You lie on a beach, play golf, tennis or bridge, hike in a forest or go boating on a lake. Or you join a motor-coach group and gaze out the window as the scenery rushes past. An overwhelming percentage of Americans engage in a limited list of standard vacation activities, and only a small slice of them — perhaps 10 percent — opt for a more daring and committed form of alternative travel. I happen to be partial to the latter choice. .

Vocalist singing the blues over thankless wedding

Dear Amy: I am an amateur vocalist. Several months ago, the niece of a very close friend asked me to sing in her wedding. The wedding was out of town. With airfare, hotel, other travel expenses and the wedding gift, it ended up costing me a considerable amount of money.

I spent more than 100 hours preparing because I wanted my performance to be perfect.

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