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What do public school teachers think of
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homeschool kids? We're going to find out
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on today's episode of the Ex
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Homeschoolers Club. I'm your host, Jacob
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Gooden, and uh if you're new here,
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welcome in. This is the Exhome Schoolers
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Club, where we talk about the good, the
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bad, and the ugly of growing up a
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homeschool kid. If you're a returning uh
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audience member, welcome back. So stoked
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to have you. Today, I'm joined by my
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lovely friend Patty Hunt, and uh I'm so
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stoked to talk to her. She was a school
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teacher for 20 years. Is that right, But
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Patty?
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>> Yes.
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>> Yes.
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>> Okay. 20 years. And uh and then she
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ended up uh doing the RV life thing for
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a couple of years and now she is a
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traveling she's just like kind of a
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little bit of a nomad um and travels
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around the world and shares her
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experiences. We know each other because
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well I produce and edit for your podcast
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and some of your other stuff. But with
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all that, Patty Hunt, welcome to the Ex
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Homeschoolers Club. Thank you so much,
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Jacob, for having me. I'm excited to be
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here.
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>> I'm excited to have you. It It's really
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cool. I getting to know you has been
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such a fun experience. We met in
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Orlando, Florida a couple years ago at a
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podcasting conference and you said
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something to me like I it was one of the
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last days we were there. You were like,
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"We are going to work together on
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something. I don't know what it is, but
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it's going to happen." And not long
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after that, I became your editor,
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producer, and we just have stayed in
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touch and done some really cool stuff
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together. So, if you want to check out
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anything Patty's got going on, Inspired
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Travels with Patty on YouTube,
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Instagram, podcast, all that kind of
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stuff, go check it out. There'll be
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links down in the show notes below. But
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Patty, let's talk about you being a
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public school teacher. So, you were a
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school teacher for 20 years. First of
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all, how did you get into that? Did you
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know that that was the career path you
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wanted to go down? No, no, not at all. I
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um I decided when I was young that I
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needed to go to college, have a career,
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and then I'd be able to retire and be
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financially set. That was the goal. I
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grew up in a home where college wasn't
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something any of my family did. Nobody
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had gone to college. But I just knew
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having grown up in a home where money
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was always a struggle that um education,
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college was so important and that was
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the way to have success and be
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financially set. And so I went to
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college. I actually a lot of people
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don't know this but wanted to be a
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doctor. So I was sort of you know in
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that beginning stages and I started
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college at 17. I graduated high school a
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year early and I took classes and one of
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my first classes was anatomy physiology
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at 700 a.m. and I don't think I was
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ready for college. I wasn't ready for
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getting up early in the discipline but I
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made it through. Um what anatomy
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physiology taught me was I might not be
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cut out to be a doctor. So, at that
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point, I decided, like a lot of people,
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to just get my business degree. Um, and
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that's what I did. I got my business
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degree and all my electives, every other
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class that I could take that I had an
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option was in psychology. I love
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psychology. I love knowing about people,
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how they thought. And so, I ended up
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with a degree in psychology as well as a
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business degree. So now fast forward,
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got married, had kids, and decided that
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I wanted to spend more time with my
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kids. Um, I loved working with children.
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And so I went back to school and got my
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master's degree in education. And it
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started out in elementary education,
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which I quickly realized was not for me,
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and then I went into middle school and
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finally high school.
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>> So you kind of did a little bit of the
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gamut, it sounds like. You said
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elementary and then junior high and high
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school. So like in the younger years
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it's more of like you kind of teach
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everything, right?
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>> So the elementary level you teach
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everything and that was where my init
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education was was an elementary
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education and I didn't like teaching
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everything. English wasn't my thing.
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Math wasn't my thing. So I wanted to
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really focus on biology. Let me tell you
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some of the myths that I think
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homeschool kids believe about public
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schools. So, one, and maybe not just
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homeschool kids, but I think homeschool
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families kind of have this little bit of
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a negative view of the public school
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system. And I'm a little bit of an
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exception. I went to public school for
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two years, and the reasons my parents
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pulled me out of school had more to do
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with the schools in the area not being
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up to snuff with what they wanted for
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their kid. My mom was like, I think I
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can actually do better here. But they
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weren't against public school. So I
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never had that indoctrinated into me.
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But I grew up with kids who were like
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public school is for is like is evil.
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It's indoctrinating. It's you know it's
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it's a inferior product to what my
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parents are doing. And so I wonder like
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can you crack that myth at all for us or
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like lay out maybe maybe it's quite not
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quite as bad as people are making it out
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to be in the public school system? This
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is a tough one because I think we could
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uh start a lot of kind of reactions from
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people. Let me just say I grew up in
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Philadelphia. So, while I wasn't in the
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city of Philadelphia, I was in the
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Northeast, a little bit different an
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area for those of who who aren't
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familiar. And I was in public school in
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Philadelphia. And it it didn't do a
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great job for me. I it really didn't.
