Sir Joshimus and I consider ourselves explorers.  Not in the classical sense – going into the wilderness and finding something that has never been seen before.  In the sense that a lot of people can be explorers – going out into the world and finding something you’ve never seen before.  Do you know what happens when you go where you’ve never been before, particularly if you are willing to take interesting looking roads?  You get lost.  A lot.  But that’s the point.   If you don’t get lost, you can’t be found.  I’ve found myself many times, in many ways, when we have gotten ourselves lost.  We’ve gone to Chicago and Murphy, NC.  And we’ve come to Alabama where we’ve managed to get lost in nearly every area in a 50 mile radius of our home.  Not to mention the paths stretching for hundreds of miles in all directions.

There’s something about seeing things you’ve never seen before, being places you’ve never been before, that expands something within me.  Sure, one country road can look much like another.  Sure, most horse farms will all have certain features.  But that doesn’t lessen the value of each one seen, each road driven.  Don’t believe me?  Try it.

Because that’s the best part about being the kind of explorer that Joshimus and I are.  It doesn’t take a whole lot of time and money.  It doesn’t even take great courage, not really.  It just takes curiosity, something we were all born with.  And you don’t have to go exploring country roads if that isn’t your thing.  You can go explore a new city – or even a part of your own city that you’ve never seen before.  We had as much fun exploring the neighborhoods of Chicago and finding those great little eateries – you know, the ones that never make it onto those food shows on the Travel Channel or Food Network, but that all the locals know is really the best place to eat in town.

And you can explore any way you want to.  Yes, most of our explorations happen on the back of a scooter these days.  And let me tell you – yes, for the thousandth time – that there is nothing like being on two wheels.  But if that isn’t your thing, you can walk, bike, take a bus, or drive your car.  Before Joshimus and I bought the scooter, we still explored.  There are places we saw in the Jimmy that we’d never try on the scooter – one lane dirt roads  that led us through the most interesting – and occasionally zombie-apocalypse-style terrifying – places we’ve ever been.  It’s not about how you go – hell, it’s not even about where you go.  It’s about feeling that surge of curiosity, “where does that road lead?”, and following it to find out.  It’s about getting off of YOUR beaten path and finding something you didn’t know before.

The best part about being a modern-day explorer is that literally anyone can do it.  Don’t compare your adventures to someone else’s and find them lacking.  Because that person might have found something you haven’t, but you never know if they are looking at something you’ve discovered and wishing they could have taken that journey, too.

Why does any of this matter?  Why do I want all of you to become modern explorers?  Because like anyone who has found happiness, I want to share it with the world.  I do that, some, by sharing our videos.  But I try to keep the videos short so that you stay interested.  One video might be just under 4 mins long, like yesterday’s The Joy of Getting Lost, but it could represent 3 hours of riding.  So even if the videos are as good as Sir Joshimus seems to think, they can only give you a glimpse of what we’re experiencing.  And I want you to experience it for yourself.