If you've thought I have been a bit distracted ...

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... you were exactly right.


I am the sort of person who likes to know what the plan is, and who takes a while to adjust to a change in plans (even for something *totally* ordinary and routine).

The sort of person who, when asked (out of the blue) "Wanna go up north this weekend?" would respond (instantly and utterly calmly) "We can't." "No? Why not?" "Because ... because we didn't plan to."

(Ed note -- we did, in fact, go up north that very evening, almost 30 years ago, and the stars did not change their courses, and we are still here to remember the story....)

So that's me, and that's how I respond to unexpected ideas..........



An opportunity to go to France, exploring different parts of the country, checking out the differing ambiences, food, scenery, etc, has dropped into my lap. And, even though the notice was short, and many details are anything but settled, I am going.



(Digression -- Photoshop Elements noticed [!!!] that there are bank notes in this image, and warned me that it would not help me print them. Isn't that interesting? That it could tell, and that it would want to behave well? I blurred out the serial numbers, and saved the image in an even more degraded condition than usual, hoping to avoid getting in trouble. I just wanted to show the nice design -- the bridge [actually, I bet it's an aqueduct....], and what you can't see well in the lower right is a map of Europe....

ps -- how come everyone else's money is prettier than ours?

End of Digression.)


I dithered about whether to talk about going before I went.

Which brings me back to the gist of the statement with which I began this post -- obsessing about how every little unknown thing will work out (OR NOT!!!!!!!) can be one of my failings.

It's good to try to get things organized, to try to avoid ... unpleasantness ... but the other side of that coin is that, at some point, one must let go of all the scary "what if?"s, stride forward, and DO stuff.

Or one will end up quivering on the couch (or under the bed...), afraid to go out, afraid to answer the door, just ... afraid. And ... that's a waste of a life.



My friends and family have all been uniformly supportive. "GO!" is what they have all said. (With, perhaps, a certain bemusement that there was even a question as to going.) "GO!"



Jennifer, not knowing anything about this, but with exquisite timing, posted this, on moving through fear and getting it done.

From a slightly different angle, contemplating this "go? don't go?" theme -- just yesterday I found this amazing dream-come-true visit-to-Paris story: part one, part two, part three, part four.



My mom, when she was about my age (55-plus-something), went back to college for the graphic arts degree she'd been thinking about for decades.

One role model after another, leading the way......................... One role model after another, focused on a goal, moving through whatever apprehension may have stood between her and what she wanted to accomplish..........

I'm going to go. On the spur of the moment. Without all the details comfortably nailed down.

I'm going to go places I've never been, eat foods I've never tasted, see things I've never seen......



I'm going to embrace ... well, let's ask for something realistic, here....

I'm going to *hold hands with* High Adventure in spite of my Low Adventure nature. :-)



I will disappear from here, soon. I will tell you alllll about it, but probably not until I am home (though I may be able to post a pic or two from time to time; we'll see).



UPDATE 11:21 am EST -- wahoo! Now if the loaner phone Verizon is sending also arrives today (as I have been told it will), the last of my largest remaining concerns will be gone!





UPDATE 4:35 pm EST -- phone also has arrived!





I will be joining my daughter, who has been in Europe for a few weeks. The first post for her trip is here.

In order to facilitate chronological traverse of my France posts, here is a link to the post that comes after this one.


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