Sometime in January, I purchased airline tickets for the trip I am about to take with Snowdrop. I can't say that I came up with the best itinerary. I was limited by prices and connections. It's not easy to link the three destinations (of her choice) in a smooth way, or at least I could not come up with a better plan then. As a result, the trip is a bit choppy. We're moving around too much. One night here, next four there, then three elsewhere, and then back to square one for another four. What can I say, I don't have a private plane to zip us in a synchronized fashion to where we want to be at exactly the dates we want to be there. So, there is this built-in element of adventure: will we connect? Will my suitcase show up where it should?
I am not worried.
I also kept the level of activity to a moderate level and here's how this will impact Ocean: I no longer like writing posts after dinner late into the night. The forced wakefulness impacts the quality of the night. I dont want to be sleep deprived every day. So, I'll try to not go overboard with photos or text. You'll hear from me, but I want to tame down my enthusiasm for throwing in details of a day. The girl is getting older and can take a more demanding schedule. That will be its own challenge. I can't add to it by writing extensively each and every day. (I'm sure you'll be grateful for a more compact story!)
My morning at the farmette is a bit rushed. I haven't packed, I need to finish watering the tubs and, too, we want to release Pancake from the Writer's Shed (he had surgery yesterday) and assess the state of his health.
Okay, morning walk. The fields are getting ready for their big month -- July!
And of course breakfast, on the porch, with the guy who makes me smile every single day of the year.
Then we try to feed and release Pancake. Eventually we succeed, but the cat is in a hiding mode and once coaxed out, he hightails it out of there, disappearing into the fields beyond the farmette. I will be curious if and when he comes back.
And then I pack. And take one last look at everything, including the day lily that appeared (one of the first!) -- a reminder of what I will be coming home to.
It's an exciting trip! Even as I miss leaving all that I leave behind. That's travel for me, in a nutshell.
P.S. First adventure: getting a shoe stuck in the stair of an escalator at Minneapolis Airport. Snowdrop said -- when I was little, I used to wonder if an escalator could suck you in. Now I know it can! After many tries by very many Delta people, one managed to twist and wrench the shoe out. Snowdrop was patient and somewhat amused. She is unconcerned that her shoe now looks like this:
Tomorrow, if all goes well, I'll post from Reykjavik -- for which Snowdrop does have warmer shoes. And socks, which she likes to avoid, unless she is about to ski down a mountain. We'll see if chilly Iceland has her reaching for them!
with so much love...
