Amazing Race

True confession time - Donnie and I are Amazing Race junkies.  I like to believe that it is all about seeing the interesting places in the world they visit but in the vein of full disclosure, I'm pretty sure it's because when those teams bicker I feel way more functional in my relationships!  We'll see, won't we....

Now that 2011 is into high gear it is time to put some things on the calendar.  This whole blog idea started out to be about getting emotionally and socially ready to retire.  Our first order of business is to make sure that when everyone else is heading back to school, we are heading elsewhere.  After all, we've had a first day of school since we were 6 years old.   Our schooling is going to look a little different this August!

We aren't too good with travel "plans" so instead Donnie has agreed to join me on our own Amazing Race.  We will be loading up the vehicle with some clothes, a cooler, the little grill, a tent and airmattress, and whatever else we think might make our travels cheap, and then get going.  We will be taking the 18 states west of Missouri and putting them into some sort of sequential order.  We plan to have family and friends who want to "participate" draw out a state name.  They will be deciding what random place or thing we have to find in that state.  I will use this blog to chronical the journey (and the miles and expenses).  We will only know where we are going in the first state on the list until we actually reach our destination, then I'll be calling whoever has the next state to find out where we head next.  We are giving ourselves 6 weeks (yes, Max we are leaving you all on your own for that long!) to complete our Race. 

My first recommendation to future retirees is this:  have some entertainment and your next adventure to dream about.  (Since our work schedules have never allowed this kind of time together, please know that if I stop posting our travels in August and September, send a search party to the last state I list and start looking for my body beside the road!).