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A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…

(Actually, this introduction has nothing to do with my story, it’s just that ever since I first saw Star Wars, I’ve always wanted to write a story that started that way.)

Back in the 90’s I spent almost a year working on site at a Marathon refinery located in the sleepy little town of Robinson, Illinois. Now, Robinson is one of those Midwestern towns that’s so small (c’mon, everybody: “how small was it?”), that when you asked for directions, the response would always begin with the phrase, “Go to the stop light and…” Yep, there was only one (at least at the time - although I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s another one by now.)

Robinson actually does have several unique claims to fame. For instance, if you’re a Heath Bar fan, pull one out (you do have one don’t you?), take a real close look at the package and you’ll see the phrase, “Made in Robinson, Ill.” printed somewhere on it. In fact, the town used to have a refinery on one end, the Heath chocolate factory on the other end, and depending on which way the wind is blowing, well, let’s just say it could make or break your day.

Another interesting fact was that in this little town of population 6000 (according to the sign – I’d swear there weren’t more than a few thousand in reality), there used to be FOUR multi-million-dollar Illinois State lottery winners living there! Now, as to why they would choose to live there over some other place is really no big deal – but at least it gives you an interesting tidbit to drop into your next dinner conversation sometime.

So why am I writing about this place most of you have probably never heard of or been to?

I guess the recent writing project about travel has me thinking a lot about the places I’ve been. (Remember Dr. Seuss’s book, Oh, the Places You’ll Go?) Some have been huge metropolises metropoli cities the size of Chicago or London. Most have been… a lot smaller. But for me, the interesting thing is that each place is unique in its own special way. In fact, when any two people visit the same spot - they will both experience a unique location.

It’s unique, not just because of itself, but also because of what we bring with us.

Just wanted to celebrate that today.

Cheers!

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