In my 43+ years of life, I have been blessed with being able to see most of this beautiful country. As a child, my parents shunned the idea of summer camp and always herded us in the car for our annual summer trip. Usually, we went to Florida or Atlantic City. But, no matter where we went, it was almost always by car.

As I got older, I started to follow in my father's footsteps. From the very first year that I got my license (1980), I took a trip out of state. Sometimes with friends, sometimes alone. Even after I got married, my yearly trips (sometimes more than once a year) continued. Now, in 2006, I hyave kept up that streak without exception. To me, there is no greater feeling than being behind the wheel of a car, driving out in the middle of gawd-knows-where.

So, in honor of that tradition, I present the latest installment of my TOP 10.

TOP 10 FAVORITE U.S. LOCATIONS
(note: these can be a city, neighborhood, or just a stretch of road - but they all have one thing in common - if the end comes and I am in one of these places, I will die happy. Well, maybe not happy, but certainly happy about dying there).

10. Key West (Florida)
G-d may have made Texas on the eigth day, but he vacationed in Margaritaville. My lifelong dream is to spend summers in the Blue Ridge Mountains and winters with Jimmy Buffett.

9. Big Sur (California)
Where the sky meets the sun. 'Nuff said.

8. Bachman Lake (Dallas, TX)
Sitting in, or on top of your car, you can make out the faces of the airline passengers as they land next door at Love Field. Speaking of making out...

7. Times Square (New York City)
If you're looking for it all, look no further. It's amazing how alone one can be surrounded by thousands of people. When you're on top, it's the most wonderous place. When you're down, it's miserable. But regardless, it's never boring.

6. Turner Falls (Oklahoma)
Peace, quiet and cool water. When not too crowded, a small slice of heaven.

5. Sevierville/Pigeon Forge (Tennessee)
Forget about Dollywood. As the sun sets on the Smokey Mountains, you can not help but believe in G-d.

4. Lake Eufuala (Georgia-Alabama border)
Poverty on the east bank, Antebellum on the west. Make sure to hide the basketball and the fish tank!

3. Julia Tuttle Causeway - eastbound (Miami - Miami Beach, FL)
Excitement builds as the hotels come in to view. Maybe this would be the best summer yet.

2. Lake Shasta (California)
Clear blue waters, a three-day houseboat trip, best friends and Billy Joel's Glass Houses in the summer of 1980.

1. Skyline Drive (Virginia)
Most people who know me, know of my love of the Virginia mountains. The view from some of these mountains is like "the songs that the darkness composes to worship the light" - Dan Fogelberg

Other places considered strongly:
Mulholland Drive (between Laurel and Coldwater Canyons), California
Boulder, Colorado
Knoxville, Tennessee
Lake Travis - Austin, Texas
N. Druid Hills - Atlanta, Georgia
Squaw Peak - Phoenix, Arizona
International Bridge - Port Huron, MI/Sarnia, Ontario
Highway 9W - Upstate, New York
Cooperstown, New York
Interstate 86 Hartford to Boston
Mississippi River bridge - Memphis, TN and Vicksburgh, MS
Interstate 70 (eastbound) - just west of Denver, Colorado
San Luis Reservoir - California
Susquehanna River bridge (southbound) - near Aberdeen, Maryland
Golden Gate Park - San Francisco, California
Lake Shore Drive (southbound) - Chicago, Illinois
Wrigley Field - Chicago, Illinois
Texas Stadium - Irving, Texas
and last, but certainly not least, Bucksnort, Tennessee.