No Regrets (or Maybe Just a Few)

 

A path to the canal

Yesterday I was looking over one of my favorite NYT sections from the Sunday paper which arrives on Saturday here in Princeton--the Real Estate section.  I look at the pied a terre ads and think about how much I would enjoy a little place in the city from which to head out on my adventures walking in the neighborhoods or visiting the museums.  But that is a dream that will never take place.  Once the threat of Covid is over, I can still go into the city by train and stay in a hotel and do my big city wanderings.  I don't need to own a place.  Much simpler and cheaper to stay in a hotel! We have enjoyed being renters and not having the responsibilities of home ownership any more. 

But that made me think about other dreams I have had that probably or definitely will not take place.  Travel dreams come to mind in particular.   I actually once had a place reserved for a Greek island cruise that included Patmos but I backed out of it.  Later I was not sorry when I realized that seeing Patmos from a cruise ship would be an exercise in crowd control.  I think that if I ever got to see those white buildings on Corfu or the other islands,  I would feel as if I had been there before because of the many photos I have seen.  The same goes for Cinque Terre along the Italian coast--a place I have visited with Rick Steves more than once.

I don't know why I think I want to see the Grand Canyon.  I loved seeing Bryce Canyon but when I walked even a few steps down into the canyon, I thought I might have to crawl back up the path because my acrophobia kicked in hard!  

I asked Jim if there were any dreams he had that were unfulfilled and he mentioned dunking a basketball.  Well, that is a different kind of dream and he is right.  That will not happen in his lifetime.  He said he might like to spend enough time in Israel so that he could be able to speak Hebrew which he reads easily and does so daily.  But he is not seeking out such opportunities.

I hope I can take NJ Transit into NYC again--maybe even in the next several months.  I hope we can make another Florida trip or other warm weather destination next year.  Next November should be a trip to San Antonio for Jim's annual convention which we hope will not have to be virtual again.  On a more limited scale,  I will be happy to head to the Jersey shore for a few days in April and maybe another trip to the Catskills again for a friend's wedding celebration in June and to see Dan and Alex while we are in the area.  And they hope to have a celebration of their own wedding possibly next fall. 

 With our vaccines done, we can begin to hope to branch out a bit more.  I don't have big regrets about what is left undone.  We have done lots of travel and I have many memories of good times.