Back to the Island

So, yes, I did make my way back to Maine in one piece.

After a sketchy landing in Cleveland (the passengers all broke into cheers after the plane hit the ground and finally stopped) I hopped onto a smaller plane and it was a quick trip to Portland International Airport.

But, growing up on an island the trip doesn't stop at just a simple plane ride and someone picking you up at the airport in a car. Nope. From there, it's a ride on the ferry boat across the bay and onto Peaks Island.

It was great to be home, back to the place where I grew up. Not much has changed on the island. The houses all look a bit nicer with their new landscaping and new coats of paint but they are all in the same place and the roads that take you to them never change. It was warm and very humid when I first got here and I wasn't used to the feeling of never being completely dry, even after you get out of a shower and towel off. But things seemed to have settled and the cooling air of fall is on the way so it's felt great the last few days.

The biggest problem I did have with coming back home for a bit was stopping working. For the first few days I was here I'd wander around the house, wondering what I was supposed to be doing. I haven't had a proper vacation in two years. And, even then, when I was in Nashville, I brought work with me and was reading and laying out kid's books while I was there.

But, here in Maine, I found myself with nothing to do but sit and be still. It was hard the first few days. I even had slight headaches everyday from the constant adrenaline leaving my body but now I've lost all sense of what day it is so I think I'm finally relaxing.

I've restrung my father's acoustic guitar and I sit on the front porch, strumming away, watching the water and the sunsets. It's been very relaxing, which is just what I needed. Four years is a long time to not take a break and give yourself a rest so I'm glad my brain is finally calming down.

Of course, then I did a road-trip to New Jersey, a place I swore I would never to return to after the last time I was there. But, that's a whole other story...