Arrived safely from Asia around noon today. These past few months, I've seen, experienced and traveled more than I have in a long time. I've been calling it my transition period - always moving, living out of a suitcase, nothing permanent. And while this affords one priceless new experiences, expanded thinking and broader horizons (as they say), it's ultimately not the lifestyle I want to maintain. Nevertheless, I am so, so thankful for the time I've had to just roam - I know how rare it is.
About three years ago during my senior year in college, my then-boyfriend told me I should get rid of these sandals. Already a couple years old, I'd worn them all over campus, stamping up and down the hilly streets of Westwood. Little did I know that they would become my well-worn companions for the next few years. From everyday frolicking in Los Angeles, to the cobblestones of Barcelona, to the sulfur-y smelling streets of China - the shoes have been everywhere. Yesterday they were completely submerged in water after we got caught in a huge downpour at the World Expo. Their time had finally come, and I left them in the trash can of our hotel in Shanghai.
It's time (for now) to hang up (in this case, throw away) my traveling shoes. My transition period is coming to an end, culminating in my exodus from LA and the move to New York. I want to get to know NY as intimately - no, more intimately - than I know LA. I can't wait to start making it my new home.
P.S. - The shoes actually don't look that bad in the grainy Photo Booth pic I snapped before we left. What you can't see is the patchy, scraped through leather straps, the permanent indentation of my foot, and the heel worn down to nothing. In the end, they may not have smelled like roses either.
(Mini aside - More personal pep talk than analytical post today. Working through some minor jetlag. Feels good to be back in generally the same time zone as you all.)
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