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And it was a very negative experience
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for me. I'll be totally honest. I was
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actually sick all the time. So I missed
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a lot of school. And while maybe there
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was the support, I didn't feel
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supported. I felt left out. I felt left
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behind. I felt like I wasn't capable. So
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I don't I think the public school on the
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other hand I think schools do the best
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that they can do and the bottom line is
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it often comes down to money. What are
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the resources available? And and that's
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kind of sad. I
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let me just say this. If I had to do all
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over again I would have homeschooled my
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kids but that would also be based on
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their personality.
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what would work for them because each
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kid has an individual personality,
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individual needs. And I think when kids
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are going to elementary school, it's not
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like you could ask a first grader, hey,
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do you want to stay home and do school
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or go to school? That's not necessarily
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something that you could do. But I think
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that knowing their options as a parent
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is a great thing to know. So going back
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to your question about public schools, I
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I think that they are failing in a lot
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of ways. I was very frustrated with
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public schools growing up seeing my kids
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in public schools. Some of that was very
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frustrating as you know. So I do think
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there are and as a teacher definitely
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saw the downside of it. I worked in a
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school district that was a very low
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income school district. So a lot of the
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students I were work I was working with
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were at risk youth. I loved doing that
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but again lack of funding, lack of
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having coaches and counselors and the
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things that those students needed was
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definitely missing.
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>> Yeah. No, I to I totally align with
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that. I recently had a conversation with
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a cousin of mine who she's a current
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second grade school teacher and that was
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she was mentioning very similar things
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of like when the funding's not there
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things get worse and it becomes much
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harder. She also works in an integrated
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school. So there is no special education
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programs. Those kids are in the
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classrooms as well. And so you have
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this mix that like you said like kids,
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we can be very individualized with the
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way that we learn. And that I'm sure is
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hard when you're teaching a classroom of
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20 plus kids, sometimes up to 30 kids.
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Like
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>> yeah, from that perspective, I
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definitely understand the argument for
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like homeschooling. I think one of the
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other fears that comes from the
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homeschool world is also like what is
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being taught in the school systems and
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this like I grew up in a religious
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homeschool environment. So there's a lot
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of this talk of like indoctrination
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happening in schools which
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based on my experience and based on now
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knowing a bunch of school teachers I'm
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like they're just there to teach a
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textbook that the state has provided for
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them. Is that pretty accurate? Like I
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don't know that there's necessarily a
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whole lot of indoctrination happening.
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>> Think about it. So we're human beings. I
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taught in a school district where the
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students, the parents were religious,
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you know, Christian religion most
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mostly. Um and and that's fine. That's
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okay. But here I was teaching science,
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life science. So now you get into the
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question of evolution. And so while I
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tried to just teach by the textbook and
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that is something I did because
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everybody's individual belief is their
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belief. I'm not there to change or talk
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about religion or any of those things
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was not what I wanted to talk about. But
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you know teachers are human beings.
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They're individuals. They're kind of
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belief system
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probably plays into things to some
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degree. And then there are teachers who
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will fullon give their opinion, give
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their thoughts, give their belief
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system, you know, whether it's an
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English teacher reading a book and
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giving her belief system about whatever
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it is, that's going to happen. That is
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absolutely going to happen. You know,
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even a a gym teacher comes into class
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and he's overweight. what that teacher
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believes
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may pour out. So yes, you that you have
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that happen.
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>> So I am also curious at this point in
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your career,
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how familiar were you with like the
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homeschool movement and like was that
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something that you knew about? Was it
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just kind of a like, oh that's like on
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the fringe kind of a thing? And you said
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that if you could go back and do it
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differently, you would homeschool your
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kids. But like they it seems like either
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went to public or private school. So I
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don't know what what was what was your
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thought on homeschooling at that point?
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>> So my kids were all public school. Uh we
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lived in really good school districts.
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That said, you know, that means so much.
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It's not like they're quote unquote good
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school districts and everything's
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perfect. At the time my kids were
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growing up had some conversations with
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people that did homeschooling and I was
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very curious and one of the thoughts
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that came to mind was well I can't teach
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them everything they need to know. So my
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belief system was if I'm going to
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homeschool I need to know it all. the
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English, the math, the science, the
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social studies, all of it. And I knew I
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wasn't capable. But I had talked to
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somebody who was homeschooling her kids
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and they had a whole community of people
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that got together or they had, now this
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was back before computers and online
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courses and all of that. So they had one
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parent that they go to a house and she
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would teach certain topics and that's
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how they kind of taught their kids all
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of everything. But as my kids got older
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and seeing each of my kids struggle in a
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different way. I have three kids. Each
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one of them struggled in a different
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way. And I think every kid has some
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struggle. I don't think that, you know,
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you have a kid that just excels at
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everything and everything's perfect
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because if that's the case when they get
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out in life, that could be a rude
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awakening. And so I just thought that
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being able to give them the experiences,
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get them out of a classroom, not sitting
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behind a desk for long periods of time,
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I really truly believe that that is,
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in my opinion, a better way for kids to
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learn. It's just what I've come to
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believe. Now that said, should all
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parents homeschool their kids? Does all
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are all parents able to be home with
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their kids? Cuz when they're young, it's
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not like you could go out and do a job
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and leave your one, you know, your first
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grader home being homeschooled. So, it
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isn't for everyone. I wouldn't want a
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parent to feel bad if they can
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homeschool their kids. I have three kids
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and five grandkids, and none of my kids
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right now are thinking about
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homeschooling in any way, shape, or
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form. And it is probably for the best
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that they and their kids are in public
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schools. You know, it's it's not for
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everyone and nobody should feel bad
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about the choices they make.
