like every year i get invited by colleagues to their family gatherings and i always decline. i tell them my plans, honestly, and say i dont do those things anymore. that i enjoy being selfish and will continue my travels. the men will say to me, "stay single, its the smart choice" in front of their families. where the wife will then chime in with something equally comedic and in jest. deep down, i think, men like this went first and that knowledge, freed me. ive always been free. so when the mufflers reverb through the canyons of the rockies, i will think of you all.