When Kelly Corrigan was in high school, her mother neatly summarized the family dynamic as “Your father's the glitter but I'm the glue.” This meant nothing to Kelly, who left childhood sure that her mom—with her inviolable commandments and proud stoicism—would remain her father's understudy for the rest of Kelly's life, which she was carefully orienting toward adventure. After college, armed with a backpack, her personal mission statement, and a wad of traveler's checks, she took off for Australia to see things and do things and Become Interesting. But it didn't turn out the way she pictured it. In a matter of months, her fanny pack full of savings had dwindled and she realized she needed a job. This is a book about the difference between travel and life experience, stepping out and stepping up, fathers and mothers. But mostly it's about who you admire and why, and how that changes over time.