It’s been quiet at American Dreaming since July, as we spent most of the summer on the road with the kids, and it took September to get everyone back into a routine.
We had an extended visit to Disney and Universal in Orlando. We climbed around the cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde. We went to a rodeo in northern Colorado. We learned at Standing Rock.
We set out for the classic American family roadtrip vacation. But I came home with more questions than I left with.
Why do so many people I know make a point of loudly saying they hate Disney, and then go anyway? And why do so many other families save all year to go back?
Who actually competes in a rodeo, and who runs one?
What happened to the people who built Mesa Verde? The signs call it a mystery. Their descendants tell a different story, and it turns out to be a useful one for anyone wondering how to get through hard times.
America turned 250 this July. Her 250th year runs until next Fourth of July. Between now and then, I’m going to include American Dreaming pieces about what I saw on this trip.
Those essays will run alongside the usual ones about work, money, ownership, and our social contract in the age of AI. The next one is up next week. It’s about robots, three famous laws, and what a mother knows about teaching something to be good.
Glad to be back!