Time to hang out the “Gone fishin’ sign once again

Last week, we were talking about having a soul-themed edition of Travelin’ Music, and I still think that’s a great idea. But not tonight. When we all step aboard the Soul Train, I want to be here. And tonight, I’m not.

In fact, as I mentioned in comments earlier, I’m not going to be around for the next two weeks. And unlike my recent cross-country “vacation,” this time I’m not bringing you with me. As Rick said to Ilsa, “Where I’m going, you can’t follow. What I’ve got to do, you can’t be any part of.” I’m headed out to the high desert of Oregon again for a couple of weeks of whitewater rafting, fishing and camping, and among that region’s many charms is the fact that cell phones and computers are utterly useless out there.

So for tonight, I’ll leave you with this, a piece that serves as the official theme song for the group of guys who have made this same trip annually for almost 20 years now. In fact, somebody at work asked me the other day whether I was ever going to get too old for this trip, given that we run the trip ourselves, without guides.

“Maybe someday,” I told her. “Someday when I’m dead and buried, that is.”

Be kind to each other while I’m gone.