We May Never Pass This Way Again
What good is livin’ a life you’ve been given
If all you do is stand in one place? – Lord Huron, Ends of the Earth
I was in Rutland, Vermont today and had to be in Burlington several hours later. So naturally I wanted to check off some historical ghost dancing while I was in the area. There’s a direct route to Burlington from Rutland – drive up Route 7. I chose a more roundabout way to get there that added an hour of driving and another hour of walking around and seeing what I came for. I’ll write about each stop over the next few days.
One stop that proved futile was the primary objective of my side trip. I’d hoped to make a quick stop at Fort Ticonderoga to look around a bit. Unfortunately it doesn’t open until May, which of course means I’ll have to find another reason to detour through this part of the world. The Lake Champlain/Lake George waterway was the superhighway into the interior and served to transport several armies back and forth between the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. Fort Ticonderoga was an important link in the chain of fortifications defending this route. Alas, I’ll have to dance with it another time.
One of the joys of travel is finding the unexpected. I found plenty of unexpected on this trip, and that hour of driving out of the way turned into two extra hours in the car. I don’t regret the extra time, and will gladly trade off some of my evening hours tonight and some of my day off tomorrow to pay back that time for work. Seals and Crofts had a soapy hit song in the 70’s called We may never pass this way again. That’s how I feel about these side trips: I’m there anyway, why not dance with the local ghosts?
Such is the freedom a sales job affords me. As long as I don’t abuse the privilege, a side trip when I’m in an interesting place is a worthwhile investment. Making calls along the way means that I’m killing two birds with one stone. The inner critic tells me not to waste valuable selling time on such pursuits. Will side trips make me rich in sales? Definitely not. Will it give me something more important than money? I think so. Balance is the key of course. Work hard, play hard and all that. Or at least make the most of your opportunities on both sides.