Not a very crowded area at 4 p.m. on a Wednesday.

Previously on Midlife Crisis Crossover:

Every year since 1999 my wife Anne and I have taken a trip to a different part of the United States and visited attractions, wonders, and events we didn’t have back home in Indianapolis. From 1999 to 2003 we did so as best friends; from 2004 to the present, as husband and wife. My son tagged along from 2003 until 2013 when he ventured off to college. We’ve taken two trips by airplane, but are much happier when we’re the ones behind the wheel — charting our own course, making unplanned stops anytime we want, availing ourselves of slightly better meal options, and keeping or ruining our own schedule as dictated by circumstances or whims. We’re the Goldens. It’s who we are and what we do.

For years we’ve been telling friends in other states that we’d one day do Atlanta’s Dragon Con, one of the largest conventions in America that isn’t in California or New York. We’d been in Atlanta, but we hadn’t really done Atlanta. Hence this year’s vacation, in which we aimed for a double proficiency in Atlanta tourism and over-the-top Dragon Con goodness. Before we went to D*C, there was the road trip to get there, and the good times to be had before the great times at the big show.

After my little shopping diversions we had time for one more attraction before all the major tourist-related businesses would close for the day. As it happened, Anne had exactly one stop left on her to-do list, the capper on her quest for local and national history from another state’s perspective. Thus the Georgia State Capitol became the latest addition to our collection of state capital domes.

This would be our eleventh dome, I think, counting DC. We’ve missed a few capitals because they’ve never been an absolute must in our priorities. We’ve definitely seen more Presidential burial sites than State Capitols. Which reminds me, one day we’ll have to return to Georgia one day to pay respects at Jimmy Carter’s final resting place, though at the rate he keeps persevering, he may outlive us both on sheer force of goodwill.

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