Feeling Accomplished

Is there hope? I'm leaving for a week-long quilt retreat. I may or may not have a one-hour Zoom to present while I'm away. Just ONE! I have a couple of other phone calls, but nothing is work-related, so all is good. No preparation is involved, and they won't last one hour. 

All my admin work, except one tiny detail, is up-to-date. I've sent out emails this morning, all the follow-up from classes is done, and I'm sitting here with NOTHING to do until it's time to leave! 

As if! I'm writing the blog, and I have to walk the girls. Then I get to leave. 

I have to pack a few more clothes and the rest of the groceries, but I'm done! And I'm not stressed. Yes -- this new life with HALF of the stuff I had before is GREAT. I MUST remind myself that I will NEVER go overboard and fill my life up. I want to be able to do stuff for me. 

We had great fun at the Virtual Retreat yesterday, and I even finished some work. I had NO choice in that as I promised a photo, and I got my project to the point where I had the photo! It was tight, but it's done, and the image is gone. I can't wait to share this project with you, as it looks fantastic. I was a little worried as I continued to work because I didn't stop looking at it as I progressed. But when I hung it up? I'm thrilled. 

Has anyone had this issue? The tip of my iPad pen fell off. I thought it had popped off, but it's a screw, so I put it back on and hopefully it works. I should test it this coming week. 

The tip of the iPad pen

Here's another picture of Lexi trying to talk to the squirrels. It was hilarious as she "attacked" the tree and a squirrel popped out of that hole. She was beyond herself!! It was hilarious to watch. 

Hey, SQUIRREL - I know you're in there!

I needed 11 Km yesterday to finish off the last of the five Lord of the Rings challenges from The Conqueror. That was easy, and yes, another day of relatively pain-free walking. Who knew that standing straighter and walking slower would fix that? I must have had some compressed nerves, and my slouching wasn't helping. 

Finished one more challenge

A new adventure begins as one adventure closes, and I wait for my medal to arrive (I'll share those one day as they are pretty neat medals). 

I signed up for the Great Wall of China. A mere 3,513.2 KM, and I've given myself until the end of November to make that happen. 

Starting to walk the Great Wall of China (virtually, of course!)

I'm pretty excited because this one is mapped on an actual map! I'm starting at the extreme right and going to the left. As I spot interesting pictures, I'll share them with you. 

The map of my journey across China

OH -- the other thing that makes me very happy is that while I'm away, I do NOT have any urgent sewing. Now, when was the last time that happened? I'm positively beside myself with joy! And the space beside my computer is practically empty. A couple of items need to be dealt with when I get back, but absolutely nothing urgent. But they need to be cleaned up, or they will become clutter. 

The kitchen table and counters are clear of my junk, and I only added a box of books to the office that I'm getting ready to donate. It was on the kitchen table. I'll finish filling the box when I'm back. 

WOW - WOW - WOW --- I tell you, this feeling of accomplishment doesn't get any better. I feel like I'm floating on the moon. 

I deleted one more small group on Facebook, which brings me down to 21. And I had to laugh because I just noticed that someone posted in a group that is several years old! But, if they are now working on their quilt -- it's NOT the time to delete the group. I should actually make a "rule". I can delete the group if I've completed my quilt and there's been no activity. If I'm NOT done with that quilt, the group stays.

Speaking of traveling to far-off places - I don't do a lot of exotic travel - I'm good with following along on a map, like The Great Wall of China. But I got a chuckle when I was at Indigo the other day. Look at what I spotted. 

Magazines with the HOT spots for travel. I'm not a fan of these for a couple of reasons. The places mentioned are usually some hidden places that were nice years ago, but then they become overrun with tourists and POOF. What was once nice? It is now just a tourist trap! Look at Mount Everest Base camp -- it was a sacred place. Now it's a garbage dump! How sad is that? 

Many places have shut down or reduced their activity because of erosion (foot traffic), tourist congestion, etc. And if you want to really experience the area, you have to book a PRIVATE tour to do so, which increases the cost. 

This is precisely what is happening to the Camino de Santiago in Spain. It was a pilgrim for people who wanted to walk the entire thing (800 KM), wanted solitude, or perhaps to contemplate life or whatever their reason was. It was clean, it was easy to find a bed, and people were friendly. 

Now? Well, it's become a HUGE tourist destination, but many people forgo walking the entire thing and only walk the last 100 KM (they can get a certificate for that - the SAME one I would get for walking the whole route). They have their luggage forwarded (intentionally), their meals are brought to them along the road, there are huge groups, and the last 100 km is loud and noisy! And let's not talk about the amount of TOILET PAPER that tourists litter along the way! It's DISGUSTING! 

What's the point in that except to say they walked the Camino. But did they? Or were they just there? Did they understand or appreciate what this place is all about? Did they mingle with the people? Did they learn anything? Or is it just another notch on the belt?

This is a very "touchy" subject, and I'm not knocking those who just go to these places and then say, "I've been to whatever city." To say you visited that city, you must avoid the tourist parts because they are so contrived to please the tourists! 

I worry about what the traffic is doing to the environments around these places? Feet on a stone floor? Ships in sensitive waters? Forests and other environments are destroyed to make visitor centers, etc. The sacredness of some places is desecrated by the noise of thousands. Maybe, I'm too sentimental, but I'd prefer to go to less traveled areas. However, I WILL finish the Camino this year. When I set my heart on walking it, I had no idea what it had become! 

Anyway - enough of that. It's time to get ready and leave! 

Have a great day!!!

Ciao!!!