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>> My philosophy on it has always been like
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be parents being involved and included
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in their child's education of like
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what are they interested? What is your
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kid interested in? what like and this
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was something when I was like I don't
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want kids but when I thought about okay
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if I did have kids what kind of dad
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would I want to be those types of things
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I think about like the level of
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involvement I want in my kids' life
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right and that becomes like this like
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okay hey like I would want to do this I
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would want you know my dad really leaned
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in when I was interested in like
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learning about his the history of wars
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you know and so it was like he leaned in
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with that with me and so we would go to
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the museums and we would go. We watch
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the movies and we read the books and we
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whatever. I believe that even if I had
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been in public school, he would have
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done the same thing. Like he just would
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have been like, "You're interested in
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this. Let's like full-fledged let's go
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kind of a thing." And um and so to me,
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I'm like I think even if you can't, like
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you were saying, even if you can't
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homeschool your kids, there's a level of
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like be involved in your kids's
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education to understand what is the
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things that make them tick. What do they
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like to learn about? It's like you you
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cultivate a wanting to learn and just
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this like desire to always be learning
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things and that will take you I think
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way further than any any education ever
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will because if you want to learn it,
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you'll figure it out eventually, right?
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>> What you're saying is so true. So for
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parents whose kids are going to public
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school, they're leaving the house every
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day, they're going to school. I think
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absolutely what you said, take an
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interest in what they're doing,
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obviously. And then go find things. If
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it's war museums, go do that. My one
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grandson loves to bake. Do that with
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them. It's education. You are teaching
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them skills. So, you don't have to make
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it like, okay, we're we're cooking today
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and I'm going to teach them fractions,
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but you can incorporate those things
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when, you know, my grandkids are
00:15:52
learning to read, showing them the
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ingredients, showing them the words,
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reading it to them, pointing out like
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this is the cake mix. They're going to
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learn that word very quickly,
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>> right? It doesn't have to be we're gonna
00:16:06
sit down now and you're going to learn
00:16:08
how to read or I'm gonna educate you. It
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doesn't have to be that. Let them see
00:16:13
different things to some degree. Let
00:16:15
them make some choices. Let them try
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different things. I think that is
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absolutely part of it and is an add-on
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to the education they're getting.
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>> Absolutely. I want to pivot just a
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little bit and go into let's talk about
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traveling a little bit. So
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you when I met you, you were living in
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an RV and traveling across the United
00:16:39
States of America. So can you tell that
00:16:42
story? How did you get from like, okay,
00:16:44
I'm a school teacher to now like, okay,
00:16:46
now I I've left everything. I've
00:16:48
downsized my life and now I'm living in
00:16:49
an RV going across the the consecutive
00:16:52
48 United States. What was that like?
00:16:55
>> And I'll I'll give a quick story to
00:16:57
that. Years before the RVing thing, I
00:17:01
was teaching, as I said, in a school
00:17:03
district with at risk youth, I had been
00:17:06
sent for training to mentor students,
00:17:09
and I was mentoring my students. And
00:17:12
that to me, I I enjoyed that more than
00:17:15
the actual education. You can't educate
00:17:17
a kid. You can't help them learn
00:17:20
photosynthesis if they're worried about
00:17:22
where they're going to sleep that night
00:17:23
or whether or not they're going to eat.
00:17:25
And so for me, I wanted to support them
00:17:28
as best I could. And the school district
00:17:32
would say, "Well, you can't take your
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time, your own time to do that because
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it's not fair to the other teachers
00:17:39
because they have to do door duty or
00:17:42
cafeteria duty." And it just became
00:17:44
frustrating. So I ended up quitting
00:17:47
after 20 years. I just quit. I said,
00:17:50
"Okay, one more year and I'm done." And
00:17:52
then I got into other other things,
00:17:55
other businesses. I became
00:17:56
self-employed. Um, and so after moving
00:18:01
to Las Vegas and COVID hitting, that's
00:18:03
where the decision to go in an RV and
00:18:05
travel came. My husband just said, "Hey,
00:18:08
let's just travel across the country.
00:18:09
Let's go in an RV. Let's sell it all."
00:18:12
And I just got to a point where I said,
00:18:14
"What the heck?" And just I am not that
00:18:16
spontaneous a person. Like I need a
00:18:20
plan. I need to know what it looks like,
00:18:22
what we're going to be doing, how this
00:18:24
is going to work. And with very little
00:18:26
plan, we did. We decided to just hit the
00:18:29
road and see things that just I never
00:18:33
saw as a kid. I never could have
00:18:35
imagined.
00:18:37
So that's how the whole travel got
00:18:39
started.
