46 years

Is how long I've had passports. Specifically these passports.

I just got my newest one. They used to let you smile. Ever since they said you couldn't smile, my photos are horrible. David said my last passport photo (I was wearing a hoodie and a grim expression) made me look like a member of the Beider Meinhoff gang. The newest one isn't quite that bad.

A few people in Northern Ireland have quoted to me a statistic about what percentage of Americans don't have a passport. It's high--I don't recall the exact number. But people here find it amazing so few Americans travel outside the U.S.

Dec. 5