Only Took 11 Days ...

to truly miss St Croix.

My first week back in Charlotte was great.  I literally did not stop and jumped right back in the swing of things.  My best girlfriend and new roommate Shelby greeted me at the airport Saturday night with flowers.  It was funny, we were driving to our place and as nice as it was to see each other for the first time since early January, it also felt like we had just made that drive a few weeks prior.  It definitely did not feel like I had been gone for six months.  It was just the start of the week that all of this felt like it was validation that I was where I was supposed to be.

Sunday was non-stop - from church to brunch to car shopping to family dinner.  It was so good to see so many friends my first day back!  And the rest of the week was no exception.  I spent Monday morning finalizing all of the details of my new Jeep (the "Mango Tango" - as much sadness as I had leaving my Jeep on the island, I have had NO regrets about selling it and buying a new one!).  Ran a few errands, but was back at home by 1pm to catch up on work for the afternoon, then met up with my friend Christel for our routine Monday night "run" (which ended up just being a walk since I hadn't run for months and had a lot of talking to do!!) and more importantly, catching up over Ben and Jerrys.  Tuesday was my first day back in the office - Dport and I started the morning at Starbucks and my first comment was that it was weird that it didn't feel weird - again, it felt like we had just walked across the street for coffee the previous week.  That night I went from work to Target to lifegroup.  Wednesday was the same, with volleyball and trivia at night.  By Thursday, I had 5 blisters on my feet from work shoes, but quickly forgot about the pain catching up with girlfriends over stoli doli's at Capital Grill.  Friday was a nice day working from home, then had a low key evening with my friend Bryan - talk about perfect setting meeting up on his hammock right on the water - a good reminder of some of my favorite things to do in STX.  Saturday was another crazy day - from my brother's, to catching up with neighbors, to Target and Kohls, to lunch, to hair appointment, to coffee with a friend, to church - it finally hit me in the middle of the day that I was EXHAUSTED and that I had not stopped for an entire week straight!  And, I ended up telling the story of St Croix five separate times considering all of the different friends I caught up with that day.  I came home ready to go to bed at 7:30 pm!  Luckily Shelby and her friend Sara arrived home soon after, so we ended up having a nice low key rest of the evening out on the balcony.

I am glad that if I learned anything from my time in St Croix, it was that I loved Sunday fundays (and sadly, I only had three of those in a row in April that I can truly claim - I think I've mentioned before, what the heck was I doing every other Sunday?!?).  I took full advantage of my Sunday and enjoyed not making any plans (and thank goodness, I don't think I could have handled it after Saturday!).  It was a beautiful day outside, so Shelby, Sara, and I walked to breakfast, then Shelby and I walked to Freedom Park where I stayed for a few hours just sitting and relaxing, reading and people watching.  It was exactly what I needed to do - and it made me glad to be "home".  I took Shelby to the airport, picked up a few more things at my brother's, then had dinner with my friend Michelle - an ideal Sunday in my book!

Then it's ironic how I felt a huge shift on Monday.  I was SO TIRED.  I think the previous week finally caught up with me, and I haven't seemed to catch up since.  Again, from work, to meeting up with Christel, to a women's event at the church made for a full day.  Then last night I'm glad I didn't have any plans, and my brother was nice enough to pick up take-out and came over here to watch the Cubs/Cardinals game while I baked a cake.  Then again today, I was just tired - a busy day at work, a double header on the volleyball court.  I was even too tired to go out for trivia and chili cheese fries!

I think one thing I am realizing is that I need to take some of the lessons learned in St Croix and incorporate them back into life in Charlotte.  This week I've realized how much I miss the pace in St Croix ... ah, "island time".  Of course I kept myself plenty busy in STX, but it was mostly self-imposed.  Here, I feel that there are so many other factors driving my schedule - that I have less control and influence over it.  And I like being busy, but I've realized when I'm the one causing it.

It sure hasn't taken long this week to be ready to go back ...

6 Months in the Sun

... and I've got a good tan.

Seriously:  (1) where has the time gone and (2) am I really that tan?  I've had so many people comment on my tan - a local at the Post Office, a woman from Dominica at the office supply store, a friend I ran into at K-Mart, some guys at the Lost Dog (comparing arm to arm, after they have lived here 30 years), the owners at Polly's, Kirby's comment about my "gleaming" teeth the other night at dinner.  Ironically, as I was typing this, I received an email from a friend back home who I'll see Memorial Day weekend.  His comment, "I'm going to go out on a limb and wager that you'll be four times as tan as any of the rest of us."  I mean I know I'm tan (okay, I will admit that I looked exceptionally dark last night in a yellow dress), but I don't feel any tanner than I usually get in the summertime back home.  And considering there is no difference between summer and winter down here, I have been surprised by all the comments.  I'm not complaining - I just hope I can maintain this tan all summer in NC!