00:18:40
>> Yeah. I think I think co gave a lot of
00:18:44
people that courage I think to do
00:18:46
something that they had been putting off
00:18:48
for a while or that they had talked
00:18:50
about doing and it was just like well
00:18:52
we're just at home anyways might as well
00:18:54
just like for you was sell everything
00:18:57
and move into to like what a 45 foot RV
00:19:01
something like that and and drive across
00:19:03
the country that's that's wild that was
00:19:05
like I mean meeting you and Dan I was
00:19:07
like I don't know how people could do
00:19:10
this like I just I don't I don't know
00:19:12
that I have that bone. I love traveling,
00:19:14
but I don't have that bone in me. Um
00:19:18
yet.
00:19:20
We'll put put an asterisk on that. Um,
00:19:23
but so one of the things that when when
00:19:26
uh you and I met and we were talking and
00:19:28
and you found out I was homeschooled,
00:19:29
you you brought up to me road schoolers
00:19:32
and meeting these people along the the
00:19:33
way who they travel with their kids all
00:19:36
throughout the year and they road school
00:19:37
their kids and uh and you have this
00:19:40
funny story about one of the families
00:19:42
you met. Would you mind sharing that? I
00:19:44
met a woman who lived with her four kids
00:19:49
and they were ranging in age from like
00:19:52
10 up to teenager and they lived in a 45
00:19:56
foot fifth wheel. So those of your
00:19:58
listeners who don't know what a fifth
00:19:59
wheel looks like, Google it, look at it,
00:20:02
think about yourself, your husband and
00:20:04
four kids first of all in that kind of
00:20:06
space. And so she and I just connected
00:20:09
and we were talking and she was telling
00:20:11
me how she road schools her kids and I
00:20:15
was really interested in asking
00:20:16
questions and she said, "You know,
00:20:18
sometimes my youngest just doesn't want
00:20:20
to read. He's not the best reader and I
00:20:23
don't know what to do." And she was, you
00:20:26
know, feeling I could sense she was
00:20:27
feeling bad about herself. And so I said
00:20:30
to her, I said, "I get it. I was a
00:20:34
public school teacher for 20 years and
00:20:38
she physically took a step back. She
00:20:41
took the step back and I'm like, "No,
00:20:43
no, no. I'm not." Because I know she
00:20:46
felt like I was judging her and I said,
00:20:48
"No, I'm not judging you. I think what
00:20:51
you're doing is amazing." She was trying
00:20:54
to work with each of her kids
00:20:56
individually, figuring out what they
00:20:58
needed, how to give them what they
00:21:00
needed. And I then said to her, "Your
00:21:03
kid," and again, I don't remember how
00:21:05
old he was. He was young, but a lot, and
00:21:08
I'm putting this in air quotes, a lot of
00:21:10
kids at the age her kid was is starting
00:21:13
to read, and he wasn't. And the problem
00:21:17
is, as parents, we're comparing. We're
00:21:20
comparing, well, my kid's five and all
00:21:23
the other kids are reading and mine
00:21:25
isn't. Well, that's not true. It's even
00:21:28
like within a household. My one grandson
00:21:31
who's now nine was reading very quickly
00:21:34
at a rather early age and he just got it
00:21:37
and started reading. The six-year-old
00:21:39
now is not reading quite so fast, but
00:21:42
he's getting it and he will get it. And
00:21:44
I said to her, listen, I think what
00:21:46
you're doing is amazing. I wish I had
00:21:48
done this with my kids. And we had a
00:21:51
whole conversation around it. And the I
00:21:54
think the point here is I wouldn't want
00:21:56
anybody to feel bad. I think parents are
00:21:59
always feeling bad. You put your kid in
00:22:01
public school, you hear about
00:22:02
homeschooling, you feel bad, you feel
00:22:04
guilty. Maybe that's what I should be
00:22:05
doing. You take your kid out of school,
00:22:07
you homeschool them, and you think,
00:22:09
"Wow, maybe they're missing out. Maybe
00:22:11
they should be in public school." It's
00:22:14
you you have to do what you feel is
00:22:16
right for your kids. And as parents,
00:22:19
we're not always going to get it right.
00:22:20
We're going to screw some things up.
00:22:22
That's just part of the job. It's part
00:22:24
of the job description. But she and I
00:22:27
had a great conversation and I think she
00:22:30
felt a lot better after we spoke.
00:22:32
>> I I like what you had to say there
00:22:34
because it was like my my mom had this
00:22:37
philosophy of like, okay, if I
00:22:38
homeschool my kids and I choose to do
00:22:40
all the way through cuz so for me it was
00:22:43
second grade through high school. My
00:22:45
sister went all the way through
00:22:47
homeschooling. Um and her goal was
00:22:50
always can they get into college at the
00:22:52
end of it? if they're smart enough to
00:22:54
get into college, I've succeeded. Um,
00:22:57
you know, they they can read, they can
00:22:59
write, they can do math, they can they
00:23:00
understand science, kind of a thing. And
00:23:03
um, and I had a different homeschool mom
00:23:05
on the show and she was sharing
00:23:07
something similar of she's like to to
00:23:09
your point of like my kid was struggling
00:23:11
to read, but eventually it clicked.
