Alaska

I’ve lived in Arkansas my whole life (well, minus a short stent when I was two).  My travels have never really taken me to far from home.  The places I’ve been to make for a fairly short list, in fact:

• Texas
• Tennessee
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Oklahoma
• Georgia
• Florida
• Louisiana
• Kansas (I think)
• Alabama

Notice the absence of Northern and Western states?  I’ve never been to other countries, either.  If I want to escape, I generally have to pull out a comic, book, or DVD.  There are places on my short list that I’d love to go, of course, but I’ve never really had the time or money.  They include:

• Oregon
• Arizona
• California
• New York
• Australia
• Hawaii
• Alaska
• And pretty much anywhere else I’ve never been

Well, I now find myself in a unique position for travel.  A little over a year ago, my in-laws loaded up and moved to Alaska.  Since then, my wife and I have been trying to get up there to see them.  My mother-in-law has been down, and so has my brother-in-law and his wife, but we really want to see where they live.

Earlier this month, my wife quit her job (to be with our son before he starts kindergarten, not just because of the trip).  Both she, and my son,  are going to go up there from mid-July to mid-August.  I’ll be flying up there for the last week of it.  We’re all pretty stoked.

The only downside to it all, though is that they have recently moved to Skagway.  If you’re familiar with Alaska at all, then you know what I’m saying here.  If not, let me just say that it’s, like, a half day’s drive or more to anything.  At all.  Still, though, we’re looking forward to some cooler weather and visiting a state we otherwise would’ve kept putting off and putting off again.

Now, I’m coming up with ways to capitalize on my three weeks of alone time without getting into trouble.

I have some ideas.  Stay tuned.

– Ray