Now this will sound strange, but...

(John) Near the end of this school year, I got my usual short summer haircut. My students, as second graders often do, reacted negatively to the change. I guess new and different is the same as bad to a second grader's mind. Actually, I suppose I could say that about many adults as well.

By now you are probably wondering, what that heck does this have to do with the trip? Just bear with me please. Some of my students might get a kick out of this!

Today, I realized that I often change my hair when I travel, and that includes my beard. So here I am on the eve of my departure, and I've changed my beard again. It's gone!

Here is the story of my facial hair during travel: (is this an esoteric subject, or what?)

The top left picture is me in 1986. It was about 5am and I'm about to depart on my first independent vacation without parents. I had turned 21 just one month prior. I had been living on my own since I was about 18. In my new Ford Escort I was headed for the San Francisco Bay area.

The top right pic is Christmas of 1988. I had moved to Seattle the previous year and I flew home to San Diego for the holiday. It was the first time I had ever flown on my own. The facial hair began that year with a moustache. I wanted folks at work to take me seriously. I thought a moustache would help. Besides, guys in Seattle have a reputation for looking rugged. Did the moustache do the trick? Apparently not...

Flash ahead to 1994. The bottom left picture has me with a full beard. Gene and I celebrated our first anniversary in New York City and Boston. It was the first time either one of us had visited "The Big Apple." This pic was taken on top of the Empire State Building. By the year of that trip, I had worn a full but closely trimmed beard for about six years.

Finally, bottom right - that pic was taken in February of this year, 2005. We were hiking through Joshua Tree National Park near Palm Springs. The full beard is gone and I have what is known as a Van Dyke - a moustache and goatee combination.

If you want to know what I look like now, you'll have to wait until I post a pic during our travels in Europe. But, with a little imagination, you can envision a preview. Take the first pic from 1986 and add 19 more years and about 20 pounds. Otherwise, for the real thing - stay tuned...