00:23:14
Yeah, it was maybe two years past
00:23:15
everybody else, but it was like it
00:23:17
eventually clicked with them, but it
00:23:19
just took time to get them to that
00:23:21
thing. I think for a long time I held
00:23:23
this like oh well we're all like at the
00:23:25
same grade level very traditional public
00:23:26
school kind of mindset I think in my
00:23:28
head of just kind of this like we're all
00:23:30
at the same level we can all do the same
00:23:31
things kind of a deal and uh and the
00:23:33
older I've gotten the more I've realized
00:23:34
I'm like no we're just like all at these
00:23:36
different levels in our life
00:23:37
>> and eventually they'll level out or
00:23:39
someone's going to surpass me and that's
00:23:41
cool and then like I'll surpass them in
00:23:43
other ways and it's like it's not a
00:23:44
competition it's just a that's part of
00:23:46
life we all are always learning um new
00:23:50
things and and getting better with with
00:23:52
our skills. So, I hope that homeschool
00:23:54
parents are encouraged by that that
00:23:55
story for sure.
00:23:59
What have you said? Like, so being on
00:24:01
the road and then now meeting all these
00:24:02
families, what what how has that changed
00:24:05
your perception of homeschooling at all?
00:24:08
Like what what what's changed there?
00:24:12
>> So much has changed there. And if I can,
00:24:14
I'd like to go back and address the
00:24:16
whole idea of college. When I was
00:24:18
growing up, I thought I have to go to
00:24:20
college, have a career, I could retire.
00:24:22
Told that story. When my kids were
00:24:25
young, my kids are older. When my kids
00:24:26
were young, I used to say, when you go
00:24:29
to college, when you graduate high
00:24:31
school and you go to college, because to
00:24:33
me, that was the only option. Well, over
00:24:35
the years of me quitting the job, I
00:24:38
mean, I had my have my masters and I
00:24:41
went on to get 45 additional credits
00:24:44
because I was working toward my
00:24:45
doctorate degree. And you know, that was
00:24:48
the belief when you go to college. Well,
00:24:52
years later, probably 10, 15 years ago,
00:24:56
I realized that college isn't
00:24:58
necessarily for everyone. Look, if you
00:25:00
want to be a doctor, a brain surgeon, a
00:25:02
lawyer, obviously there are a lot of
00:25:05
things that you may choose to do that
00:25:08
college, absolutely you're going to
00:25:10
need. But does every student need to go
00:25:12
to college? I no longer believe they do.
00:25:15
I just had lunch with my three kids,
00:25:17
five grandkids, their spouses, and my
00:25:20
daughter said, you know, she finished
00:25:22
college. She
00:25:25
feels like she barely made it through,
00:25:26
but she did. graduated after four years
00:25:29
and she said I wish I hadn't gone to
00:25:31
college. She said I don't know that that
00:25:33
was what I needed to do. Now life
00:25:37
changes so you never know. Co hit she
00:25:40
was a preschool teacher. She had her
00:25:42
education degree and you know during co
00:25:44
she was like no I don't want to do this
00:25:46
anymore. So she ended up getting a great
00:25:49
job that she loves that has doesn't
00:25:52
really have anything to do with her
00:25:53
education. So, a lot for me has changed.
00:25:57
Whether you choose to homeschool your
00:26:00
kid or send them to a traditional
00:26:03
school, knowing that kids have options,
00:26:07
I think more important or as important
00:26:10
as learning math and science and, you
00:26:13
know, literature and and social studies
00:26:16
and all those basic things that you're
00:26:18
taught. I think as important is letting
00:26:21
your kid know that what they want to do,
00:26:24
what they would like doing because a job
00:26:28
does not have to be, well, this is the 9
00:26:31
to5 place. I go 5 days a week, I get a
00:26:33
couple weeks of uh vacation and gear and
00:26:36
I just struggle through till I retire. I
00:26:39
totally don't believe that anymore. And
00:26:42
I do see where homeschooling
00:26:44
teaches that, especially people on the
00:26:47
road showing people. I I met a couple
00:26:51
early on. They were in a um an SUV. It
00:26:55
was the husband, the wife, and two kids.
00:26:57
They had driven from North Carolina out
00:27:00
to Las Vegas. And they said their kid
00:27:04
was on the, you know, on Zoom learning
00:27:07
about the Grand Canyon. It was during
00:27:10
COVID, so they were home, you know, they
00:27:12
were learning by Zoom, right?
00:27:14
>> She said, "I just told my husband, we're
00:27:16
getting in the car and we're driving
00:27:17
across the country and showing it to
00:27:19
him." And that's what they did. She
00:27:21
said, like the handson. And I see that
00:27:24
all the time. I see that with all types
00:27:27
of education, whether it's seeing the
00:27:30
country, learning about the world,
00:27:32
learn, there's so much you've learned by
00:27:34
getting out and doing, as well as
00:27:37
learning how to get along with other
00:27:40
kids, make friends, deal with
00:27:42
situations. There's there's a lot there
00:27:46
that I see just such a incredible,
00:27:50
you know, just incredible value in
00:27:53
homeschooling kids, whether you're
00:27:55
traveling full-time in an RV or you're
00:27:57
doing it at home.
