We Could Have Saved 3 Or 4 Thousand Miles

Rantoul, IL.

53 deg. clear, NW wind @ 7 mph.

Forecast = Mostly sunny. Highs around 80. Northwest winds 5 to 10 mph.


Wow!!! 53 degrees this morning!!!!

Because we're so used to it being so hot for so long in this part of the country, 53 degrees feels like it's winter!!!! Wouldn't it be nice if the temperatures didn't go from one extreme to the other so often?

I received a few comments on yesterday's blog about how far we have traveled and how many states we have been to in during the last 13 months. Yes, we did travel a lot this year, and I really don't expect to be traveling anywhere near that much every year.

The thing was, it had been 4 years since Jim and Linda had been out west to see Jeff and Heather who live in Portland Oregon, and, since you're going that far anyway, it would be a shame not to see other attractions or areas along the way, even if you had to take a longer route to see them.

Yeah, we could have gone straight out to Portland from Florida, and then straight back here to Illinois, and probably reduced the distance by 3 or 4 thousand miles, but just think of all the wonderful sights we would have missed. Things like the beautiful sunsets in the desert of Arizona, the stark beauty of Death Valley, the majesty of the Sequoias and the Redwoods, the beautiful California and Oregon coasts, the beauty of the mountains in northern Idaho and the "Big Skies" of Montana. We wouldn't have seen the wheat fields of the Dakotas or the lakes and forests of Minnesota. And, don't forget that great week we spent on the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan where we saw some of the most beautiful sunsets, over Lake Superior, I've ever seen.

No, I wouldn't want to take such a long trip every year, but in a few years, I'll be ready to go again. ; )  Maybe next time we can visit Mt. Rushmore, Devil's Tower, the Great Salt Lake, some of the National Parks in Utah and Wyoming, and maybe even the coast of Washington!!!!

Hmmm!!!! Where's that Road Atlas?????   ; )

Did you know that the five Olympic rings represent the five major regions of the world – Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceana, and are interconnected to symbolize the friendship to be gained from these international competitions? The colors were chosen because at least one of them appeared on the flag of every country in the world.