Last night I turned on a TV movie to forget my worries of travel. Too funny. "French Kiss" with Meg Ryan playing a neurotic female who sports a fear of flying greets me. She was taking a class to rid of her plane phobia. While I laughed out loud my inner voice keeps repeating, "You have flown before, many times--just not as far." As Ryan's character said, "You can do this" and she jumps at any sound of the airplane. I wish I drank wine like the French do--but I don't.
The time is nearing when I pack my bags, kennel my dogs, trust Zen kitty with sibling--and go. Recently, I read people are happy while planning a vacation but when they return they are unhappy going back to the daily grind. I'm not in that group of folks. Instead, I've purposely made a list of things to enjoy when I come back to the mountains. And I find the preliminary hassle of preparing for a long journey very stressful!
Passport, itineraries, Canadian cash, How to speak French book, confusing Quebec City and Montreal travel guide, packing, cleaning the house, paying bills, taxes to come home to, went to the dentist and doctor (secretly wishing they would find a secret illness so I would have to cancel)...filling out papers for my two canines and so on. It's never ending. A Blast from the Past...
Today, it came to me. At 21, I was happy hitchhiking to Montreal because it was a spontaneous decision. It was me and my dog--no responsibilities. Now things are different. True, I am much older and thoughts of mortality and not being invincible are with me.
So, maybe I cannot recapture yesteryear. This is a rude awakening. I've been planning, thinking of consequences, and that makes me feel not young. Note to self: Be more spontaneous! What's really bothering me, though, is that I'm not taking my dog(s). They are part of me and I will feel incomplete without my canine companion(s) and my beloved Siamese.
Hello Autumn, West and East Coast... I'm gearing up for enjoying fall on the East Coast but the West is not out of my mind by any means. I'm trying to set up an order of firewood and anticipating hearing the heater click on for the first time. I'm saving one of the chime clocks to turn on when I come back home. Earth toned blinds for the living room will be en route and the first fire are something I can look forward to as I snuggle up to my dog duo and cat.
California Mediterranean Cuisine... This morning my editor allowed me to make a final tweak or two on the book cover for our new book due out the end of December. The Healing Powers of Olive Oil, Revised and Updated is in the final stages of production. I'm taking covers with me on my trip to Quebec City and a zillion states in the U.S. due to my flight plan from hell. During layovers on my "road trip" I'm sure I will make friends and they will ask me, "What do you do?" and "What do you write?" and then BAM! they will have a book cover with the inside revealing the Healing Powers Series.
As I think of French fare, it's almost time to sing, "I'm leaving on a jet plane"... So the trip--not France or Italy but should suffice--which I began planning in June is just around the corner. I will make my departure (I have gone through all the hoops, one after another) and leave the West Coast--fly solo into the unknown and my world of what ifs (but most of these do not happen).
I want to learn how to be more serene, laid-back, easygoing but I find myself still controlling, trying to capture perfection. This trip is in the works to face my demons and morph like a butterfly, older but wiser. I sense there will be challenges but when I return my experiences will continue to rejuvenate my mind, body, and spirit. It's called living life and embracing imperfection in an imperfect world. Inhale, exhale.
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