Cycling

Zipped around Peoria today on Gamera, my trusty city bike. I've been riding around for a couple of weeks now, off and on (fickle spring weather permitting), but I'm just starting to feel as if I'm getting my "bike legs" back, in the sense that, even when I get tired, it's a good kind of tired, rather than feeling like I need a nap. Taking a shower afterwards was heavenly.

I've been everywhere, man

create your own personalized map of the USA
or write about it on the open travel guide

OK, "everywhere" is a bit of an exaggeration--I'm missing pretty much all of the West and Northwest. Still, this was an interesting exercise:

1)I'm counting every state that I actually set foot in, however briefly, but not those that I travelled across but didn't stop in. So, I've taken the train from NYC to Boston, but I didn't actually get off the train in Connecticut or Rhode Island, so those aren't reddened. On the other hand, I've gotten out of the car in South Dakota while driving up I-29 to Fargo, and I'm counting that. Ditto for my "visit" to Virginia, which occurred during a teenage visit to the Cumberland Gap; somewhere there's a picture of me standing on the very spot at which the state lines of Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee meet, all skinny and with a full head of hair, wearing my Alice Cooper T-shirt. Ah, youth. I've been to California (San Francisco), Colorado (Denver), the Carolinas (Myrtle Beach and Raleigh), Nebraska (Omaha) and Massachusetts (Boston) once each, and Texas (Dallas, both times) twice.

2) I'm a little surprised that I've never been to Louisiana or Florida. Earlier in life, I'd always assumed that I'd take I-55 down to New Orleans sometime, stopping in Memphis on the way to see Graceland. Instead, I lived in Memphis for seven years and never made it down to Nawlins. Ditto for Florida, which numerous friends and family members have been to or live in; it's not even that expensive to fly to. Hrm.

3) I've been to Canada once; other than that, I've never left the United States.

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