wanderlust

Lately all I really want to do is pack some dresses and hats into my picnic basket suitcase and hit the road in my nonexistent old red car (yep, it's gotta be red, folks).

I want to go back to Oregon and explore its forests and mountains.  I want to go back to Alabama and eat copious amounts of hushpuppies and cheese grits.  I want to go back to Iowa and stay in the attic of my great grandma's old house and catch one of the two movies playing at the local theatre.  I want to go back to North Carolina to admire all the furniture and antiques.  I want to go back to Illinois and really get to know the Windy City.  And I basically need to go to New York and Boston to visit the family I have there, because I've never had the chance!

And those are just the places where I have family that I have visitied (or not, in the case of NY and Boston).  There are so many other places I want to go that I have no connections whatsoever to. But that doesn't matter; I'm ready to form my own connections and discover so much more about my country on my own...

and eat its awesome food,

and scour its varied plains and antique shops,

and meet its diverse people,

and hear its music.

There is so much out there to see, taste, smell, touch, and hear.  I can't wait to try to experience it all.

And I will.

But first, I need to graduate (crazy to fathom, that this milestone is so close that it's near the top of my life's to-do list).

And I will.

But first, I need to get some sleep (first on the to-do list).