Journey

So, I've been to Ireland and back. The clock on this blog is still set to Ireland time. In Galway, it's tomorrow already.

This blog was conceived as being Ireland-centric, or at least dealing with travel in general (Ireland's not the only place with craic after all, although certainly other locales are not up to par with its excellence. No other place could have craic with such heavy notes of moss and Guinness).

After being marooned stateside for the past seven months, it's begun to dawn on me that I might not get to go back to Ireland anytime soon. Fact is, I might not get to travel out of Minnesota anytime soon. So I'm sitting here barefoot in my painting overalls, a female Huck Finn with no raft and no Tom Sawyer. I'm feeling stuck in the mud, and I'm cranky about it, and I'm ashamed of my crankiness. It's a big vicious ouroboros of self-sniping that I'm sure affects other people too, and I can't tell if it's better or worse that I'm aware of it.

Anyway.

I have two things to say.

1. In this time where my mobility is constricted, at least I can brainstorm. I have a list of dream locations: Turkey, Mongolia, Cambodia, South Africa, Chile, Cyprus. Cities and regions: Prague, Crete, Santorini, Ithaka, Amsterdam, Waterford, Dublin, Uisneach, Svalbard, Machu Picchu. Some will probably never happen, but I think some will. Which brings me to

2. I can't be perpetually upset just because I'm here. I'm the girl who perceives midnight trips to Walmart and Taco Bell as "epic quests." With that in mind, I have to remember that out of state excursions aren't the only things that count as journeys. There are plenty of places in Minnesota (and even Elk River) that I haven't ever explored. Apart even from exploring, I can't overlook the things I have now that are worth savoring. I'm young and generally happy and I'm just starting out. I don't have to do everything right now. I can be content, for a while, to read, paint, walk, garden, and do whatever else I want.

I set the blog clock to today's time. After all, Galway or not, you can't always live by tomorrow's rules.