Stuff, things, food on the table.

I'm back from Europe! There is so much to share about the experience. What a wonderful gift to receive. Now, to finish the blog (which is only currently halfway there!)...

Living at home again has been a rough adjustment. I'm just amazed at how much time two people can spend looking after their stuff - things that become their entire lives, instead of things that compliment and facilitate lives. There is a lot more to my parents than stuff, but maybe the transition from being a backpacker running on 4 sets of clothing for a month to stumbling through a house full of possessions and noise pollution has been harder than I anticipated.

Nonetheless.. one material possession I can appreciate is trip pictures! I just started printing some today, and even got high compliments from my Dad, buyer of many an expensive camera accessory. Now that I'm relatively adroit at keeping up with them, photos and journaling a great way to hang onto and share memories. I'm so thankful that I had a friend to borrow a camera from - Emily did me an amazing favor! It must have taken a huge amount of trust to let it go for an entire 6 weeks.

Now that I'm back, it's officially time to work on doing something productive to move toward winning my very own multigrain loaf. To that end, I just dug out an article I photocopied from the New Yorker about an innovative, green designer named Amory Lovins. He envisioned a different energy future in 1976 (Energy Strategy: The Road Not Taken? pdf) and is the CEO of a company I would be excited to work for (!). I'm also interested in internships at Friends of the Earth, who are centered in DC. Lovins worked there before founding his own company; I'm sure reading more will lead me to other interesting opportunities. Excitement!

Edit-
3 websites for green jobs were recently e-mailed to me by a friend:
1. Young Professionals in Energy
2. Greenjobs
3. Renewable Energy Access

Un poco mejor

I'm feeling much healthier now, and breathing the Barcelona beach air this afternoon was wonderful. Europe, the land where the sun doesn't set until 10 - why can´t it be this way everywhere?
It was nice to have a day to myself. Oddly, I suddenly got the urge to knit after coming back from the beach; it would have been a great activity to do while lazing about in my enjoyment.

Also, I miss biking! That will be one of the first things I do when I get home (though not until it´s the cool time of the day-- July and August in MD are going to be scorchers as usual, I´m sure).