When real life starts biting a little too hard and the scenery from your car's windows hasn't changed in years, you know it's time. Drop everything, grab your keys, a friend or two, and some of these things to make your journey smoother.

Books

• On the Road Again, Willie Nelson: it's an undisputed classic, and you can put up with at least one country song.
• Robert Johnson: for anywhere near the Mississippi Delta.
• OK Computer, Radiohead: feels like flying down the highway.
• Truckin', Grateful Dead: best when played passing 18-wheelers and giving truckers the infamous honking signal.
• I Can't Drive 55, Sammy Hagar: just remember when you thought Van Halen was good and roll up the windows so no one can hear.
• Chemical Brothers: great played in a Midwestern thunderstorm.
• Legend, Bob Marley: never goes wrong, just don't let the backseat smoke get in your eyes.
• The Doors: all the songs are twenty minutes long so one album gets you through a whole state.
• Highway 66, Bob Dylan: the real poet laureate of the road (also play some Woodie Guthrie to get the old, old school style)

• Kaleidoscope for making scenery more interesting (don't use while driving).
• Magic 8 ball for making decisions on which exit to take.
• Snow Globes of your destinations to stick on your dashboard. Add to your collection as you drive.
• A big pillow so you can sleep comfortably while your friend drives across Kansas.
• Markers & paper to write signs to flash at people in station wagons.
• Microcassette recorder to capture those 3 a.m. talks about the meaning of life (and to secretly tape that gas-station clerk who knows he saw a UFO).
• A pee bottle because sometimes there's a lot of miles between rest stops.
• Cheese Puffs because no one will believe you were on a road trip if your steering wheel isn't orange.
• Postcard stamps in your glove box. Your aunts will want postcards from the Corn Palace and Carhenge.
• Running shoes because there's nothing like jogging through an empty, dusty Texas town at 5 a.m.
• And if you really want a non-essential, squeeze a 150-pound St. Bernard named Maggie into the backseat. Better yet, let her sit on your lap!

• www.digitalcity.com/roadtrip. Quirky things to look for in each state.
• www.roadsideamerica.com. This site proves there's more than roadkill on the side of the highway. And some of it's worth stopping for!
• www.roadtripamerica.com. Connect with fellow wanderers in The Great American Road Trip Forum.
• www.theextremeroadtrip.com/Roadtrip. Read about an RV loaded with bikes, boards and a couple of hardcore adventure travelers.