week of classes her freshman year, Scarpello, then a Delta Gamma from Omaha, Neb., ventured down the sixth floor of Oliver Residence Hall, introducing herself to any fresh-faced floormate who had left his dorm room door open. Devine, from Overland Park, admits to being less aggressively social. They hung out. They worked on projects for their design class together. It wasn't until second semester sophomore year that Devine asked her to come to a The Roots concert at Abe and Jake's Landing.
Ten years later, Scarpello's pixie
cut is now accented with fuschia. Devine first shaved a mohawk—or, rather, "layhaw," as it was originally blue and red for March Madness — in 2012. He recently reshaved it and dyed it green, as recommended by the 3-year-old son of a friend whose driveway the couple had parked their RV in.
Scarpello graduated in 2005 with a bachelor's in Graphic Design and a master's in Design Management; Devine graduated in 2006 with an Industrial Design degree. The following years of success in corporate jobs were necessary — both attribute their having found good work now to the network of mentors and references their real world experiences built — and unfulfilling. Wanting to break away from the 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. workday, Scarpello felt ready for a change.
"I like to say I took an early retirement at the age of 27," Scarpelle said. "I enjoyed life and what life is without having the pressures of work and how you're supposed to live get in the way."
At a March Madness watch party three years ago, one of their friends mused about buying an RV and a national parks pass and touring the country. Scarpello, who had always daydreamed about flipping a school
A smoker named Gary, who reportedly had only four teeth, sold them Stanely, their mobile house, for $10.000. Their first
order of business was to gut it, ditching the stained shag carpeting and bringing in their collection of Macs loaded with thousands of movies and songs. They moved out of their townhouse, selling off their lawn mower, television and anything they didn't consider memorabilia.
"As you started to get rid of this stuff,you realized how much you don't need it."
philosophy was "Anything that we can replace, let's get rid of."
Devine's parents were intrigued; Scarpello, concerned.
"Hey Dad," Scarpelle said, finally calling her parents during their vacation in Florida a few days before she and Devine hit the road. "I bought an RV, quit my job and am going to travel the nature."
"As you started to get rid of this stuff, you realized how much you don't need it." Devine said. "Our
BRIAN DEVINE
2006 University graduate
There was a pause.
you going to get the news?" her father asked, caught off guard.
They thought for maybe six months theyd tour California, Washington and anything in between. Two weeks in, they high-fived and congratulated each other on the RV being such a good idea.
"There's too much in the world to see to stop." Scarpello said.
Hoping to meet real people at
their first stop in Colorado Springs, they headed to a bar and found not just a warm experience but the heart of the town: locals recommended the perfect bike trails, restaurants and sightseeing spots.
They've always praised the communities that brew craft beer — Devine bussed tables at Free State Brewery as an undergraduate student and they started learning how to brew their junior year. As designers, they admire innovation, appreciating different flavors and processes. Supporting local business, Scarpello said, is supporting the American dream. Their website, theroamingpint.com, features a blog of their experiences and reviews of each brewery.
Thanks to mobile broadband, Devine freelances, illustrating for magazines and creating icons, and Scarpello works full-time, managing web design accounts. As they generally only drive for an hour or two a day, bouncing between the nearest towns after a few days, they budget $600 a month for gas — as
much as they would pay in a month for their commute when they both worked corporate jobs.
Their two dogs, Ernie, a labrador/terrier mix from the Lawrence Humane Society, and Buddha, an English bulldog who slobbers nonstop that they "rescued" from living in the state of Missouri, have swum in both the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans and spent their three daily walks exploring dog parks and fire hydrants in the majority of U.S. states. Devine and Scarpelle have on more than one occasion Googled a coin flipping website — it's hard to catch a quarter on a bumpy highway — to decide where to head next.
"The less you plan, the more you experience — I don't want to say 'serendipity'—" Scarpello said, turning to Devine, looking for the right word.
“— Spontaneity” Devine finished.
Edited by Megan Hinman
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
A PREVIEW
Index CLASSIFIEDS 2B CRYPTOQUIPS 5A SPORTS 1B CROSSWORD 5A OPINION 4A SUDOKU 5A
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2013 The University Daily Kansan
Don't forget There's only one more Thursday of class after today!
Today's Weather Overcast with rain, then snow and rain in the afternoon. 80% Chance of precipitation.
HI: 41
LO: 32
Wait. Isn't it May now?