00:27:59
>> I always think about like I loved
00:28:02
Revolutionary War history. Like I just I
00:28:05
love understanding the founding of this
00:28:07
country and what we fought for. I think
00:28:09
it's so fascinating to me. And so when I
00:28:12
was in high school, I got the
00:28:13
opportunity to go to Boston and it was
00:28:14
like a church trip. So I was just there
00:28:17
with friends and I was geeking out the
00:28:19
entire time. Every every building is
00:28:21
historical in Boston, Massachusetts.
00:28:23
Like everything has some piece of
00:28:26
history tied to it. And so I'm geeking
00:28:28
out the entire time and I'm telling
00:28:30
people all these like they're like it
00:28:32
was like having a tour guide with us
00:28:33
because there's Jacob in the front of
00:28:35
the group being like, "Oh, did you know
00:28:36
that that chapel yada yada yada yada,
00:28:38
you know, and that's the one and you
00:28:40
know all this kind of stuff." And um but
00:28:43
it was it was like seeing it in person
00:28:46
like reading it in a book and seeing
00:28:48
pictures of it in a book is like so
00:28:50
different than actually like yeah
00:28:52
walking the streets of it. And so I
00:28:55
wanted to ask you in your time in the RV
00:28:58
traveling across the United States, was
00:29:01
there anything that you guys stopped at
00:29:03
that you were like that you learned
00:29:05
maybe a piece of history that you were
00:29:06
just like, "Oh my gosh, this is
00:29:07
amazing." And I would have never known
00:29:09
this or maybe you did know it, but you
00:29:10
got there, you're like, "Seeing this in
00:29:12
person, just totally different. I love
00:29:14
this." I think for me and again I wasn't
00:29:17
a big history person at all and I didn't
00:29:22
do well when I was young just learning
00:29:26
information. So when I had to learn
00:29:28
about certain things in history and
00:29:30
dates and people that was my worst.
00:29:33
There was nothing for me to tie it to.
00:29:36
It was just this just bunch of
00:29:39
information. And so being able to travel
00:29:43
across the country and see certain
00:29:45
things that I can't remember if there's
00:29:47
something history-wise I do know I
00:29:50
always called myself geographically
00:29:51
challenged. So I live on the east coast
00:29:54
in Philadelphia. I know some of the
00:29:56
states in and around the east coast. I
00:29:59
know where California is, but I didn't
00:30:04
know like where certain states were
00:30:06
anything about them. So traveling across
00:30:09
the country and learning about states
00:30:11
and there were a lot of things that I
00:30:13
learned along the way that was like, "Oh
00:30:16
yeah, that was what they were talking
00:30:18
about in school." And I can't remember
00:30:20
an example, but I remember thinking,
00:30:22
"Oh, that's what they talked about in
00:30:24
school." Duh. It was almost like simple,
00:30:27
easy. And even just having lived right
00:30:30
outside Philadelphia in Philadelphia and
00:30:32
then outside of Philadelphia for most of
00:30:34
my life,
00:30:37
you take for granted all that
00:30:39
Philadelphia has. You know, again, you
00:30:41
learned about it in the book. As you
00:30:44
know, when I think I was in elementary
00:30:45
school, they took us to see the Liberty
00:30:47
Bell and I was young and I was like,
00:30:49
"Okay, who cares? I couldn't have told
00:30:52
you anything about it." and then getting
00:30:54
in the RV and there not being that
00:30:56
pressure and there not being that okay
00:30:59
now this is what we have to learn today
00:31:02
like it almost being forced and I hate
00:31:04
to say that about public school but
00:31:06
here's the things you need to know and
00:31:08
remember and regurgitate and it's just
00:31:11
not that way when you're homeschooling
00:31:14
and certainly not that way with most
00:31:16
people traveling and learning.
00:31:19
I was going to ask, so did you have you
00:31:22
done all 48? Have you done all 50
00:31:24
states?
00:31:25
>> No. So, okay. Um, no, I definitely need
00:31:29
to get to Hawaii.
00:31:30
>> How How close Okay, so we have Hawaii.
00:31:31
So, we're missing Hawaii, but how close
00:31:33
are we?
00:31:34
>> So, of the 48 states, I think the last
00:31:36
time I counted was 28.
00:31:39
>> Okay. Okay.
00:31:40
>> I have recount, but I will say, now this
00:31:42
is an RV thing. There are maps. You
00:31:46
can't see it, but I have a map and I
00:31:48
fill in the sticker of the states that
00:31:50
I've been to. And the thing is RVers
00:31:54
biggest, one of the biggest um debates
00:31:57
is when you get to put the sticker on
00:32:00
the map. So, do you just pass through
00:32:02
the state? Did you stop? So, there's
00:32:05
debate. So, I have to go back and
00:32:06
recount and then think to myself, what
00:32:09
is it that counts as having been to a
00:32:12
state? For me, it's a memory created.
00:32:15
For some RVers, it's Oh, you have to
00:32:17
stay there overnight. So, different
00:32:19
people have different things. So, it's
00:32:21
probably over 28, probably 30 something.
