Category: Overseas Adventures
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The Totally Avoidable Way We Mess Things Up
So this past week I hit a wall. Literally. Behold… The good news, beside the fact that I’m uninjured and therefore able to write this blog, is that it happened because I was exhausted from our exciting move. To Paris. France. It happened at the tail end of moving day. We’d spent weeks getting ready and…
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How to Handle the Cranky, Miserable People Around You
Well, it’s here. After much build-up and prep, our six-month overseas adventure officially began just over a week ago when our plane touched down in Paris. And, it turns out, my first life lesson based on this little adventure followed that very morning. We’d gone to a store to stock up on some known culinary…
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How to Fit In…Without Being Put Out
With a month of living in Paris now behind me, I can definitively say that this city has got a few things figured out. They know good art, they know good pastry, they know good coffee. It’s made fitting in not just fairly easy, but also a pretty great learning experience. I mean, who would…
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Lessons from the Tortured Artist in Room 5
Recently our French adventure found us renting a car to drive out to the country – a somewhat death-defying notion for anyone whose starting line is in Paris. Really, you never know what you’re going to find. (Actual photo from a random walk on the Left Bank) After delicately escaping the City of Lights, we…
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How to Handle the Other B.S.
Well, my current city of Paris and my beloved, Italian mother just collided. I invited her to visit after experiencing some of the best things Paris has to offer. While Mama was excited about exploring both the culinary and non-culinary wonders of the City of Lights, her enthusiasm was accompanied by another emotional phenomenon: the…
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The Right Thing To Ask When Something Feels Wrong
Today’s post begins with a tale regarding a beloved topic: food. Before arriving in Paris there was lots of dreamy anticipation about the pending French cuisine. Those decadent, creamy sauces…those exquisite pastries…that bread… Okay yes, the bread is pretty incredible. But now that I’m here I can say that the rest of it…well…I’m just not…
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The Messy, Imperfect Blog Post
Well, this stinks. With just a few days left in Paris and a blog post coming due, I desperately want to write something inspired…something that beautifully sums up my time in the City of Lights and the lessons that have come along the way. There have been a lot of them, believe me. Not only…
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What to do about Life’s Little Stinks
The day began on a high note. Not only were we about to take a bike tour that would explore the beautiful fields of France’s seemingly endless vineyards, but – perhaps more importantly – we’d also get to try out the wine. And while the tour did indeed begin with lots of bright smiles… …it…
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Don’t Worry…Be Crappy
Life is a humbling thing, yes? I speak from years of experience, which have included plenty of moments that wound up…shall we say…imperfectly. Unsuccessful. Perhaps a bit embarrassing. (Followers of this blog will be keenly aware of this.) Take, for example, my recent efforts to learn yoga…where even the simplest-seeming pose came out like this:…
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I Now Pronounce You Happy
No doubt about it…these last few months spent overseas have been chock full of unexpected experiences. Take, for example, my recent participation in Barcelona’s fire-throwing parade, and the moment I realized that actual fire was about to be thrown my way. The good news is that not every unexpected experience has been about escaping death.…
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The Seemingly-Virtuous, Often-Dangerous Word We All Use Now and Then
What I’m about to say might irritate you. And I’ve decided that this is okay, as long as you’re willing to hear my point all the way through. It begins with a few thoughts on Barcelona, a city where I’ve lived in for nearly two months. It’s a delightful place, a place filled with endless…
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How to Like Your Life More
So it’s over. My little “life sabbatical”, the one that took Hubbie and me overseas for six months, is over. And in the blink of an eye that sneaky little bugger known as reality has quickly set in. Exhibit A? My new living room at the moment: If you follow my blog you know that…