Every so often I make this big promise to myself that I'm going to write a monthly blog about our adventures.
It never happens. Why? Honestly... I don't know.
Okay... it's because I feel stupid saying, "I want to blog." That sounds a little pretentious, doesn't it? I can already hear all of my cousins making fun of me. That's what family's for, right?
The truth is, I've always liked telling stories.
Years ago I got sick, I spent a few months being... not so great. After I got better, two things changed for me. I wanted to eat everything...and I wanted to see history.
During treatment I became obsessed with Anthony Bourdain. Stacy and I would sit on the couch watching episode after episode while I survived on mashed potatoes and about 500 calories a day. Watching someone travel the world eating incredible food made me realize how much I wanted to experience life once I was healthy again.
History was my other obsession.
I was terrible in school, but I loved history class. Ever since a trip to Washington, D.C. with my brother when I was a kid, I've loved museums, old places, and the stories behind them. Thankfully, what we do for a living gives us the chance to see some of those places.
Now before I start sounding like I'm saying being a magician is the hardest job in the world... let me stop myself. I've cleaned houses, worked in factories, and worked in the service industry. Every job has hard days and good stories.
Magic just happens to be ours.
Most of the time we drive somewhere, perform the show, and head home. But over the last few years we've tried to do things differently. If we have an extra day, we stay.
We buy coffee from the local shop, eat at restaurants we've never heard of, walk the trails, and try to experience the community instead of just passing through it.
This summer we've been fortunate enough to perform regularly at Woodloch Pines Resort in the Pocono Mountains. Normally we'd drive up, perform, sleep a few hours, and head straight back to Cleveland.
Truth be told... I actually enjoy those drives.
But eventually we realized we were visiting one of the prettiest parts of Pennsylvania without ever really seeing it. So, we borrowed my parents' 19-foot camper and stayed at Keen Lake for three weeks... in hopes of creating memories and while trying not to kill each other living in a box on wheels.
Originally, I planned on writing about camper life myself. Then I realized something…I'm always the one writing.
So, I've been encouraging Stacy to tell this story from her point of view instead. She's writing about our first camper adventure, the World Cup, and even our bear encounter... which I may or may not have exaggerated just a little.
This is the beginning of us writing these adventures down.
Hopefully it's the first of many. And if all goes according to plan, keep an eye out for Stacy's blog next.
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