Today is May 1st. Today marks two months since I arrived back in the USA. Then why does it feel like I just got here? And what have I been so busy doing? I think it’s called Life or Living. I’ve had my fill of traveling for a while after my trip to Seattle via Tucson and Los Angeles after leaving Mexico. And then there were the five moves until I settled down in East Wenatchee.

Last night I was talking to a friend in Toronto who is off to Bali in a few weeks. She isn’t looking forward to the 32 hours of travel time and the cost of flights is astronomical post Covid. But this has been her dream for quite some time now and I’m glad that she is finally doing it.

I was talking to another friend in Toronto earlier in the week. She is a travel guide and is happy that business is starting to pick up post Covid despite the escalating cost of travel.

I have a friend I met in Guadalajara a few years ago who is on a mission to check out every major league stadium in the USA as well as other historical areas throughout the country. Recently he has traveled throughout Kentucky, Indiana and Tennessee.

I have other friends traveling through Central and South America right now. Several friends are still in Mexico and are on the move there as well, both within the country as well as those snowbirds who are returning home.

On a sad note, the USA just issued advisories against travel to Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta. I wonder what the situation will be like in the fall. Those cities have my two favorite airports in Mexico.

Okay. I admit it. I’ve been in East Wenatchee for over a month now and haven’t even made it out to Lake Chelan yet. The only commutes have been to Cashmere and Leavenworth. But I am beginning to think about traveling again. My eyes are set on Winnipeg in June.

But first I have to get through May. Fitness classes, library programs, plays, fitness training, medical appointments, a consult with my attorney, writers’ group, church, art and research regarding a character in my WIP. My visual voicemail still isn’t working and I haven’t even found time to go to AT&T yet. I’m staring at library books I checked out three weeks ago and still haven’t read.

I did find time to go shopping the other day to buy a much needed pair of New Balance. I discarded a pair in Mexico and the ones I brought with me are falling apart. I live in New Balance and sandals, and do not even own a pair of ‘shoe’ shoes.

But paramount is the time I spend with my friends here. This is my seventh year here, and although I only come for six months, I am blessed with more than a few close friends who I view as family.

I also keep in touch with friends by phone and Facebook. Many go back more than twenty or thirty years and a couple more than fifty. The older I get, the more important these friendships become.

This is what I do.

What do you do?