Vacations and best friends

My dear, dear friend Kaki visited yesterday from Montana. She and I became friends when our firstborn were infants. And yesterday's landmark birthday forced us to own up that we don't get to say we're "new" friends anymore. It's been ten years!

When the kids were little (still in diapers, little) we had discussed and even started planning to take a vacation together - both families. That plan wound up not happening due to other things needing to happen at the same time, and we never managed to work out our schedules to try it again.

But yesterday, perhaps inspired by the rosy glow induced by takeout Indian food, birthday cake, and wine, as well as a conversation in the car this weekend, we talked about a joint vacation next summer.

My vision is to do really wacky stuff: see the largest ball of twine, things like that. I love the campy and crazy things that our country has to offer, and I'd like to take that kind of trip while the kids are still young enough to enjoy it. Because the sullen, it is coming. I remember it. We have little time before it is upon us.

We talked about the Corn Palace. We talked about Devil's Tower (not so much campy, but definitely strange). But then Kaki was truly inspired: Florida. There's so much wacky and campy in Florida, and her dad has a house with a guest house there. And there's the beach.

So maybe that's the plan.

But the midwest/near west still seems like a good plan, too. Because the largest ball of twine? Is still growing.