The conclusion of Bill & James' Excellent Adventure in the Jordan starts off with lost luggage and ends with an escape from a desert hut. With no air conditioning, an inexperienced driver and only 3 tires, our Dynamic Duo still managed to clinch an amazing time halfway around the world. They also crossed off another "world wonder" in Petra, which has sparked a lot of talk about trying to see them ALL before their buckets kick one day.
This is Part 2 of 2 for the guys' trip to the Middle East, so if you haven't checked out the Egypt episode, make sure you do.

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While James was slagging off in Egypt somewhere, Denise was making inroads with more Texans and expanding our map in the Lone Star State. A trip up to San Antonio turned into a meet-and-greet with one of our listeners, and that lunch meeting ended with an invite to "Come to Boerne sometime!"

Boerne? Never heard of it. Why is it pronounced "bur-nie" rather than Boerne? Well, we didn't have time to ponder that long, because when James returned to Texas, Denise was packing the car for the Hill Country. Turns out, a local artist in Boerne (childressart.com) also reached out with an invite to come check it out, too. That was 2 invites in 2 weeks, and we had to see what the draw was.

When we rolled up to Main Street, it was pretty obvious this was a town that checked all of the boxes when you think of a Texas town. It's pretty incredible, and the people we met were just as welcoming as our new friends. Find out why!

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We were grinding our way through Texas when James was hit with an interesting proposition from his friend, Bill. Insiders call him "Billy Goat." Okay, only James calls him that.

At any rate, Bill had a friend drop out on a planned trip to Egypt, Jordan and Israel and called James off the bench to be the next man up. With all the Hollywood strikes about to pop off, James realized he'd have some time on his hands.

Denise also wanted him out of her hair for awhile because he'd been a cranky ass, so all this leads up to James booking a flight and landing in Cairo four days later. Here's the recap of what happens when you torch caution and join your best buddy on the most epic road trip, ever!

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It's been a pretty interesting time here in South Texas. For starters, we've been borderline couch surfing at our daughter's new home... mostly because her new couch is more comfortable than the guest bed. She flew our coop over 6 years ago, so getting reaquainted with Parker has been mostly amazing but sometimes very surreal. Turns out she's an adult with her own mind now and, well, we're just not used to that!

Beyond the issues of purchasing an old house, we definitely have a full picture of this Guld city--and predictions about what it's going to look like in 5 years. So strap in and catch up with all things Corpus because we're about to resume our own hometown search now that our kid is settled in!

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No need for flowery prose here. Cousin Judy is BACK! Your favorite cousin is here to download you on cruise vacations, riverboat adventures and trends in the floating hotel industry. Huzzah!

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Welcome to our Golden Anniversary... 50 episodes in, and a year of hometown hunting under our belt. Couldn't have done it without you!

We thought there was no better way to celebrate our milestone than to invite one of the OGs in the digital nomad lifestyle on the show. You may already be familiar with The Professional Hobo but in case you aren't, Nora Dunn traded a successful career as a financial planner for a new way of living in 2006. She's been all over the planet, working the whole time. Her YouTube channel has made her an authority on travel hacks, living abroad and remote working and we're so excited to present this episode to you!

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When Denise caught wind of a nature preserve in a little town called Kingsville less than an hour south of Corpus Christi, her ears perked up. When James found out that said nature preserve had real-life raptor birds ready to put on a show and devour piles of meat, he brought every lens in the camera bag!

From El Potrero Ranch to the 106-year old Harrell's Kingsville Pharmacy, the neighborly vibes were also on full display everywhere--even the Mayor showed up to talk to your favorite empty nesters.

Kingsville is full of potential and affordable housing, and speculators are starting to take notice. If you're into fishing--or crushing four-dollar burgers at the corner store--then you may want to give Kingsville--or nearby Baffin Bay--a solid look!

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In the Northeastern part of Louisiana sits the 3rd oldest city in the US, and is best-known for 2 things. The first is that its name, Natchitoches, sounds nothing like its pronunciation, "nack-a-tish." The second is it's the town where the true story of Steel Magnolias is based. Turns out Denise has seen the movie 12 times and cried every single time. Conversely, it's like ambien to James. He's tried to watch it in 3 different decades and failed to stay awake every single time.

The hotel was fantastic, but the nightlife--at 8:15PM--was virtually non-existent. It wasn't until they stumbled into a bingo hall that things seemed to take a turn in a more exciting direction. The food was mostly good, when they could find it. Turns out, catching a restaurant between 2-5pm for a late lunch is REALLY a struggle.