00:32:25
>> Do you have a favorite?
00:32:27
>> So, it depends on what I was looking
00:32:29
for. One of my favorite states is
00:32:31
Oregon. Um, I love Tennessee. I went to
00:32:36
a little town and we talked about it
00:32:39
called Bonqua, Tennessee that I think
00:32:41
you didn't even know where it was.
00:32:43
>> I had no idea that that even existed.
00:32:45
Yeah. It's like I think about an hour,
00:32:47
45 minutes, something like that outside
00:32:49
of Nashville. So,
00:32:50
>> yes. Yes. And it's just there were
00:32:53
different states in different areas that
00:32:55
I loved for different reasons. I love
00:32:58
Florida because I love Disney, you know.
00:33:00
Um each area has something to offer. So
00:33:05
now you're off the road, but you're
00:33:07
still traveling. We I mentioned Inspired
00:33:09
Travels with Patty and one of the things
00:33:12
aside from I mean so your show I mean
00:33:14
you you talk with people who travel all
00:33:16
different ways. You had somebody on who
00:33:17
was who lived in a boat for 6 months
00:33:20
like you fly and people go by trains and
00:33:24
travel with their kids who are have
00:33:26
autism and you had me on and we talked
00:33:28
about Nashville and just like going
00:33:30
doing stuff in your backyard and things
00:33:31
like that. But you interview these
00:33:33
people who talk about trips and travel
00:33:35
and those types of things. What have you
00:33:38
got coming up? Any fun trips on the
00:33:40
books or maybe they're not maybe they're
00:33:42
not scheduled yet, but you're like,
00:33:43
"Okay, I'm working on this thing. I want
00:33:45
to go do I want to go do this
00:33:46
experience?"
00:33:48
>> So, for me, what I have coming up and
00:33:51
again, my whole idea of encouraging
00:33:54
people to travel is I just want to
00:33:56
inspire people to live life fully. And I
00:33:59
think that you get so much whether you
00:34:01
take a walk in a park near your house.
00:34:03
So that's the whole idea behind what I
00:34:06
do. I have been asked over the last four
00:34:09
years about going to the Keys in
00:34:12
Florida. There were two years that Dan
00:34:14
and I had planned on going and we never
00:34:17
got there because my mother got ill,
00:34:19
then he got ill. And last year I said,
00:34:22
"Okay, I'm going to the Keys in Florida.
00:34:24
I was invited to go. I just need to get
00:34:26
there." And so this year I am definitely
00:34:30
going to the Keys. Not planned yet. I do
00:34:33
a lot of last minute plans, but
00:34:36
definitely will be going to the Florida
00:34:38
Keys. I'm excited about that. In
00:34:41
January, I'll be back in Tampa for the
00:34:43
Tampa RV show. And then we met at
00:34:46
Podfest in Tampa after after that show.
00:34:49
It actually is at the same time this
00:34:51
year. Um but that is planned. And you
00:34:55
know, I just want to keep myself open.
00:34:57
Travel to me is just the most amazing,
00:35:01
you know, it's just just want to do lots
00:35:04
of it. So, I will be making more and
00:35:06
more plans for travel.
00:35:08
>> Yeah. I think one of the great things
00:35:10
like now living on the eastern side of
00:35:13
the country is the closeness of states.
00:35:16
Like if I want to go to a different
00:35:18
state, it's not that long for me to go
00:35:20
up to Kentucky. It doesn't take that
00:35:22
long to go to Arkansas or Georgia or
00:35:24
anything like that. And I know
00:35:26
Pennsylvania is that way, too. Like, you
00:35:28
could get in a car and be in a different
00:35:29
state in a couple of hours. Um, growing
00:35:32
up in California, I mean, granted, you
00:35:35
go to Northern California, it is not the
00:35:36
same as Southern California. However,
00:35:38
you're still in California. Um,
00:35:42
and so I think that's something that now
00:35:44
as I've gotten older, I've started to
00:35:45
appreciate a lot more of just like, oh
00:35:47
my gosh, I can go anywhere in just like
00:35:49
a few hours and like not be in the same
00:35:51
state, totally different vibes cuz
00:35:53
states do
00:35:55
have this completely different vibe. It
00:35:58
is
00:35:59
>> I don't unless you've experienced it, I
00:36:01
don't like it is it is such an
00:36:02
interesting thing to like just cross
00:36:04
over the border of a state and stop at
00:36:06
the first town and it be like this is
00:36:08
completely different than the than the
00:36:10
previous state. Um yeah. So okay with
00:36:15
that traveling I know your big thing
00:36:18
like you said is encouraging people to
00:36:20
just get out and travel. What what has
00:36:23
helped you get in that that mindset to
00:36:25
be like, "Okay, I'm just gonna do this.
00:36:28
I'm not I'm gonna" Because a lot of
00:36:29
people, you and I talk about this all
00:36:31
the time on the phone of like, "We do
00:36:32
this. We'll put it on my bucket list.
00:36:34
I'll It's It's down the line. It's down
00:36:36
the line. It's down the line." And
00:36:37
eventually I'll get there. What has
00:36:40
gotten you to the point where now you're
00:36:41
like, "Okay, enough with the waiting.
