Here's the dilemma:
My wife doesn't want any of us to get the coronavirus. She's very careful about it. She doesn't think getting on planes is a good idea.
However, my wife is also incredibly ... "thrifty." She'll go back to the store and stand in line for an hour if they didn't give her a five-cent credit for a coupon for spaghetti.
So, when American Airlines said our vouchers from last year's vacation debacle had to be used by the end of July, and my wife had to choose between COVID and losing $800 and her feeling like she was sticking it to American Airlines because of all the problems we had last year ... money and revenge won. They always do.
My reason for going? My kids are 13 and 10 now. I'm more aware each year that there aren't too many summers left for a family vacation with my "little ones." I'm not going to let the coronavirus destroy a summer's worth of memories with my family. And we're sick of being home. And we can't drive somewhere (didn't you JUST READ about the flight vouchers?).
We wanted to go somewhere quiet, serene, and out-of-the-way. I suggested downtown Portland.
We thought about several places, and I was just staring at a map at all the lakes, national parks, and wide-open space around Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. When I found a great rate on a full day's worth of whitewater rafting that includes the kids (and me) jumping off a waterfall, we had our flights booked one minute later.
So, I'll be back on the air Thursday morning. "Our American Stories" fills in Friday morning with stories about "Nebraska's Own" Joe Moglia in the 9am hour and a great story about an American-loving immigrant in the 10am hour. Glenn Beck fills in Monday through Wednesday.
I'm excited to get away with my family. We love swimming and hiking, and we've never done whitewater rafting before. It looks dangerous, but what's the worst that could happen...?