I've been walking the planet for many years now but I can still find a lot that just amazes me. I think that's one of the things I like about travel: there are so many interesting people to meet and things to gawk at, often so much the same as home and yet at the same time so different.

I've raised my kids and I still have my worries about them. But I'm glad that I often stumble into the realization that they are so self-sufficient now. Well, most of the time anyway. And so most of the time I am free to wander as I choose to seek out new experiences... something I need to get better about planning for so I actually do it more often.

A big part of the fun though is sharing those experiences with somebody. Traveling alone has its good points but it can be fun to find things and cluck over them together.

With a son a MTU I've found myself exploring the Western U.P. the last several years. Sometimes I think it might be nice to buy a modest home in one of the small towns there for retirement down the road. The cost of living is low, there is a ton of stuff to see and do both Summer and Winter, and by cheaping out day-to-day that leaves money for travel when cabin fever threatens. Some of those towns still have a downtown that's alive too, making it possible to walk down there for breakfast in a traditional diner before heading out for a day's fun in the wilderness.