Earlier this month, the “Today” show gang talked about a research study that found how anticipating a vacation, and planning it, is often better than the vacation itself. 

As it turns out this epiphany is nothing new. A 2010 study, published in an online journal called “Applied Research in Quality of Life,” discussed the psychological connection between anticipation and happiness. As part of this study, researchers from the Netherlands interviewed more than 1,500 people, including 974 vacationers, and found that the vacationers felt most happy before their trips.

Boy, does this ever resonate. Traveling can be a hassle and the trip itself filled with unexpected issues, including flight delays, long hours in a car, accommodations falling short, family arguments and my personal favorite, a historic hurricane forcing evacuation of the ridiculously expensive vacation home you rented. 

Then again, who doesn’t like time off from the daily grind? Taking a vacation allows us to break from the routine, de-stress (hopefully), clear our heads, open ourselves up to new possibilities and do a better job living in the moment. A change in scenery can also enhance relationships, and even lead to better romance.

I suppose I’m thinking about vacations not only because of the study I referenced but also it’s summer, and the majority of Americans who take vacations do so in the summer. For decades that was the case for us. But last week, after 35 years, my husband Jeff retired from his job as an educator, so now — at least theoretically —  we can go away at most any time of the year.

When I mentioned this to Jeff, he smiled. Then his expression grew more serious as he added, “Remember the rule.”

Ah yes, the rule. 

Flashback to June 1994. Jeff and I were dating and had planned a road trip to Colorado to the legendary Telluride Bluegrass Festival. We were going to take a week or so to get there, enjoy the festival, and then high tail it back home.

Back then using the internet to plan a vacation wasn’t the breeze it is now, but I found what sounded like dream accommodations in a refurbished train car bed-and-breakfast outside Buena Vista, Colo. So I reserved a couple of nights stay for the drive out. 

As the trip neared, I decided to surprise Jeff with my find. 

“You’ll love where we’re staying in Buena Vista,” I told him. “It looks so romantic.”

When we pulled into this central Colorado outpost, I could see Jeff’s eyes light in the hopes that I had booked an old-West lodge, replete with saloon and swinging doors. As he drove and I navigated, I directed him to a maze of gravel roads on the outskirts of town leading seemingly nowhere. After driving and driving some more, I spotted four dusty old railcars with a flock of chicken running around them.

Jeff’s mouth widened. The muscles in his neck grew tight. He sat motionless staring straight ahead. At that moment, it became clear my “surprise” might be a mistake.

For the next two nights, we played backgammon by flashlight because our railcar had no electricity, which meant no air conditioning or TV, Jeff’s two favorite appliances. When we needed to use the facilities, we headed to a shared outhouse around back.

In the morning, women dressed in circa 1860s garb greeted us in the “dining car,” where Jeff was forced to role play at breakfast, sit with strangers and make small talk. Worse, there was no newspaper in sight. 

We drove away after the two days in silence. Clearly, this berth-and-breakfast was not for Jeff. I, on the other hand, couldn’t have been happier with the choice.

As we checked into our next destination, the Silver Ridge Lodge in Salida, Colo., the color began to return to Jeff’s face. This mid-1960s roadside motel was much more to his liking, largely because it had his two favorite appliances and its own bathroom.  All seemed simpatico until he flipped on the TV.

“Why is O.J. Simpson driving around in a white Bronco?” he asked.

Yes, while we were in the dark — literally — the events leading up to O.J.’s arrest for the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman, were unfolding. Now both of us sat motionless, and dumbfounded. Two news junkies, we had basically missed the most important news story of the decade.

You’d think with that I would have learned. But in the years that followed, I managed to sneak a few more bed and breakfasts into the vacation mix. And wouldn’t you know it, these stays always seemed to coincide with some news of the weird, like in June 1997 when Mike Tyson bit off part of Evander Holyfield’s ear during the WBA Heavyweight Championship. We missed that one holed up at a B&B in Rhode Island. 

A year later, we were married and with that came the rule: No lodging less than 30 rooms, and it must have a private bath, air conditioning and TV, preferably high-def. Over the years, the rule has been amended to include Wi-Fi and free internet.

Although we have no major vacations planned, I am hoping Jeff might concede to give B&Bs another try. After all, times have changed and news is now available 24/7 on our phones, on our watches, virtually everywhere.

So far he isn’t budging. My luck is I’ll finally convince him only to have the first space aliens descend on the world, and be Jewish to boot. 

Wherever you’re planning to travel this summer, please be safe and have fun. And let me share a little something I learned about anticipation, happiness, vacations and romance: it really helps to have indoor plumbing and electricity.