My friends at Icelandair emailed me again yesterday, pitching the myriad advantages of using their planes to get me where I want to go.

Where I want to go Reykjavik.  In mid-October specifically.  There’s this little music festival that I have become quite enamored with, and I sing (no pun intended, because I can’t sing) its praises often.  But darn that cold, hard, emotionless economic reality.   Airwaves has never been a bargain trip, at least for those of us paying in dollars.  (Hard cold economic fact #2-dollar doesn’t go as far as it used to.  Not Icelandair or Airwaves fault.)   But there was still a sense of value in what you were buying.  Lots of great, under the radar bands, in a compact, manageable location.  An interesting, hospitable urban environment with plenty to do outside of the music, and for the more adventurous and less hung over festival goers, the opportunity to hit the truly unique Icelandic countryside, and be back in town in time for dinner, pre-game drinks and another night of band hopping.   Cool, cool, cool.

But when the costs nears 3 bills, the trip is seen through another prism.  “3k?  What kind of (other) trips can we take for that? “  The list is long.   This is not a happy conversation by the way.  We WANT to do this again.  It’s not become hum-drum, nor are we jaded by the prospect of Airwaves trip #3.   Perhaps we will just bite the bullet and pay, or somehow, miraculously,  it will become more affordable.  I know, very unlikely, but one can hope…