"The Plan"

Alright, alright already! Enough is enough. For those of you who cannot stand the idea of our Great Adventure plans of, "get on the bike and head west till we hit the ocean, turn around and head east until we come somewhere near home" - we have decided to draw a line for you.

This blue line represents nearly 7000 miles of secondary roads. If we average only 200 miles a day, we could complete the loop in 35 days. If we average 300 miles a day, that number drops to 23 days and leaves some time to stop and enjoy some of the locations for a day here and there. So the bottom line is, we will see what the Good Lord wants us to see and the rest will have to wait for another trip!

Now, the reality is that plans change sometimes unexpectedly. At least they do in our lives. I am reminded of this girl in high school who was marching across the football field in band camp so many years ago. Wow, did my plans change! She was a real cutie! I told my friends, "I'm gonna marry her someday!"

A couple weeks later at a football game, hanging out at the top of the stands cheering for the team and getting to know that cutie a bit more - I started picking on her as my family so aptly taught me to do. [My dad's family was masters of picking and joking with each other. Oh, the stories they have told. And so, they passed that same ability on to us kids] So while picking on that cutie in the stands that night - just for fun, mind you - she warned me to cut it out, or else... and she made a little fist to threaten me with. Oooohh, scary!

"Hey, don't wave that thing at me unless you plan to use it," I said, as I pointed at my chin. Little did I know that she had a killer right hook! You know, that was the last time I invited her to hit me cause she didn't even hesitate, didn't even bat an eye at the idea! Yessirree - plans can surely change in the blink of an eye!

So maybe our plans will change because of some unforeseen reason. Maybe we are biting off more than we can handle with this crazy Great Adventure. Who knows? Maybe we will get as far as Zion National Park and have to head back east. Maybe we will get to the ocean, see the coastal redwoods and have to zip back home without getting to see all the other great stuff we have planned. [Maybe there simply will not be enough time left for the Spam Museum, Ellen]

Who knows how far we will get? Honestly, it doesn't really matter to me because I will be spending five weeks with my best friend, the woman I love - yes, the one with a killer right hook! And, oh yes, I did end up marrying that cutie and we have enjoyed life's highways and byways ever since! You can be sure of one thing, I will certainly behave myself cause if I don't, that right hook is always poised and waiting! [haha - just kiddin' dear]