Off the grid. On the dole. On the road. Couch-crashing. Jet-lag. Consecutive all-nighters. Sunflower seeds. Fields and the big sky. Photos of Lithuania. Missing it. Loving it. Oh the joys of Canadian beef and barbecue. Heck, multitudinous family and friends too.

For all those fine people who have not (yet) recently suffered through the stories and scheduled interruptions of a visit by yours truly: a brief Mayesian synopsis. It's been pretty much ups, downs, and turn-arounds, but I think things are finally starting to settle out.

*******

The Leave-taking

Yes, May 1st, and my final sight of Klaipeda, already three kilometres behind me. I left first thing in the morning with Jen and a few other faculty members; we took the van to the Vilnius airport, flew from there to Frankfurt (where I had met Jerilyn on my way in), and then it was time to board the international flight back to Canada. I'm usually only nostalgic long after the fact, but I'll admit I was forlorn like a puppy and taking many pictures. Then there was the moment of truth, wherein I nearly broke loose with my credit card and went for it... but who could pass a sign like this without being just a little tempted?

Cue blindfold, pick.

For those as yet unfamiliar with my tale of woe, due to government bureaucracy, a bum radiator, and some unforeseen health issues (not my own), I found myself jobless, carless, and homeless on return. Bievenue a Canada! But I've always been blessed with good friends, and I still had my trusty pack... so I scraped together my remaining twenties and was off to Waterloo. Very strange taking the bus, I might add.

Not Waterloo

Wait, that's not Waterloo! No, the above crazies are Rose, Nathan, and the indefatigable Vaughn at the Sherwood "cottage" (pictured in the background... long story). And that was only one weekend among many in Waterloo, Toronto, Beamsville, Winnipeg, and Elm Creek--playing ultimate, Settlers, poker, "talk-all-night," "drive-very-far," and "not-sleep." Sheesh, talk about a reunion tour! Needless to say, the rest of May was a blur, and my editor says to cut the details.

But it was great! An honest count puts me up over well, many friends, all willing to eat something, talk, and maybe run around a bit. I couldn't have asked for a better return to a country still coloured by the filter of last year--people, I sincerely appreciate your caring friendship. And for those of you truly starved for stories, well, Vaughn has a rational account of one among many of the month's adventures--this one concerning the latest in an illustrious history of 20+ hour drives to Manitoba... just don't believe everything he says :)

*******

So now I'm gathering my wits in the guestroom of my parent's house, finally able to unpack my stuff and put it in a real closet after almost a year, falling in love with Manitoba all over again. The stresses are different here, you know? The last week has been back-to-the-grindstone job hunting, so reality has once again been met, but I've also had a few just-abouts... and one of these times something will stick. I still plan to throw everything in the back of my (now fixed!) car and head Toronto way in the near future (i.e. next week), so if you know of a place to either work and/or sleep for the next year or two, please let me know!

Plus, if I haven't visited you yet, send me an email; I'll see what I can do. The list already includes Grand Prairie, California, Colorado, and Tennessee... what can one more city/province/state/country hurt? Exactly. Peace out team! I leave you with art a la Sherwood.

Etching