Journeys...

Sometimes its a nice thing to go back and stroll through one's memories - sometimes those memories are thrust upon you without warning and without provocation. Today was one of those days. On my way to a show I stopped by my old "hometown" - and by hometown - the place where I was born and we moved away from when I was 7. I visit a few times a year to see extended family, in all honesty it's a mere 90 minutes away whilst nearly obeying the speed limit - but it's still such a childhood flash. People have changed but the places haven't. This route through these places was a 60 mile detour on the way to my ultimate destination, but when I rolled into town without calling and announcing my arrival I found that the family I intended to visit were not home. I did drop off a baby gift and then with the help of Gretta Garmin I headed back to my original route.

The route took me through places I haven't been to in years - but were so strangely familiar...the shopping center in the next town where I was occasionally taken to see a movie - with my imaginary friends Potato Chip, Tick-Tock and Doc (don't ask I don't know), the A&W drive-in that still has waitstaff on rollerskates (OK rollerblades), Lake Sunapee and the old creemee stand (that is no longer a creemee stand) - they used to have the most wonderful soft serve with "jimmies" (chocolate sprinkles). Were they really all that tasty? Or in any way different than the jimmies anywhere else in the universe? I can't answer that - time has eroded the taste but has left the memory.

Life was so much simpler as a child - it was an easy and carefree time. There was no need to worry about putting gas in the fuel tank, paying the mortgage, the unemployment rate or putting kibble in the dog bowls. The rest of the world was everyone else's problem. The innocence of youth is, I think, spoiled on the young. I'd give anything for one more swim at Lake Sunapee - with the long dock into the warm shallow waters with the sandy bottom. Sure, I could have parked the car and jumped in this afternoon with the reckless abandon of youth - but it wouldn't be the same. I'm not the same - and I can't ever go back.

Its not that I spend a lot of time dwelling in the past or wishing for do-overs. I'm not that kind of person, but sometimes nostalgia gets the best of me.

Pretty deep for this blog - I suppose that is part of the aging process too - crying at the Dateline lead story and remembering 25 year old ice cream...Sappy huh?

So maybe some other stuff for today's post...I took a couple of Fourth of July portraits of the dogs...