“Excuse me, do you know where the off-roading magazines are?”
Confused, I look down at my clothes– do I look like I work at Barnes & Noble? “Uh no, sorry, I don’t.” Forget my lack of looking like an employee- do I LOOK like someone that would know ANYTHING about off-roading? Geez, I hope not!!!
That’s the kind of pick-up line you get browsing around B&N in hick-ville Spokane, WA. Don’t get any bright ideas; it doesn’t work. The guy should get some pointers from the French. I looked over at Filipe, who’d heard the whole thing… and we had a good laugh.
My friend Filipe is on the road for work in Washington state this month, so we hung out last week, mostly in Spokane. Despite the hick-ness of the guys in B&N, we were pleasantly surprised with downtown. It sits right next to the river, and there are some really nice parks and walkways (how do I luck out at getting to run in all these cool places, and in the sunshine?!), and there are lots of fun restaurants. There was even a theater showing old movies- never mind that we fell asleep during the midnight showing of Psycho, only to be rudely awakened by the psycho mother and her knife.
It’s always a good time hanging out with my favorite people in the world, and last week was no exception. It’s so good to be around people I can just kick back with, catch up, discuss life and ideals, laugh a lot, and drink tons of Starbucks.
But all this also brings me into my current frustration…
I’m in sort of a mid-trip slump as I enter the down slope phase. I’m really enjoying meeting up with friends all over the place, but that just reminds me of how much they mean to me and the fact that they are just that–all over the place– just like I am right now. A blessing and a curse rolled into one. Thank goodness for MSN, Skype, and Facebook- thank you all for helping me feel connected from afar, in those moments when I feel alone in this whirlwind. I love you all! But I can’t stay connected just in that way forever…
Maybe I shouldn’t be, but I’m already thinking about what I’ll do and where I’ll move to after the trip, and it’s driving me crazy cuz I don’t know and there really isn’t any way to know at the moment. Maybe the answer is still ahead, or maybe it’s behind me and I just need to finish the trip before the answer becomes clear. As exciting as it is to be somewhere different every week, it’s also wearing on me. Send some energy my way!