Departure Day

Departure days always end up sending me down road trip rabbit holes as I try to pack.  The places I've gone. The things I've seen.

Storms as they pass.

The Tetons - August 2005

And old cities.
Bath, England - February 2009

Moscow - July 2005

 And a bucket list item or two.

The Great Wall - March 2010

Powell's City of Books - September 2013
Wide open spaces.

Somewhere in Colorado - May 2010

I-90 in the middle of South Dakota. Could have been taken on a lot of different days.

Lakes.

Lake Michigan - July 2009
Sunrise near Humboldt, SD - July 2012 (I think)

 Oceans.

Oregon coastline - September 2013
 Deserts.

Near Moab, Utah - September 2013
Canyons.

Grand Canyon - November 2015


Big freaking waterfalls.

Niagara Falls - September 2014
Mountains, of various shapes and sizes. 

Harney Peak - September 2014

Mount Saint Helens - September 2013
And some weirder stuff. Yes, that's a zebra.

I-35 south of Minneapolis - May 2009
But there are the other things, too. The food.


Seoul - November 2011
The opportunities to relax.

London - February 2009
The people.

Dad and I on a bus in Seoul - December 2013

And some of the coolest experiences.

Cedar Point Halloweekends - September 2014

This has been in space! Kennedy Space Center - January 2015

Let's not talk about this one.

Flying a kite with my brother in Denver on Christmas Eve - 2013
I admit, I'm pretty fortunate to have seen a lot of this. We as a country are not skilled at taking breaks, but with my very first post-college job, I had a boss who strongly urged us to get out and go more often (and led by example). It was all about priorities for him, and while work was high on the list, so was taking care of yourself.

Sometimes it has taken serious effort, time off, and occasionally money (although I'm pretty good at going and doing without much cash). Some of these trips required multiple flights and all sorts of jet lag. Some involved long drives.

And some of it was in my very own backyard, wherever that happened to be at the time.

Adventure can be wherever you choose to find it. This week? This week I choose to go south.

... As soon as I'm done packing, that is.

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