The Little Trip that Wasn’t

I am a woman who hasn’t traveled much.

More in recent years…but with the exception of my first three years of marriage, three cool vacations, including the last one when I was six months pregnant…we just went fishing in Minnesota.

We went every year in the summer. One week. We went to a lakeside resort…which is a pretty high falutin’ word for the little ramshackle cabin we stayed in. And we loved it. My husband’s whole family went there (well almost the whole family, his family is HUGE). Let’s say PLENTY of my husband’s family went there every year.

And it was great. Lots of babies. We got to spent a full week talking our way through each stage of life. One year I had an 8 month old and my sister-in-law has a SIX WEEK OLD. I still can’t believe she came, but such was our devotion to that fishing trip.

I’ll add here that we hardly saw each other that year. One of us was always in the cabin with a napping baby, an eating baby, a crying baby. I still had fun, but wow, I barely said hi to her that year.

My first plane trip was in 2004. I was…well, let’s not do math, leave it at OLD. I was old. When we did travel, we drove, always the same route on the same rural highways.

Then in 2004 I got super wild, hopped on my very first plane, and went to my first writer’s convention. And since then we’ve traveled more. Somewhere almost every year IN ADDITION TO the fishing vacation. I go to a conference once or twice or three times a year. A writer’s retreat once in a while. At least once a year. I go visit a far off child.

I could list places and it’d probably look like a lot. At least to me. But mostly I’ve gone to writer’s conferences…where ever they may lead me.

Woman of Sunlight is a   BESTSELLER!!!

My Cowboy’s parents lived in Mission, Texas for a long time in their retirement years and when the kids were grown up, we’d go down there nearly every year. We went to the Midwest Livestock Show in Denver a couple of times.

We’ve even, in recent years, gone on research trips.

And we had a cool one planned for this summer. My Cowboy retired January 1st and we had spectacular plans. Follow the Oregon Trail. Go see our child in Washington DC. Go visit his brother in Florida. Oh, yeah baby. nothing to hold us back. All lined up, one trip after another.

And then we had a lock down.

GRRRRRR!

I blame myself.

I apologize to you all.

And I’ve got Google Earth and pictures and websites galore and so, so, so much Wikipedia.

And I still feel really sorry for myself.

But we are healthy. Our children are all able to work from home.

Our grandchildren are managing school from home. (only two of the six grands are in school)

And I still feel sorry for myself.

Which means I’m a selfish, pathetic, whiner. But then, I’ve always know that, so no surprise there. 

In fact, considering my usual pathetic whining, I’ve just decided I’m handling this all pretty well.

I put all my Garrison’s Law books on sale for 99 cents if you need five books to read for five dollars (total).

I’ve got a book recently finished through the editing process, another in the revision stage with my publisher, another that’s finished and being revised by me before my editor gets a look at it. And a work in progress that’s about a third of the way done.

So I’m keeping busy. Despite my travel stories above, I’m sort of hermit-y by nature.

And still, I feel sorry for myself. Have I mentioned that?

Leave a comment about your personality type. Are you a whiner? Are you brave and stoic? Are you someone who worries or let’s trouble roll off you? When life hands you a lemon do you make…hard cider?

Leave a comment to get your name in the drawing for an ebook copy of ALL FIVE Garrison’s Law books.

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25 thoughts on “The Little Trip that Wasn’t”

  1. Trying to remain calm and treasure each day. My plans may be ruined, but new plans can be made in the future.

  2. I feel your pain. I love to travel and luckily so does my husband. I usually plan the trips and my husband just goes along with it. When the kids were young and my husband in the Air Force, we spent most vacations gong to Florida to visit his family or Northern New York to visit mine. When we got stationed in Colorado, it was too far to visit families for vacations and we took advantage of the opportunities. We explored as much as we could of what the area had to offer. The same was true at our next assignment near Sacramento, CA. The timing even worked out to drive up the West Coast, hitting all the National Parks along the way, to attend the World’s Fair in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

    We are back on the East Coast, but still get called back to the West for vacations. I planned a driving trip to Alaska 3 years ago. The first summer we planned to go I developed a detached retina and treatments wiped out that summer. The next year, I tried again and was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that is destroying my nerves. Getting treatment figured out and wrapping my mind around it all wiped out that summer. Last year, I told my husband we were going no matter what. We were gone for 2 1/2 months, finally getting to use the RV we bought for the trip the first time I planned it. It was wonderful, but I am still trying to get rid of the weeds that took ever my flower beds while we were gone. I am glad we didn’t have any plans for this year. It is actually working out well for us. With all our volunteer activities canceled -along with everything else – I am finally getting a chance to sort through all the STUFF in the house and get rid of a bunch of it – once the charities we support open back up.

