Uh, oh…Out walking along the Amstel canal this morning after a couple of days meeting wonderful clients and enjoying mobile working and playing with Andrew, I may be falling in love again. Of course my greatest love is Andrew, whose birthday it is today and we will celebrate in a cozy restaurant called Lulu here – just the two of us. But as I walked this morning, listening to some of my favorite music, I got that tickly feeling in my tummy that sort of felt like the flutters when you find yourself falling in love. I watched people sitting at cafes -barely awake at 11am (well, it is Saturday morning), having quiet conversations. Couples on bikes, one with a young child straddling the front and holding on the handlebars, yakking away. Some folks just doing their morning run along the water…others out rowing with buddies. Little car traffic, people slowly waking up…and the sun shining on a crisp fall morning. Granted, I am here at what is probably the lull before the literal storms – but there’s just something…
Warmth. Contentment. Happy to be here. Work to do but life to live as well. Acceptance. Gusto. What you see is what you get. No hidden agenda. Glad you are here. Enjoy yourself. That’s what I pick up. Is that real?
As Andrew and I have begun to think about what we want for ourselves in the next few years, we ponder where we will be happiest and most fulfilled. Closer to family is up there on the shortlist of important things – but does this need to be 24/7 or just more of the time there is? A relaxed lifestyle where we are technologically connected with ease but not surrounded by the high pressure of big city life. A community that is easy to become part of – because sense of community (and love of community) exists. Easy connection to other places. Decent weather most of the time (ah Amsterdam, my love, this may be a deal-breaker but negotiations are part of the deal). Eco-friendly, public transport (versus car) dependent. Vibrant culture close by. Good food options a plus :). So I sit here about to work in a café in Amsterdam (not at this point to be confused with a coffee shop here), and I wonder.
Living La Vida Loca 