It's only fairly recently that the two national political conventions have been held on back-to-back weeks. The first time that we can recall this phenomenon was in 2008, and it happened again in 2012 and 2016.

This year, the conventions were not going to be held back to back. The Democrats' confab was supposed to take place last month, in Milwaukee. But they put it off for a month due to COVID-19, with the hope that the virus would dissipate. It didn't, so the Democrats met virtually. Now, the Republicans are set to do the same, more or less.

Permit us to speak personally and nostalgically for a moment: In 2008, 2012 and 2016, we took memorable road trips with colleagues, traveling from one convention city to another on the weekend between them. We had innumerable adventures along the way.

In 2008, between the Democratic convention in Denver and the Republican convention in St. Paul, Minn., we hit Mount Rushmore, the Crazy Horse monument, and Badlands National Park, sang karaoke at a biker bar in Hot Springs, S.D., and slept in a tipi. In 2012, between the GOP convention in Tampa and the Democratic convention in Charlotte, N.C., we visited the Okefenokee Swamp, Savannah, Ga., and Charleston, S.C. In 2016, between the Republican convention in Cleveland and the Democratic convention in Philadelphia, we took in a Pirates game in Pittsburgh and visited the Andy Warhol Museum there.

Good times. Cherished memories.

This week, even with the Democrats meeting virtually, Maryland Matters provided coverage of the convention, focusing on the Maryland delegation and some of the gossip and speculation about the 2022 election cycle that inevitably took place. Next week, we'll try to do the same for the Republicans.

That task will be a little harder. Maryland Democrats had several virtual events every day during the convention, including the traditional daily breakfast. Most were available for viewing online.

But the Maryland GOP delegation, so far as we can tell, is not partaking in livestreamed versions of these traditional convention activities. There won't be much, if anything, to observe online. So we'll be talking to Maryland Republicans along the way, and trying to provide some coverage, but it won't be as comprehensive as we would like.

The world has been disrupted in so many ways since the COVID-19 outbreak and it's become a much more dangerous place. So maybe it seems silly lamenting the loss of traditional political conventions and all the news, craziness and adventures they produce. But it's hard not to.