If you're on vacation and you want to get to know an area, staying at a B&B gives you a big head start. Supplying information and personal service is how B&B proprietors set themselves apart from hotels. They've certainly helped me over the years. Sometimes, I feel like the Blanche DuBois of travel journalism: Wherever I go, I depend on the kindness of strangers.

Many events are so big and so fun that everyone wants to go. If you do, too, you have to plan ahead.

Start thinking about summer lodgings by January, at least. At Custer State Park in the Black Hills, campsite reservations for the entire season open Jan. 2. Reservations for blinds to view the sandhill-crane migration at Nebraska's Rowe Sanctuary also go up for grabs Jan. 2. And anyone who wants a certain entry point in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness during peak season should have an on-line lottery application in by Jan. 15.

Iowa: In Iowa, sites can be reserved three months in advance at 877-427-2757, www.reserveiaparks.com. The reservation fee is $4 if made online and $6 if made by phone, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays.

They've spoken about the meals they ate, hotels they slept in, tours they took, attractions they visited and people they met. They've gone on and on about beaches and bars and bathrooms and what they had for breakfast.

No, I can’t. Only you and your therapist know what you consider a good lake resort.

Staying at a Minnesota lake resort is not like staying at a Marriott. There may be chipmunks living under your cabin, and fish that nibble your legs when you wade. Squealing children may run past your window while you’re trying to read.