Q: Where has the piper been?

A: All over!

It's true, I've been away for about the last month, and haven't posted anything to the blog for a while before that. For the regular readers (all two of you) I've made it difficult to read regularly, and I'm not going to swear to post more often because it's a promise I won't be able to keep.

Anyway, here's the itinerary of where I've been since school ended. There's a summary at the end if you don't want to read the whole thing.

Stage 1, June 13-June 17: Home. School's out, I'm excited and getting ready for a long road trip. Yahoo!
Stage 2, June 18-20: The Drive. Left Fryeburg on June 18, spent that night with a friend in Westbrook, CT, then spent the night of June 19 with my sister and brother-in-law in York, PA. Arrived at the parents' house in Finksburg, MD on Friday, June 20.
Stage 3, June 20-21: Parents. Played golf with my dad and generally hung out. The lovely and talented Kayla arrived for a short visit on Saturday evening (June 21).
Stage 4, June 22-27: Piping School. Departed on Sunday June 22 for a week of piping school at Shenandoah University in Winchester, VA. A great time, some new friends, and a lot of piping. My notion that Roddy MacLeod is a super cool guy were reinforced, and Colin MacLellan was also determined to be a super cool guy.
Stage 5, June 27-30: The Wedding and Visiting. Chris and Emily, two of my good friends from Fryeburg, got married in Grass Lake, Michigan. Kayla and I drove up on Friday afternoon and evening (~8 hours from Winchester). A really nice wedding, the first visit to Michigan for both of us. Left Michigan on Sunday the June 29, stayed that night with my friends Patty and Alan in Ligonier, PA, then back to the parents' house on June 30.
Stage 6, July 1-6: Hanging out. Mostly in Finksburg area, I did exactly as described. Cut the grass, played golf again, caught up with a few high school friends.
Stage 7, July 7-8: Virginia. Drove down Monday to visit Kayla for a few days. Went to Kings Dominion on Tuesday and were dominated by the new roller coaster, Dominator.
Stage 8, July 9-10: The Drive, Part II. Left from Staunton, VA on Wednesday and drove to visit another friend in Fairfield, CT. Continued the drive home to Fryeburg on July 10 (Thurs).
Stage 9, July 10: Fryeburg. 24 hours at home, just enough time to see the cat, do a bit of laundry, and shoot off a few fireworks (illegal in Maine). Note that this is the first night I've slept in my own bed since June 17.
Stage 10, July 11-18: Vermont. Band practice Friday evening at St. Johnsbury Academy, then hang out in St. J until Sunday afternoon. Sunday sees the beginning of an AP Summer Institute held at St. J Academy. This was a week-long workshop with a very experienced teacher of AP Physics. It was really worthwhile, a lot of good information, and a lot of good networking with other physics teachers in New England.
Stage 11, July 19-20: Highland Games. Stayed in St J for band practice again Friday July 18, then drove with Andy to West Springfield, MA. One night in a hotel, then on to the Glasgow Lands Scottish Festival in Northampton, MA on Saturday. Solo competitions, band competition, drive to Stony Point, NY for a night of camping, then a solo competition at the Rockland County Feis on Sunday.
Stage 12, July 20-21: The Drive Home. Drove from NY to Randolph, MA and stayed the night with cousins. Drove back to Fryeburg on Monday, arrived about 2:00 pm. Home at last!

Here's the promised summary.

Days since the end of school: 38
Nights spent at home: 6
Number of different beds: 15 (including one night of camping) in 9 different states

It's good to be home; I'll be here for about 10 days then off on another piping-related road trip. Whew!