I took my kids out of school and took an unplanned day off work in the middle of an important meeting series to drive 5 hours west from Virginia to Ohio to see the last eclipse. The schools and my boss were both yelling at me, both saying the eclipse wasn't a good enough excuse. I'm sorry, but it definitely was. I am so glad I did that. I would do it again in a heartbeat.

I drove ~3 hours to the Vermont-Canada border... and then drove 14 hours home. I'd also do it again in a heartbeat.

I almost signed up for a live-work program for a big music festival happening in Iceland, but the flights (the only thing not covered) were astronomically expensive and I had already made plans with my dad last weekend, and he's getting older so I really didn't want to bail on him.

I would love to sit atop the Rock of Gibraltar (with 47,000 other people) for the next one, Aug 2 2027, but that is likely also a pipe-dream, because NORMAL flights to Gibraltar are already too expensive for me.

Both myself and my boss took off work to see the last one. Though unplanned it was not, as eclipses can be predicted centuries in advance. I intended to see it before even working there. Looking forward to the next local one in 2045.

In many places in Europe that could have cost you jail time.

I took off work to drive from Houston to Little Rock to see the eclipse at 100% and I'm so glad I did. I can't imagine prioritizing a temporary job over a once in a lifetime event.

I had a colleague who really wanted to see the eclipse but felt bad about taking off from work, so he didn't go. He ended up being laid off within a year. I feel terrible for him. I also learned how important it is to keep perspective on what matters.