Travel Planning And Related Thoughts

Why am I always on a plane or a fast train?
Oh what a world my parents gave me
Always traveling ... But not in love
Still I think I'm doing fine --
Wouldn't it be a lovely headline?
"Life is beautiful" on the New York Times...
- "Oh What A World" by Rufus Wainwright

The hyperactive planning for my next trip has begun.

Next weekend I'm flying out to the Hills for my granddad's 75th birthday. Except that's not the only thing going on -- the first night, I get to hang out with my friend Melissa from Texas, whom I haven't seen in two years. On Saturday my parents, sister and I are going to a wedding for a family friend that none of us has seen in three years (and before that it was a lot longer -- we spent a lot of time with them when we were younger but not much since about early high school).

All of my dad's siblings will be out for some period of time for the family stuff, and it's the last weekend I get to hang out with Mia Sorella before she leaves the country.

It's a multiple-duty weekend, and the best part is -- it'll all be in the Hills.

I haven't been out there since February of last year, making it the longest stretch I've gone without the Hills in my entire life. Yeah. It's that drastic. That also means I've been feeling withdrawal symptoms for a few months already.

Four days may not be enough of a fix. Thankfully, I'll be back again in three months for a whole week of rest, relaxation, and one crazy wedding.

[The planning for that trip started some time ago. I can't seem to help myself. It's what I do.]

The packing list is in full swing, with the complication of flying producing a second list: "What To Beg Mom To Bring For Me." Oh, and my usual favorite: "What I Absolutely Need To Remember To Do Before I Leave."

That's the list that never gets checked till after I get back.

It's interesting, though ... I have no less than six trips planned for the next four months or so, in varying degrees of length (weekend to a full week) and complexity (road trips to long flights). A couple of them will have other people at the end; during one of them I'll actually be traveling with others. For the most part, though, there's significant me-time involved.

I’m good at traveling alone.

I actually made a rather strange observation when I was driving back from Sioux Falls last weekend ... I realized that for all the times I've stood at my destination and thought, "Wow, I wish there was someone else here to see this," I've also thought, "Woo-hoo! <some number> hours alone in the car!"

Maybe it's the familiarity. Or maybe it's the deep down knowledge that I could drive another person crazy if we spent all that time in a car together. Or -- worse yet -- the thought that if I were attached to someone I wouldn't (couldn't?) make these trips anymore.

Hey, look at that! We found the root of my fear of commitment: "being tied down." Tada.

Where was I going with this?

Ah yes. As many times as I get somewhere and enjoy being around friends and family, or the times I stand looking out over water/mountains/fireworks and wish I had someone to share it with -- I still prefer to do the actual traveling by myself. I'm better at that, and far, FAR more used to it.

This was something that I came face-to-face with while in New Jersey a couple weeks back. I had just plain forgotten what it was like to kill time in an airport with other people. Somehow, that "twenty-something chick traveling alone" mentality couldn't be shaken.

In the long run, that's probably a good thing. I'm going to need that guard again.

Right now, I have the best of both worlds. I'll hop on a plane, kill some time in the Minneapolis airport, fly out to Rapid City, and then meet up with friends and finish the night on a high note. I get my several hours of "alone time" amongst the crowds -- and then I get several days with some of my favorite people. I don't have to spend my vacation alone, but I don't have to keep track of other people in an airport, either.

It's a good life.

Have a great weekend, folks.