Patty’s Ponderings:Facebook Envy

You’ve probably heard about the new German study that found a lot of people feel miserable after checking out the Facebook pages of friends and relatives filled with vacation photos of smiling faces in warm and wonderful places.

That must be it! I have been feeling a little despondent about all the tropical trips friends have been taking lately. I mean the last time I was in Mexico, it was in Tijuana, in the 1960s and I was having my picture taken in a sombrero, on a burro for postcards my dad just had to have! There was no all-inclusive resort with white sand, infinity pools and all the libations I could slug down, with the love of my life beside me.

Now don’t get me wrong, I have done a great deal of travel in my life. Most of it, (with the exception of Tijuana and two World Fairs in Canada), has been in the U.S.  I have been enthralled by our gorgeous national parks from coast-to-coast, savored beaches of the north and southwest coast, Florida too. Big and small cities, historic sites, museums, aquariums, zoos, redwood forests and sea life parks have all been explored by me and my family.

I have been so very lucky to have seen all these places and grateful for the gift of travel, and yet- - - I still long for that tropical vacation experience and the undoubtedly painful sunburn I’d end up with.  Stupid Facebook!