I was writing another piece about politics but deleted it after it depressed me too much. Then I read this article that sums up what I was wanting to say: What he said.

Jon and I are probably going up to Gatlinburg for vacation this year. The times we have been up there we have enjoyed it. I highly recommend the Ripley's attractions, especially the haunted house and the aquarium. On the whole I'd rather go to the Caribbean again, but we probably won't have the money.

Speaking of, I want to go to Puerto Rico for our next prohibitively expensive vacation. I lived in Puerto Rico from 1967 to 1977 (from when I was 3 to when I was 13) and I'd like to go there to see what I remember. And that brings us to my top 10 list of the day:

Top 10 Good Puerto Rico Memories

10: The ocean was my back yard
When we lived in Isla Verde, which is a tourist strip near San Juan, our apartment building was right there on the beach. Kids do *not* appreciate what they have. I certainly didn't until we moved to Stone Frickin Mountain, Georgia and I couldn't hear the ocean any more.

9: Dad's Sailboat Excursions
I have soooo many fragmented memories of sailboats. I much prefer them to motor boats because the noise is different. Any way my dad had a boat, or boats, or partnerships in boats, or something like that and I loved those trips. I'll have to ask him about those one day.

8: Tropical Storms
The wrath of nature is kewl! The best thing was when it rained so hard the floors of the walkways to the apartments were slippery. Us kids would have built in slip n' slides.

7: Empanadillas, lechon, and bacalaitos
Some people find Puerto Rican food bland. I don't know what they're smoking. Or eating. I love Puerto Rican food! Even Mofongo.

6: My Dad's Wife's Parent's House in Yauco
Dad divorced mom and married a Puerto Rican woman. Yeah, If I have a top 10 list of bad Puerto Rico memories, the divorce is number 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8, and 9. Number 10 - well, we won't talk about that one.
Anyhow, Eleana's parents were real nice to us and I feel bad I didn't talk with them much. Do I ever? I was shocked to discover that because I wouldn't talk with anyone I was considered stuck up. Excuse me, are there any SHY hispanics? Hello??? Aparently not.

But I digress yet again: they had a nifty house in Yauco near the ocean. There were cliffs all along the ocean and I'd scale them like Spider-Man all the time.

Oh! I like Eleana. I admire her for putting up with my dad for a quarter of a century. I love my dad, don't get me wrong, but he's a LOT like me. I feel sorry for anyone who marries a Boykin.

5: El Yunque
The tropical rain forest. Not only is it beautiful, it was the only place on the island that is naturally cold. Not *that* cold, but to me it was pretty dang chilly.

4: Sand Forts
Like kids with snow forts. Yes, we had sand ball fights, and some one inevitably ran upstairs screaming because he/she got sand in his/her eyes. *Hah!* None of us got frost bite. You haven't lived until you gouge sand out of every orfice you own.

3: Old San Juan
When I was a kid I was besotted with the ideas of pirates. Arr! Old San Juan was originally enclosed, with a couple of forts guarding the entrance into San Juan Harbor (from pirates! and the English). El Morro and San Cristobal were the two I remember. I got a huge kick out of those places.

2: Climbing palm trees
I could scale one like a monkey. Yes, I climbed anything I could get a grip on.

1: The Ocean
Some people who grew up near the Atlantic don't appreciate warm, clear, tropical waters. Okay it wasn't always warm or clear, but I spent so much time in the ocean it never held any fear for me. I stayed out when the jellyfish would beach themselves, but I never got stung. I knew to stay away from mustard coral and sea urchins. And sharks are not that big a threat where the water is clear. And someone once told me the barracuda chase them off. And barracuda aren't really a threat, either.

Oh, shit. I'm really getting fired up about going there again. I do intellectually realize that after 27 (27?!!? Holy Shite!) years nothing will be the same, but I gotta see.

Oh, all right: #10 bad memory from Puerto Rico: Disco followed me to the states. Yeaargh!