Ever had a friend who is always longing for adventures, and for some reason, they always want you to come along? Or perhaps you are that wonderous, adventurous friend? If so, I just hope you will understand that, well, some of us have budgets we have to adhere to. Yeah, it really is a shame we never managed to be born as trust fund babies or win the powerball lottery.
Jokes aside, a friend of mine called me up again, asking if I wanted to go camping... again. He's been talking about this to me for literally years. Years. If he has his way, we would ride our motorcycles all over the country, stopping only to camp out under the stars during the night. I don't scoff at his dreams. In fact, I think it's beautiful. It's just... I don't even have a motorcycle! Or have ever even ridden one for that matter! I would need to look into learning to ride, getting a permit and everything, not to mention actual purchase of said motorcycle....
Oh, and while camping sounds lovely and all, but many years ago, when I thought he was serious about doing it, I actually drove 500 miles (800 km) to him, only for us to end up not going anywhere and I just crashed at his house instead.
I mean, I don't fault him or anything. I know he wants to do it, but he has a job, a family with kids, and a rather reluctant wife who is afraid he might get into a motorcycle accident, or get eaten by bears or something. Still, for those with wanderlust, they don't seem to stop the wonder about the wander.
Well, now that he's retiring soon, his kids are grown, and even his wife is contemplating a motorcycle permit, for some reason... he has asked me yet again to go camping this year. Uh, OK I guess?
Fortunately for me, I never did throw away the camping gear that I never used from the last time he asked me. So, if this camping adventure actually goes through this time, at least I won't have to buy anything new. I can just dust off whatever I have sitting in the closet.
April 10th, 2026 at 06:35 am 1775802935
I have bought family and friends day/weekend adventures in card forms..they are called getting lost adventure cards, they love them not sure if they have them in your country but they do here in australia, they have state ones, season ones etc...they are fun
maybe you can do something like that with him
April 10th, 2026 at 08:41 am 1775810486
April 11th, 2026 at 01:49 am 1775872174
April 11th, 2026 at 04:56 pm 1775926615
Her retirement was 20 years ago as she turns 82 this year. The friend she went cruising with eventually had a major accident on his motorcycle that required several surgeries and at least 6 months in a rehab center. She did other traveling after that well into her 70s but finally seems to have gotten the travel bug out of her system.
And the grandson who died inspired his parents to start a nonprofit for funding pediatric cancer research. The nonprofit is going strong and recently received its first million-dollar donation.
April 11th, 2026 at 07:09 pm 1775934564
Because what he REALLY has in mind is actually kind of insane. What he actually wants to do is to rent motorcycles and ride through the jungles of Vietnam or Cambodia, and we basically camp “naked” with little to no provisions, and all in a countries that probably still dislikes westerners, we don’t speak their native language, eating really weird foods from very questionable sources, and hopefully not get kidnapped and ransomed by some guerilla group…. Now that I think about it, I do keep some strange company…. The fact that he is willing to compromise adventuring within the US is more of MY idea.
Dido: Wow that is unbelievably tragic, and I am glad to hear that the parents went on to fund pediatric cancer research. It truly is inspiring and a fantastic way to cope from such tragedies. Also, I am acutely aware of the dangers of traveling in motorcycles. From my previous jobs to personal anecdotes, I’ve seen tragic motorcycle accidents time and time again throughout my life. Of course, that’s not enough dissuade those who are enamored with the motorcycle life, but for the rest of us, well, I can certainly live without it.
Also, I am pleased to report that I don’t seem to have any great travel bug that’s biting me. I certainly have fancied the idea from time to time, but so far, it’s just weekend road trips at the most. It would seem that I am perfectly content being a homebody for the most part, but it’s also much more affordable that way, and a critical period of time that I shouldn’t be spending too much anyway.
April 12th, 2026 at 02:29 am 1775960964
April 26th, 2026 at 03:08 pm 1777216112