My Perfect Vacation

I want to go on a vacation. Not just a couple of days here or there, but a real honest-to-goodness-out-of-town-getaway.

So where should I go? It has to be someplace where my son, Michael, will enjoy, and my dog will be welcome.

Plus, it has to be somewhere that is fully equipped with all the conveniences. No tents, sleeping bags, or rustic cabins. Thank you very much.

Water must flow, and electricity must energize. Bathroom facilities must also be available and be enclosed with running hot and cold water. Bushes and trees are not as much fun when they are the bathroom facilities. Other than that, there aren’t any requirements.

Ah, the joys of roughing it. It may seem I’m a little spoiled, but let me assure you that I have been there and done that and, it wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be. I’ve been lost in the woods, chased by a water moccasin and suffered a broken wrist when I fell on some rocks. My brother was kicked in the head by a deer jumping his pup tent.

Some seek out remote areas to spend a few days and that is certainly their right. But, when the basic amenities are not available, I have to keep driving. My idea of roughing it is not having access to my computer, the internet, my microwave and running water.

When I was a kid my family often went to the Twin Sister Mountains in CA. It really is a beautiful place, but when you‘re the only family for hours around suddenly the mountains become ominous to kids.

One of the better family vacations I remember was in New York at Niagara Falls, and hanging out at the St. Lawrence Seaway. The Thousand Islands in the Seaway are truly magnificent, and they inspire adventure.

Imagine seeing islands just large enough for nothing more than a home. There are boat docks at the edge of the islands. The residents keep their vehicles on the mainland and use a boat to cross from their island to the mainland, visit their neighbors on other islands.

Imagine letting the dog out in the morning. Instead of putting them in the fenced yard, you might snap a life preserver on them just in case they slipped off the grass and into the water.

You couldn’t let the kids out in the yard to play ball … or ride their bikes, or roller blade … or sit on the curb. There was no curb. The kids took the boat to the mainland in the morning and then the bus to school.

Of course not all the islands are that size. Some are even smaller … some so small they have only one tree.

Others are large enough for a home, yards, fence, and landscaping. Some even accommodate several homes. Talk about close communities. They are, though, the lucky ones. Instead of running to the corner for some milk and eggs, they just cross the grass to their neighbors.

Still and all, the islands are beautiful. If you ever get the chance go there, take a boat and explore the seaway and some of the islands.

Not long ago my children and I rented a cabin at Lake Texoma in OK and we took our two dogs along. All the amenities were available and we had a great time. On the opposite side of the lake was a beach. My kids and dogs liked it there because we could explore, swim and splash without offending someone near by.

I took several pictures and uploaded one to my desktop as wallpaper. What couldn’t be seen in the picture or in the water was on the desktop. A water moccasin was swimming with my boys.

Perhaps I should consider a different kind of vacation. No cabins, no lakes, no cabins by the lake. Is the Love Boat still sailing?