    I am planning more trips. We will go out West again, but I really, really want to go to Scotland and Ireland next. As soon as I can figure how to get my medications delivered while we are over there, I will get serious about planning. The stateside trips are easy – load the RV, grab the maps, and leave. I just want to do as much as I can while I can still walk, although I am afraid hiking the Grand Canyon is out. We just have to make sure we have someone who will keep the lawn mowed and the gardens weeded. They didn’t do so well last time.

    Take good care of yourself and stay safe and healthy.

    • Patricia, good for you. I love that your husband is onboard with what you plan. I’ve never gotten so high on travel that I’ve thought of traveling abroad. I would love to see those old castle ruins in Ireland and Scotland though. Ancient things fascinate me. The Colosseum in Rome. Pyramids.
      But I’ve got a LOT to see in America first.

      • We were lucky with our military assignments and took advantage of where we were. There is still so much out there to see. As much as we saw last summer, we missed so much. We were hoping to catch some of the sites nearby this year. I had extensive plans for traveling home from my Peace Corps assignment in the Philippines. Most of Southeast Asia, the Middle east, Greece, Turkey, but no Europe. Sadly I got word my mother was dying 2 weeks into a 3 month trip, and flew straight home. It was 1971 and the Middle East was was still a safe and wonderful place to visit. Southeast Asia not so much. Now things are completely reversed.It would be wonderful to be able to do that trip, but age certainly would curtail many things I had planned. Also, I don’t think I could talk my husband into staying at the $2 a night places I didn’t.

  3. Don’t enter me for the ebook but I am a whiner also. I think I’ve done kind of ok considering I am alone with no significant other, children or pets of any kind. No car to just go take a drive or to pick up my groceries and prescriptions (now I have to pay to have them delivered). Buuut I am as healthy as I can be with my year-round allergies,PTSD and depression/anxiety. I have found ways to still connect what little socializing I used to do. It’s not all bad. It has shown me in some ways just how blessed I really am and how isolated I’ve really been and that I need to try harder to make connections with people.
    I have to say I freaked out at for the first week or two of this but slowly worried less as I was able to meet my needs in different ways. THings keep popping up that have to be handled in unique ways. And I try not to worry about *getting* the virus. A friend a bit older than me in England got it and it sounds awful and lingering. But overall it’s been a learning experience for me. Learning more about myself and others and humanity in general during a crisis.
    Still I truly am a whiner. I’m doing my best to try to stay positive and look for the positive though! So glad you and yours are well!
    HAVE A TERRIFIC DAY! 😀

  4. I will start off with this, I already have the series, just have not read them, yet.
    Not much of a traveler here. Last time on a plane was to take my Mom (her first plane ride) to her brother’s funeral in 1995. No vacation for me unless vaca counts. I would try to line up a trip with friends. Always fell through.
    So I can read.

    • Jerri, thank you so much for owning my books. Nope, not much traveling. I don’t mind plane travel but I have no great love for it.
      And I hate long car rides, so by comparison plane travel suits me.

  5. I’m not a whiner, I take everything in strides. I try not to be a worrier, as that is just wasted time. I have kept busy and I’m working from home. I’ve spring cleaned my house, spent time with my puppy, and have read some books that I had pushed off reading. Glad I pulled them out.
    We will all get through this, we just have to remain calm and brave.

  6. I usually have day of self-pity and then I move on and do what needs to be done. When I have my day,I generally hide by myself. I loved your memories.

  7. I feel your pain about not being able to get away. We haven’t had a vacation, not even a weekend getaway, in 15 years. My husband finally has a good job and we had money saved back and were working with bill collectors to pay off back debt and doing so good. Then, this virus hit, we fell behind on the bills again, the money is gone from the bank account and he is barely making part time wages even though he is at the shop every day. Maybe next year everyone will be able to make fun plans. So yes, I do tend to have a pity party on occasion (more occasions seem to arise each day). I have always been a worrier. But I try to be strong for other people.

    • Not being able to see my new Granddaughter is the worst. It helps a little to admit that if the kid lived a half mile from me, I’d still probably not be allowed to see her.
      So sorry about the financial hardships. there is so much of that. Tough time.

  8. I am a worrier, inherited from both my parents. It’s no wonder their marriage failed, there needs to be one positive person in a marriage. Even though I’m a worrier, I’m also a positive person. I guess I worry but I don’t let it all get me down. The majority of my life I have been a huge extravert but I was diagnosed with MS in 2004 and suddenly found myself on disabilty income and home 90%+ of the time. I was lucky enough to have traveled a lot when I was young because vacationing is no longer in my vocabulary. I feel sorry for my daughters because they have traveled very little. My oldest traveled with my parents when she was young and they still traveled a lot. My youngest has been to the ocean once and that’s abou it. When she was young she was a have to stay and take care of my momma kid and wouldn’t venture off with my parents. I haven’t been affected much by this lock down other than we had to cancel going to my hometown to visit family over Spring Break and my youngest and we have only gotten to see my oldest when we drop off groceries or things she needs that I have a couple of times. Having an alter immune system because of immunosuppressive medicine I take I’m not sure how long it will be before I feel like it is safe for me to be among the masses. My oldest also has an autoimmune disease and gets sick so much easier than I do that I spend my time worrying about her. She keeps isolated but it is getting to her emotionally. Luckily she is starting to see a therapist although with the lockdown it will be skype-type visits for now. Such crazy times we’re in, who would have thought what 2020 would being and it has dealt one blow after another to our family. We did have one big plus in our storm, the same day as our biggest blow, I have a beautiful new great niece! As a family we’ll have to remember that because we could easily mark 2020 as being one of our worst year’s ever and she doesn’t need to hear that all her life. Sorry so long, you got me going this morning! ?