00:36:43
Like, let's actually like just pull the
00:36:46
trigger. We're doing the thing."
00:36:47
>> Because life is too short. People hear
00:36:50
it all the time. People hear that saying
00:36:52
that I say all the time, live life fully
00:36:54
every day. You never know. And I don't
00:36:58
say that for people to be afraid. I say
00:37:01
that for people to really stop and say,
00:37:04
"Okay, what is something I could do?"
00:37:06
Because, you know, my husband a year and
00:37:09
a half ago at 64 ended up in long-term
00:37:12
nursing care.
00:37:14
um years before that you know I've lost
00:37:17
people people that have suddenly passed
00:37:21
I I one of the big things is sitting
00:37:23
with my mother now she was 87
00:37:26
she had three children three
00:37:29
grandchildren saw two of them married
00:37:32
she has five great grandchildren
00:37:35
and while we sat there basically on her
00:37:39
deathbed she talked about all the things
00:37:41
she regretted not doing So, if any
00:37:44
message that I could get out to anyone
00:37:47
is about not having regrets, and I think
00:37:51
a lot of times people put things on
00:37:52
their bucket list, going to Alaska,
00:37:55
going to Hawaii, I want to go to Italy.
00:37:58
I want to travel.
00:38:01
You put it on your bucket list and you
00:38:03
say, "Well, I don't have the money. I
00:38:04
can't do that. I'm waiting for the
00:38:06
perfect time, the perfect person to go
00:38:08
with." Start small. We all have the
00:38:11
ability to go explore the little town. I
00:38:15
I visited a town 20 minutes from here.
00:38:18
20 minutes from my house. I felt like I
00:38:20
stepped back in time. It was like
00:38:23
started in 19 whatever early
00:38:28
and I felt like I stepped back in time
00:38:30
and just spent hours there listening to
00:38:32
the waterfall. Just a beautiful that's
00:38:35
travel to me. It just got me out of my
00:38:38
everyday. And everybody can do that. I
00:38:41
don't care how much money you have. I
00:38:43
don't care how much time you have, the
00:38:45
lack of planning. It doesn't matter.
00:38:47
Just go do those things and that'll lead
00:38:51
to what's next and how do I get to that
00:38:53
next thing and that next trip. And so
00:38:56
that's that's what it's all about for
00:38:57
me.
00:38:58
>> I love that. I love that. You and I, I
00:39:00
think, share much of that philosophy of
00:39:02
like it doesn't take Yeah. It doesn't
00:39:05
take going far to find something fun to
00:39:07
do that you've never done before,
00:39:09
literally in your own neighborhood. So,
00:39:11
I love that. Patty, is there anything
00:39:14
we've missed in our chats about public
00:39:18
school, homeschooling, road schooling,
00:39:20
travel? Is there anything else that we
00:39:22
need to leave the people with?
00:39:24
>> I I just want to leave people with
00:39:26
especially parents, go easy on yourself.
00:39:30
And again, I'm going to reiterate.
00:39:33
Nobody gets out of parenting without
00:39:36
screwing some of it up. We are doing the
00:39:38
absolute best we can. I think to myself,
00:39:41
if I could go back and do it again,
00:39:43
these are the things I do different. I'd
00:39:46
look at my grandkids and think, "Oh,
00:39:48
this is what I would do." We are doing
00:39:51
the best we can. Cut yourself some
00:39:53
slack. Every day is a new day. And do
00:39:56
what feels right for you and your kids.
00:39:59
what other people think is none of your
00:40:01
business because a lot of times we're
00:40:04
thinking about what someone else thinks
00:40:06
of us and they're not even thinking
00:40:08
about it. They have their own lives.
00:40:11
They're dealing with their own stuff.
00:40:13
So, don't worry about it. And that's
00:40:16
easier said than done. It takes
00:40:17
practice. But when it comes to your
00:40:20
kids, look at what your individual kids
00:40:23
seem to want or need and try and do that
00:40:26
the best that you can. I love that. All
00:40:30
right, with that guys, go check out
00:40:32
Patty on Inspired Travels with Patty. I
00:40:34
highly encourage checking out her
00:40:35
YouTube channel, mostly because I
00:40:37
produce that. But, um, but go give her
00:40:40
some love, some support. She's a brand
00:40:41
new show and, uh, we talk all about
00:40:44
travel. So, if that's something you're
00:40:45
into, go subscribe to that. Hopefully,
00:40:48
you have enjoyed the show. Do all of the
00:40:50
internet things that you know how to do
00:40:51
on my show. Leave a like, leave a
00:40:53
comment, leave a subscribe. All of the
00:40:54
things you you know what to do, okay? I
00:40:56
don't have to tell you. Uh if you've got
00:40:58
any questions or you want to reach out
00:41:00
to me, exhclubgmail.com.
00:41:03
And uh with that, Patty, once again,
00:41:05
thank you so much for coming on the show
00:41:07
and sharing your uh public school
00:41:10
teacher knowledge uh and your travel
00:41:11
knowledge with us. And uh yeah, until
00:41:14
next time, we'll see you.
