One of the Thousands of Statues/Sculptures in Paris

What Was I Doing Before Travelling?

I am back now at the cabin - bodily for a couple of days, mentally not yet.

Woke up in middle of night worried about the future - along the lines: What were you thinking? And why does it seem to be a good idea to sell the cabin and give away most of your belongings?

Of course there is no logical answer, only that it seems important to be prepared for something or some thing - And I do have faith/vision that the reasons will be revealed. God, I sound like a mystic in training.

Back to painting the bathroom.

To Paris Tomorrow (Photos of Apartment Linked)

Believe it or not I am not crazy about going on a trip. I leave tomorrow, Easter Sunday. And I foolishly believe I can pack in two hours - maybe not so foolish - will practice what I preach & bring a minimal amount.

Not sure if the destination is the important part of travelling or the Before and After of a trip. All the things I will get done BEFORE LEAVING and all the things I will get done AFTER I return. I had to set up Your Money or Your Life's worksheet/graph before leaving - wow, was that a lot of hand-drawn lines - kind of nice to do something so old-fashioned as a graph on butcher paper, with pencil & ruler. More on Your Money or Your Life AFTER I return.

This week has been spent in getting ready for the trip - as one friend puts it: Getting ready for a trip is kind of like getting ready for death. I was able to go through even more of my stuff & was ruthless as in burning journals, letters, cards (saving the card/picture part for a classroom - apparently schools have next to nothing in supplies - one declutter go-round I gave them a bunch or art supplies and notepads). Good god, I would not want my daughter to read some of my ramblings.

What I am looking forward to is seeing meeting up with my sister - this is her apartment:

www.parisaddress.com/paris-apartment-rental/qs.php?ref=AUG17

Smart girl, she mostly rents it out, save for her semi-annual stays. Thankfully I have a job to do at the apartment - too many white walls! The last time I was in Paris, two years ago, we furnished the place, mostly flea market finds - this time I will find a paint store and get busy.

The idea of just going somewhere for "enjoyment" does not do it for me - there is too much I will miss here at the cabin - my tulips will be blooming without me/the chickens will be laying eggs/the spinach,arugula,kale,lettuce is growing like crazy. Oh well, I will have to make it work in Paris: I am up to the challenge of a budget trip. I will be more than happy to shop at grocery store and cook meals at home. Though I will go for a coffee now and again - would not miss out on the people watching.

Speaking of budgets, on my way to airport will be stopping by Rainbow Grocery to return the cosmetics & hair dye. Going to Paris with the hair color as is - grey or silver or whatever combination it is . . . so be it. And not buying a new pair of shoes - will make it work with what I have. Had to learn the lesson again - whenever I buy something I am dissatisfied and I regret the purchase. I was in the throes of obsession/compulsion for about a week there - phew what a relieve that bender is over!

Road Trip - favorite new place: Big Bend National Park in West Texas

Been on the road for a couple of weeks in what has to be the best way to travel: Cab-Over Camper on a diesel pick up. We picked up the cab-over in Phoenix Area - no small feat in the land of giant rv's - for $900 through Craigslist - yes, a few technical bugs but that is where the handy BF saves the day - 6' x 8' plus full size bed over cab - you can imagine my new ideas: sell everything and hit the road. Quite a few steps between where I sit today & being able to be on a mobile adventure. The most astonishing fact I discovered (though do your own work on details :) is one can buy a year pass for the National Parks for something like $80 - and you can stay for up to 15 days in one site - now that would be a great blog!

Should be back to No. California this weekend - might have to re-think the dial-up/satellite connection and readjust budget accordingly.

Mid February Update: Cab-over resold on Craigslist to a gentleman hoping to find gold. Still believe in the beauty of fitting everything for living in an area the size of a cab-over - be it a tiny house or whatever - As you can see, this was a little bit much on the Beverly Hillbilly side of life.