For a town with a university and so many festivals during the year, the dynamic duo thought there would be a vibrancy on the streets of this beautiful setting. What they found wasn't exactly a traveler's paradise, and instead some mixed reviews from the locals, themselves.

Special thanks to the Church Street Inn!

We're dropping additional content you can't see here on YouTube... including our "Ask a Local" series. Check it out!

For someone who never watches HGTV, Denise sure knows A LOT about the hosts of their shows. James knew nothing about Laurel, Mississippi or the show "Home Town," but you best believe he knew Erin and Ben Napier's names by heart by the time we left!

Our first night in this growing town was overshadowed by a grungy hotel in a not-so-great area, but charming Downtown Laurel awaited us the next morning. We were greeted by a few locals, Landon and Kate Bryant, who are the geniuses behing the Southern-centric, uber-successful @landontalks channels on TikTok and Instagram. We all piled into their car for our own special tour of the neighborhoods around Laurel and it certainly did not disappoint.

Tell your "mom 'n them" that what we found in Laurel was a new surprise around every corner. Here lies a town that is charming, ripe with potential and overflowing with civic pride. Spoiler alert: Our prediction is that, in 5 years, some people are going to be REALLY glad they put skin in the Laurel game.

Check out our YouTube channel for our "Ask a Local" segments and videos you can't find here on the audio platform. As always, please share, REVIEW and rate our show if you like us... and of course you can skip this part if you don't!

We started a brand new journey and are hitting 3 towns as we ramble toward Corpus Christi. The first stop? Auburn, AL. Denise was angling for the prestige of The Laurel Hotel, and scored even bigger when she landed the Presidential Suite at The Hotel at Auburn University. We got to experience the best in AU's culinary arts program and landed an interview with a big fish in the Auburn real estate market (and on TikTok), Amy Barton Cotney! Amy gave us a download on what's happening in the towns of Auburn, Lake Martin and Opelika and it was a hoot. We took in the sights and tastes and bushels of love this town had to offer--and Denise even did it on horseback!

Ever since our visit to Savannah and Fox Hollow Realty, we've been percolating on the idea that we should pursue a starter home for our oldest daughter, Parker. If you remember, she graduated and moved to that shining--alright, oily--beacon on the Texas Riviera, Corpus Christi.

It was just shy of a year ago that she rolled up to the Lone Star State, looking to launch a career and make her mark. Well, we're proud to say it's paid off.

Parker is now a homeowner!

We've been sitting one this one for a few weeks because, let's face it, anything can jinx a housebuying process. After several near misses and houses getting scooped out from under her, she was getting the first-time buyer-blues. Then, just as it seemed the dream was fading on a house to call her own, Denise and James got the call that she'd roped herself a dogie.

What we didn't tell you back then was we were dab-smack in the middle of our Alabama Bushwacker reverie and had to hit the pause button. What is it with Corpus Christi and interruptions in our travel plans? Within hours, we were on a plane to the "Sparkling City by the Sea" so we could join her for the excitement, the inspection... and the not-so-perfect process that would follow.

Outside of Gainesville, FL sits a town we've passed a hundred times in our travels... and yet never knew existed. Turns out Northern Florida has a well-kept secret to most people passing through, and it comes in the form of just ONE square mile known as the town of Micanopy.

What's the deal with Micanopy? Well, for starters it is it's own time capsule. Roll into town past the tin-roofed houses and you'll quickly find yourself transported into the early 20th century. The cafes may have modern equipment, but the aesthetics of this unique town are free of the chain restaurants and schlocky corporate stores you can find in every suburb in America.

Join us as we recap our visit with the descendants of J.R. Mountain--an original entrepreneur who made Micanopy a must-stop for every Greyhound bus in the 1920s. We sat with two of his grandchildren, Sandra and Billy, for what ended up being a fascinating look into what it took to start a town in Old Florida--and the battles they've fought over the years to keep its beautiful soul.

Could we live there? Pop in those dorky earbuds and find out.

It's been a full year since our house hit the market and we started thinking-about-getting-around-to-considering packing up our belongings and leaving LA. Back then, James was so sure he was going to work remotely--come hell or high water--he was willing to bank his family's future on it. Now, instead of driving to her beauty business every day, Denise is also a remote worker. What's changed?

In this episode, we get into what is different for us now that we're REALLY roaming around and putting the digital nomad paradigm to the test with every new hometown we tackle. More importantly, we dig into the statistics of remote working from 2019-2023 and there are some VERY surprising revelations on what's happening this year. Spoiler alert: the cities everyone fled are making a comeback.

