Coming from Missouri, a state with only one lighthouse, (and one not even listed by the Shanklin's, although they do have a picture of it) I remember the anticipation of things to come, the frenetic pace of the days, the relaxed atmosphere on the evenings, the incomparable views, conversations on the bus with Bruce Roberts and Ray Jones, my first visit to the Lighthouse Depot, passing through the relatively calm waters of Newport Harbor, Rhode Island, agreeing that I could see an invisible lighthouse 22 miles past the Cape Neddick light being described by one of the locals, driving from dawn to dusk to visit another 35 lighthouses in the week following the weekend, standing in the rain and fog trying to see the second tower on Thatcher's Island, listening to sound of the waves on the beach below Nauset Light, talking to John Chidester about his beard and cap, giving up on the call for reservations and then calling "one last time", discussing the Harbor Lights signed sculpture sitting on the table inside Stonington Harbor Light with the curator, finding the donut shop around the corner from the hotel, the attendant in Mystic Seaport who told us where to drive to properly photograph the Mystic Seaport light that people are not supposed to photograph, wondering where all the sweatshirts embossed with lighthouses came from, the great restaurant in Saybrook and finding out after the fact that the lighthouse was on private property, the submarine passing in front of New London Ledge Light, meeting new friends at dinner, meeting and speaking with the marine artist, Wyland, at a children's art program in Newport and as he was creating a "whaling wall" on a building in New London, seeing Woods Hole, not seeing all the light on Cape Cod, finding out who belonged to some of the really interesting forum user names, boring people at home for months with stories from the Reunion, wondering how they could design a hotel with so few elevators, begging for film on the boat, a car full of maps, getting a sense of the life of lighthouse keeper on Rose Island, the mystique of the Younger clan, the ornate design detail of Bug Light, talking to John Gaskill about Bodie Island Light, feeling angry with the owner of the Cape Elizabeth light for renovating his privately owned property, the wonder of so many varied individuals from different backgrounds coming together for a common experience, at least for a while .... and two hundred or so other small things.