100 and Done! (Countries that is...)

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We are back! This last trip brought the total countries visited to 100! It is a crazy milestone. It is difficult, time-consuming and can be (IS) expensive. After I got back from Antarctica in 2007, I started thinking about it. After 2010 I was thinking about it more (as I moved from NY to Georgia) and in 2014 it had become a real goal. Between Angie and I we have been to 109 Countries. We are tied at 100 countries each. We have 9 countries different in our lists. For example, I have been to San Marino. She has not. She has been to Israel. I have not, yet. There has been some fun competition in this area. That's why we had to establish rules. 1.) Must be listed (as a country) with the US State Department 2.) Being in an airport doesn't count. You have to get through immigration somehow and not in a DMZ or a no-mans-land 3.) A passport stamp is not required. I have been to Canada, Paraguay, and Uruguay without getting my passport stamped. There are friendly borders in many places...
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I went to the Salvation Army the other night, both for donation and shopping. It was a refreshing experience around the holidays. It was illuminating seeing all the clothes and stuff that had been donated. There was a lot of stuff to be sure. It helped me remember and put in place all the excess of our society. People today get what they need not what they want. I know it doesn't always seem like that all the time, but the fact of the matter is that our society is very affluent and is excessive even at the Salvation Army. It was quite nice to see the efforts of folks trying to better themselves and the facilitation of goodwill without a single "Merry Christmas" or item of the commercial blitz that begets the normal holiday culture of which we are all immersed. Christmas in Antarctica helped me see the overload we are subjected to in our normal lives.






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