Cousin Judy told us back in Episode 36 that Orange Beach, Alabama was a gem. We (okay, James) kind of dismissed it because we had so MANY other places on our list already. Then, Southern Living magazine dropped their Top 50 Southern Small Towns list and right there, at #15 and 6 hours away from where we were camped out sat Orange Beach & Gulf Shores.

We were expecting an extension of Perdido and some of the other less-than-prime Florida Panhandle beaches. We were happy to be wrong as hell. Grab yourself an Alabama Bushwacker and let us tell you everything you need to know about the beaches, the incredibly classy people and all the things to do in Southern Alabama!

Everyone has their own definition of what "staying young" means. For your favorite town-skippers, it meant divesting from the Los Angeles real estate market and getting their kicks on Route 66 until they found a new one. In this episode we discuss what we believe our TRUE ages to be... and while Denise keeps it reasonable, James seems to think he is much, much younger than he really is. We also talk about successful people who were able to reboot their careers at an older age--and what the average age of an entrepreneur in America really looks like. Spoiler alert: it's not 23-year old "Instagram bros" selling workout routines).

If you're in our favorite demographic of 35-65--and we know most of you are!--get ready for a truth bomb that will surely wake you up to all of the potential that still lies ahead of you.

Way back when we left Los Angeles, the plan was to drive from Seattle until we hit The Keys but (as you all know) we had to stop down when Hurricane Ian was sweeping through Florida. Since then, one thing after another has prevented us from reaching the paradise that exists right at the very tip of the continental U.S.

Well, we ran FINALLY out of obstacles and excuses... and at last we were able to head out on a weekend getaway to Key West. Our friends Carly and Mike from the West Coast also made the trip and we were amped to pick them up outside of Miami along the way.

From the anti-corporate vibe of Islamorada to the unwinding views from Seven Mile Bridge, our 4 days in the gateway to the Caribbean were as epic as they were expensive. Denise found a pirate hideaway and James found a way not to tip the sea kayak. Grab yourself a colada and kick back while we lay out the ups and downs of our journey to the Florida Keys!

We're so excited to have Ellie, our youngest child, back with us for another episode!

If you remember, the last time we heard from her was WAY back in Episode 3: OreGONE. Emotions were raw back then, and she was dealing with something neither of our other two children had to face--she'd never come back to her childhood home, because her parents were leaving Los Angeles, too.

Fortunately, Ellie had an action-packed Fall and she's here to update us on all of the adjustments she had to make in college, what it's like being a D1 athlete and, most of all, how she's feeling now about our decision to travel and find a new hometown.

Our travels are finally catching up to us... the waistline and the scale are both predicting heartache if our current eating patterns continue unabated. Between fried chicken in Savannah, holiday food in Los Angeles and not one but TWO rounds of resort food in Mexico over the last several months, we are a long way from the good habits we started back in Sedona last year. James is back to snacking and Denise's fried pound cake (from way back in Episode 34) is still a life decision for which she wishes she had a do-over.

Never fear, though, summer is coming and your favorite middle-agers are beginning to formulate their promises to themselves, each other--and to you our esteemed listeners--to do better starting NOW! From veggies to daily weigh-ins to James dragging a kettlebell everywhere we go, get ready to get trim and sexy with your favorite town-skippers!

We've been ready to focus on our own future hometown, but had not even considered that maybe we weren't the only ones in our family who could take the plunge on a new home. Denise recently found a real estate agent to talk to us about Savannah. So we joined Isia Orr and her team at Fox Hollow Realty and got an education on everything that's happening in a city that's now on our Top 5 list. Isia gives us strategies for first-time buyers, the current state of the Savannah real estate market and post-pandemic buying and selling trends in cities across the country.
The result? We took Isia's advice and our daughter is now scouring Corpus Christi for her first home. Our "new favorite real estate agent" will give you tips and hacks as she reveals the truth about just how attainable your first home can be. People waste so much money on rent and cars thinking they can't afford a house of their own--and couldn't be more wrong!

Alright, we admit it. We've been holding out on you all this time. Turns out we have a secret weapon with over 25+ years of experience as a bona fide travel agent. Meet Cousin Judy!We took a quick trip from Savannah down to see her in Jacksonville where she revealed top travel spots in the United States for both families and couples. Ranging from budget getaways to luxury stays, we guarantee Cousin Judy has some destinations you've never considered--Kohler Spa, anyone?She also talks to us about how companies like TripAdvisor, Air BnB and other booking sites have changed the game for aspiring travel agents. So settle in and get acquainted with your new favorite cousin! We're starting with her in America the Beautiful but with her ability to create global expriences--from cruise ships to African safaris--she's going to be a recurring character in our own traveling circus.