Wrinkly Bits
You would think that with all the travel I have done both on my own and with the Marines, my bucket list would be shrinking. Not so, it is growing by leaps and bounds. On my recent cruise I realized how confined my life is. This confinement likely happened because this girl from a small town in Idaho never dreamed of doing the things I have done. But let me tell you, there is a lot more to see and do and I don’t want to wait any longer! In fact, I wonder, why did I wait so long?
You meet a lot of people on a cruise, and they always hear tales of adventure. We met several people who are on their fourth trip around the world, while we haven’t even done one. I now realize how short-sighted I have been, leading me to wonder why, why, why I have never done a safari in Tanzania, climbed K-2, or dined on either the Trans-Siberian Railroad or Orient Express. I haven’t seen Easter Island or Stonehenge, and no one has ever sung to me in a gondola in Venice. All are available, but none are coming to me on their own. I need to get on my pony and trot, as my father used to say, to make things happen. Although the Cowboy longs to go whale hunting in Barrow, Alaska, and drive his Mustang at Talladega, I haven’t even considered those adventures. And now my knees ache and my crooked fingers don’t work well anymore. What to do?
I still would like to write a best seller, competing with King, Grisham, and Evanovich, but will have to work harder at both writing and selling. Writing is difficult when I travel, so it might be about choices. I love that. Life is full of choices and what a beautiful life this is, but I can do better!
I took my time in writing this blog, adding a few more things to my bucket list such as seeing Paris for the first time, going around the world, visiting Africa and all its wonder. Nepal, Easter Island, and scuba diving in Australia are on the new and improved list, as are camping out in a treehouse or Forest Service look-out, stomping wine grapes in Italy, and sightseeing in a hot air balloon. I left off naked skydiving, although the Cowboy mentions it from time to time.
The Cowboy just walked in with his revised bucket list, telling me he added a no-limit Viagra credit card to his Barrow Alaska wish, but I’m not so sure how that would work. The good news is that he put his dream of spending the Trans-Siberian railroad trip with Bo Derek or Bond girl Ursula Andress on hold. At 66 and 87, maybe they don’t have the appeal that they once had.
Life is full of adventures. My problem is not what to put on my bucket list, it’s how to make it happen. Although I love to read, it is better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times.
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