Thoughts on Re-Entry

We're back! And the question arises: Was it all just a dream?

Were the new friends just figments of the imagination? Were the beautiful beaches just a mirage? And what about the quad rides on the dusty roads, the Pelada tide pools, the yoga classes under whirling fans in rustic ranchos, the vain attempts at surfing, the tuna turned to sashimi in our own backyard, the sudden downpours, the snakes in the house, the pizotes and howler monkeys, the splashing through swollen rivers in our 4X4, the tranquility of the sunset over the Pacific...was it all make-believe?

Thanks to Facebook, I am pretty sure it wasn't...Our new host of "Costa Rica friends" are mostly there and there are a host of photos and good feelings that provide evidence for the year away.

And, yet it is remarkable how quickly such an experience slips into the past. For me, reluctant to return to the States, there is a certain mourning happening now. For the rest of my clan, each more excited about the return to Virginia, there is a certain celebration taking place. And I suppose the law of averages dictates that for all of us, these feelings will fade, replaced one hopes by an apprecation of our year abroad and a simultaneous appreciation of this community that we again call home.

 * * * * *

We arrived after midnight last Friday--technically Saturday morning--and enjoyed the following day with several good friends. It seems that while we were away, cupcakes became all the rage in Alexandria and, apparently, across the country. Tara and I were both in dismay but our disbelief was put to rest when we were whisked off to The Cupcakery, one of two stores in Alexandria that sells nothing but cupcakes. We walked in to find an elderly woman sitting at a small table with two cupcakes sitting in front of her and her absent mate's chair, each piled high with colorful frosting. At the counter in the back were about eight different kinds of cupcakes and...nothing more. No brownies, no cookies, no muffins, no other baked goods whatsoever. Cupcakes are such the rage that they support an entire business. One need not offer any other product. Remarkable that there could be so many aficionados of what I thought were treats primarily for the pre-school set.

Line outside a Cupcake Store (not our Cupcakery, but you get the idea)

And from the Cupcakery we went onto the Grape & Bean--which sells only coffee and wine. While there, my buddy Kevin suggested we go to a store that sells nothing but "tea and salt."

"You're kidding, right."

"No, seriously," he said. "Tea and salt. It's awesome. They have a ginger salt, a lime-basil salt. You name it. You just go in there and taste 'em."

This then was my first bit of culture shock. The States has so many people with so many specialized interests that one can find a store that caters to those incredibly narrow interests, passionately held as they may be.

It seems a little nutty to me--who can possibly care enough about cupcakes to have a store (or go to a store) that sells nothing but? Or salt?

Three days later, we found ourselves the new owners of a lightly used Honda Pilot. Seems to be a great car. Here is my favorite part--XM Sattelite Radio. This is our first time with Sattelite radio and it is absolutely awesome!  Especially Channel 58. Channel 58 plays nothing but Bruce--all day, all night. Live Bruce. Studio recorded Bruce. The classics. The deepest cuts off his most acoustic albums. Rarities. All Bruce, all the time.

Today's a beautiful day--just the kind to spend settled in with a cupcake, lightly topped with a mango-pineapple infused salt, and Bruce cranked to the highest volume.

God Bless America!