Quitting his teaching job to hitchhike Australia, John didn't expect to be put in prison, get headbutted, or endure mild strangulation—but somehow it still beat the monotony of marking books with dicks drawn on them

I taught a kid who went to jail for setting a human on fire. I remember a boy crying in front of the whole class because his dad was an arsehole; another kid delivering the eulogy at his mother’s funeral. A boy who went from robbing houses to becoming a chef and a father; a girl who moved into pornography. In my early years of teaching, I consistently declared that I had ‘fallen’ into the occupation, as if it was a hole. Perhaps . . .  It was time to do something else.

John Card was a high school teacher with good prospects. However, he was also burned out, bored, and lacking direction in his life. Like most people at some point, he dreamed of packing it all in and running away from home. However, unlike most people, he actually did (after asking his mom to help him pack that is). Hitchy Feet is one man’s hilarious account of hitchhiking 15,000 kilometers around Australia in search of adventure and a new way of thinking about life. Along the way he encounters the strangest collection of people (including nude walkers), has abuse hurled at him from passing cars, is introduced to the thrills of riding on the roof of a ute at 120km an hour, drinks too much beer, eats a lot of bananas, and somehow keeps antagonizing people. In the process, he discovers the unexpected generosity of ordinary Australians, reignites his own passion for life—and creates an unforgettable and ultimately uplifting story.