  9. I already have the five ebooks, so don’t enter me in the drawing. I’m definitely not a whiner! I’m taking this in stride. I’m not worrying about it, cause I know God has this. And, I figure I have to die of something sooner or later, unless the Rapture happens, so if this is what happens, so be it. I was already working from home, have been for awhile, so being home is nothing new. I will admit when this first happened I really wanted to go to the mall, though I hadn’t been there in months! The only reason I wanted to go was because they said we shouldn’t. Now, I could care less! I do feel sorry for all of the people out of work and still trying to get unemployment. I wonder how many will have a job to return to when all of this is over. And which restaurants will be able to open, so I’m trying to get take out once a week, as it fits my budget. One small thing I can do!

  10. I have the ebooks so don’t enter me. I guess I am a worrier because my husband works at Walmart and I am worried he will bring it in to us. MY son is here with us because he is the IT at the library and is working from home or taking Vacation time off. Its the Walmart thing that worries me. I have only been out once to get groceries because husband brings part of the in for me. He just doesn’t want to bring in any meat. So I had to go Kroger to get that or shell we say get what I could get at the time. I do try to get out and take a walk when its pretty.

  11. Since I’m a hermity type person, too, all of this just rolls off my back. I’m loving being forced to stay at home. Except when I get twitchy because I’m “told” to stay at home. Haha!! We still have farm chores, homeschooling like normal, and I’m still avoiding as much housework as I can. What has changed is all our kid’s church work trips are cancelled, camping trips cancelled and a few other travel plans are all gone, plus I have a senior who thinks this is a great story to tell her grandchildren some day. I miss the looking forward to the trips! Ah well, we all got thrown into this together. We will make next year’s trips better!

  12. Don’t enter me as I’ve have this series waiting for me on my Kindle. I’m a quiet optimist. I wish I was able to travel more. I’m grateful for amazing authors who whisk me away to epic adventures.

    SHALOM and BLESSINGS!

  13. I am a complete homebody! I am not a whiner. But, I am not brave about some things like cancer, snakes, mice, etc. I am generally optimistic, happy, and fun. Love traveling from April through September; camping in incredible National Campground’s, as many as we can. This year is a change for us too. We miss our four grandkids like you. I send them cards every week so they keep us in their sweet little heads and hearts. My faith has inspired me to know God is in control and I feed my faith to help me stay positive. Congrats on your forthcoming books and congrats on your husband’s retirement. Retirement is a new beginning so I hope your travel plans can be in place again someday. Thank you for your whinny blog … I loved it! Recently finished reading the Cimarron Legacy and had my husband read it too. Great books!

  14. Don’t enter me in the drawing as I have all the books! I’m not a whiner, I just take everything as it comes. I’m sorry your plans got changed…for now! We were supposed to go to New Zealand in a couple months – we’d been planning that for 5 years! Oh, well, we’ll go next year! I’m just the opposite of you, Mary! I’ve traveled so much in my life, it’s second nature to me! I’ve lived in two different COUNTRIES even! I’ve traveled all over the world, even as a teenager, and about 40 of the 50 states. I’ve been super blessed. It’s only because my dad had a job in Saudi Arabia when I was a teenager and we had a travel a lot. BUT, to change topics, I am getting very tired of this lockdown! I’m ready for it to all be over!!!

  15. I try not to be a whiner but sometimes it just happens. We didnt travel much while we were raising 8 kids. Mostly just 2.5 hours to a state park for our annual camping trip and with 8 kids that was an adventure! From 2011-2017 my husband and I went to the Bahamas and then 5 trips to Punta Cana. We enjoyed those trips but the last few years we have stayed closer to home. This year we just pray that the campground will be open by August for our annual family campout. We now rent 6 or 7 cabins and most of the 8 kids and lots of grandchildren go. If we can’t go I am sure there will be a lot of whining and it won’t be just from me. But for now we are blessed to be safe, warm and well fed. If need be we can have campfires and roast marshmallows in the backyard.

  16. I tend to whine when things are out of my control, it is something I’m working on. But I’m very glad to be able to be home safe with my kids!

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