back from Provence, but not yet to reality.

Here's the thing about fabulous vacations-- it's not just what happens while you're gone, but basking in the afterglow when you return.

Suddenly, I want my entire house to smell like lavender... I cut huge hydrangeas from the garden within 4 hours of landing in the states to put on the table, covered in my new French linen tablecloth. I want new embroidered sheets JUST like the freshly ironed ones we slept in in our b&b-- I SWEAR I'll iron them and spray them with lavender water every night and just snuggle right in...

Sigh. Vacation's over, but it hasn't really set in yet.

The night we landed back in Illinois, I thought to myself, as we were driving to the grocery store to pick up milk-- just 9 hours ago we were driving on the Grand Corniche, high above the Mediterranean, staring into its million shades of aqua. And now I'm at Jewel. We passed no hills, no flourishing green forests, no ancient buildings, crumbling and charming. No crazy roundabouts. Just home.

:::

Any time you go on a trip, but I suspect.... especially when you visit any culture that is different than your own, you begin to think. We mused more than a few times on the trip that we should maybe/kindof/attempt/think/NO REALLY THIS TIME consider the logistics of trying to move overseas. We love the pace of life, the charm, the history, the surroundings.... the fact that within several hours of driving, we had crossed the nearly the entire terrain of the whole of the United States- mountains, plains, forests, hills, and of course, the gorgeous coastline.

But, would I be bored living in a little town? Would walking to the Boulangerie each day to pick up our baguette be perfectly romantic or insanely boring? Would learning a new language and struggling without friends of family nearby be too much to handle?

Is the life you lead when you're on vacation a *real* life... of course, no. My realistic side chimes in-- what about work? where are you going to live? Then the Practical Adding Machine in my head starts tallying up all the VERY PRACTICAL REASONS why it would NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS work, and the whole thing shorts a circuit and dies.

Maybe I'll just buy the embroidered sheets...

Oh, but.... life is short. And France is beautiful.....