Is this a Chicago Thing? A Trail Tip

Have you ever had the opportunity to do one of those “once in a life time experiences” and didn’t do it??This happened to my wife (Arlene) and me as we were driving home from Nashville to Colorado Springs last fall.?We stayed overnight in a hotel in Topeka, KS. and at breakfast met a couple a few years older than us who were also staying there to go to the “Chicago” concert that night.?And low and behold, they had an extra pair of tickets and wanted to know if we would be their guests.?We thought about it for a minute; thinking about missing another day at work, needing to get home to obligations, getting the dog from the kennel a day later etc, etc, etc.?So we said “Thanks for the offer, but “we have to get home”.?Starting our drive home, we got to the Colorado/Kansas border 360 miles later; then looked at each other and said, “Now why didn’t we take them up on going to the concert with them?”

Since then, we have had a few opportunities to do some last-minute things and we have started evaluating them by asking; “Is this a Chicago Thing that we will regret if we don’t do it.?So, what are the “Chicago Things” you have done or regretted not doing in your life.

In hiking, I’ve missed out on a few “Chicago Things” hikes because I thought chores -which could be postponed a day- were more important.?To avoid missing out on these rare hiking opportunities, I’ve made a list of the high priority hikes I’ve want to do.?With this list in mind and including some done over the past years, I’ve been able to knock off: Ring the Peak, Dixon Trail, the C-49 crash site, Cap Rock, Grand Canyon Rim2Rim, and the B-17 crash site west of Larkspur.?Still on my list (which does grow) is: Crystal Mills, the Colorado Trail, and Everest Base Camp Trek.

In my personal life, the “Chicago Things” I’ve missed mostly center around places with People.?Three-day tuna fishing excursions with my brothers Wayne and Sam (now deceased), Road trip (Chicago to Washington DC) with Arlene to pay last respects to President Reagan, and the Inaugural Ball (we had tickets) for President George W. Bush.?But there are the things we haven’t missed.?Road trips: to St. John’s Newfoundland, Florida, and California.

In my work life, “Chicago Things” missed include: watching a live Shuttle Launch in Florida while at a sales training convention because I thought I had to get home 24 hours sooner, not offering to help co-workers when my “plate” was overflowing with work that “I had to get done immediately”.?On the flip side there are the “Chicago Things” we didn’t miss, which include: a business trip to Washington DC where I was able to bring my family and get a private tour of the White House, several other ?business meetings in different locations where I was able to bring Arlene, and projects I was able to work on because I stretched myself.

“Chicago Things” typically come up at the last minute, are from sources we don’t expect, and they involve work as we need to change our “set” plans on the fly.?They may be part of our bucket list or things we never thought of doing.?The question for Arlene and me has become:?Is this a Chicago Thing we will regret if we don’t do it??If yes, it will likely require some last minute changing to our plans and there could be some extra costs involved, but it will create new memories that will last a life time.?We need to cherish the “Chicago Things” we were able to do in the past, let go of the ones we missed, and anticipate the ones yet to come.?