I’m
just wondering. Is there any place you go, not frequently but
on a somewhat regular basis, where as soon as the plans are set
in motion you automatically have a checklist of stops to include?
Terry
and I live somewhat in an isolated setting. It’s not amazingly
far away from the real world. It’s not the middle of nowhere.
We have grocery stores and dining options within a few minutes
of the house. Even a great community movie theater. (One-dollar
popcorn on Wednesdays! Looking forward to that becoming a regular
thing again.) However, it’s twenty minutes in one direction to
a decent sized city, with significant shopping and restaurant
names, and it’s more than a half hour to the real city area.
For
our question today, the living situation means we can get all
the necessities fairly easily. We rarely need to travel outside
of our multiple town community that often. But, on occasion, we
have an appointment with a doctor, or reason to go to a particular
store, or whatever needs to be done is something that is only
available by driving that more than a half hour. And once we set
that cause into a place on the calendar, we already know that
there are three restaurants we will decide between for a meal,
and a couple of stores we are likely to visit.
Since
we’re in the area, use the opportunity.
Here’s
another thought. Do you live near your home town? Or, more generally,
do you have a place that is not nearby, but you love it and visit
it whenever you can?
By
car, Terry and I live several hours away from the place where
we grew up, and still have family and friends there. When we know
we’re headed to our home town, it is never questioned that three
specific restaurants will be part of our trip, on every trip.
And, selections will be made between a handful of others based
on the length of stay. Rarely do we try anything new during those
visits since there are so many specifics we miss because of where
we live now.
And
there’s more. Other locations have favorites in place. Are we
headed to Orlando? There’s a Japanese steakhouse that has become
tradition for us.
The
lists and concepts go on, but the idea is the same. Can’t regularly
get there, so immediately when something happens to deliver us
to this place the addition of other stops is virtually guaranteed.
So,
again, I wonder. Is there any place you go, not frequently but
on a somewhat regular basis, where as soon as the plans are set
in motion you have a checklist of stops to include? I’ve found
over the years that there are actually three types of places that
fall into this group, and my examples more or less outlined them.
First
are those that aren’t ridiculously out of the way from your home,
but they are inconvenient for one reason or another. Perhaps your
normal needs and routines simply don’t bring you down certain
roads or to certain places. You live here. You work there. And
these businesses are off in a completely different direction.
Second
are places you get to on occasion, but they aren’t close to where
you live. You travel for family and friends, long weekends or
extended stays, and part of the charm of the area comes from including
the great and familiar.
Third
is the rarest, sort of long-distance travel opportunities. You
go on vacation, and have a place that you return to again and
again. You know the attractions, the retail, and the food. And
you definitely have favorites.
One
of my sisters lives outside the country. For many years, every
trip home with her kids involved bringing empty suitcases along
and heading out shopping with her kids. She loved a certain shopping
center to begin with, and the prices compared to where she lives
made it more than worthwhile.
When
you break out of the routine daily events, I’m guessing you have
more than a few routines that immediately become part of the festivities.
The next time it comes around, I hope you enjoy.