Still hard to believe I celebrated my 6 month anniversary down here on Monday (ironically after Lisa and Jeff and Kirby and Andy celebrated their one year anniversaries Saturday and Sunday).  Just trying to relax a little, while still getting things ready for my move home (which of course as much as I would like to chill out, there is always stress involved in any type of move).  As much as I talk about it, I don't think leaving this place and moving home have really hit me yet.  I do have to be thankful that things are falling into place nicely.  I'm moving into Shelby's for the first three months, and she is picking me up from the airport - she is also the one who dropped me off, so it's like my journey will have come full circle.  I already ordered my mattress and bedding to have delivered to her place (I guess I could officially say "our place") the day I fly back.  I was able to sell my jeep here (tear!), but the convenience of selling it for my asking price (along with the seller taking care of all of the title/registration/insurance changes as well as letting me keep it until next week) outweighed the cost of shipping it home (especially since I will be in need of a working top come wintertime).  So as seamless as the move down here went, I am hoping the move back goes just as smooth.  Of course my next big decision is what color will my new Jeep be???

Food Coma

When I heard about the Taste of St Croix, I was immediately interested - simply stated, I love food.  Unfortunately tickets were expensive, and none of my friends planned on going.  Then the week before, Kirby and Andy ended up with tickets thanks to Kirby's mom standing in line for hours (I also didn't realize that tickets were so limited and could only be purchased in person first come first serve - of course the event sold out that day).  I was even more bummed that I didn't have a ticket finding out that the Taste of St Croix was "Named number one on the Ten Best International Food and Wine Festivals by Forbes Travel!" Uptown Life, March 2010.  How could I miss something like this?!?

I put a note out on Facebook to see if any of my island friends knew of any extra tickets.  A big thanks to my friend Juli for getting a few leads, then an even bigger thanks to my friend Tim (and owner of best fine dining establishment on the island) for the last minute ticket hook-up!

The Taste did not disappoint and was so much more than I had anticipated.  Long story short, I have already told my brother (and fellow "foodie") that I would absolutely plan a vacation around attending this event in the future.  I have very rarely felt more miserably and disgustingly full - but it was all worth it.  Next time I just need to be more planful of my food eating strategies!

"Little G Monee"

It's a good thing I'm not afraid of geckos.

I am deathly afraid of snakes though, and one of the perks of living in the Virgin Islands ... no snakes!  I remember my time in St Thomas and St John in 2006 learning that mongoose were brought to the VIs to rid the islands of all the snakes.  The same is true of St Croix, and I couldn't be happier!

Of course now I face moving back to North Carolina - home of way too many snakes!!!  When my friends Steph and Wali were here (Steph's fear of spiders rivals my fear of snakes), we were discussing the idea of taking home a pet mongoose to protect me from snakes.  Steph and Wali are also some of my friends who affectionately nicknamed me G-Money (aka G$), so when they called my potential pet "Little Monee", it immediately and fittingly turned into "Little G Monee".

I'm a Green Flash?

Today started in typical Sunday Funday fashion (mostly asking myself why I haven't been doing this EVERY weekend!).  I woke up early and dropped off some of my last goodies at Polly's, then walked around Frederiksted doing some final souvenir shopping as it was a cruiseship day.  I ended up talking to three of my best girlfriends from home - two while I was sitting on a park bench enjoying the scenery and beautiful weather, the third while I had just settled in at the beach.  All three of whom I am super excited about seeing when I get home ... but after each conversation, I also started to tear up.  As anxious as I am to get home, every passing day makes me realize how sad I am about leaving.  I have loved it here - the good, bad, and ugly.  I will look back on this experience with nothing but gratefulness that I had the opportunity to experience living in St Croix - not just for the amazing views and warm weather, but even more so for the incredible friends I have made along the way.  I am not looking forward to leaving any of this behind!

My friend Bruno stumbled onto the beach this afternoon while I was hanging out with Jeff and Christi.  He took a moment to say some of the sweetest, most endearing compliments I have ever received (including his comparison of me to a green flash).  I'm tearing up again just writing this and thinking about how thankful I am to have met so many amazing people that will always make me look back on my time in St Croix with nothing but fondness.  I am truly blessed by the people in my life - both near and far.

Positive Is How I Live

...reads the bumper sticker I just bought as a souvenir.  I have seen it all over the island - on people's cars, windows, t-shirts, etc.  It is actually the campaign slogan for Senator Terrence "Positive" Nelson, but also serves as a great saying for life in "paradise".  

I decided tonight after work that it felt like a hammock night ... so I packed up my stuff and walked down to Sandcastles.  On my walk, I saw one of the bumper stickers and it made me smile.  It will be a great reminder of St Croix, as well as a motto to learn to live by no matter where the location or what the situation!

A Great Place to Be

Literally and figuratively.

First - here I've been spending the past six months living in the Caribbean, during the winter no less.  Although I've had my share of ups and downs, I can't say enough about how much I have loved St Croix and everything about it.  My amazing friends, the warm weather, incredible views, a laid back pace of life - all things I will miss and take with me in my fond memories of my time here. 

Second - it's a great feeling knowing that I'm going back not because I want to leave this beautiful place, but just because I know where home is and this experience was an important lesson in learning that.  Had I spent any less time here, I think I would have left with a lot of "what if's" and a restlessness that I wasn't ready to go.  The past two months have provided me exactly what I was looking for.  As much as I love it here, time away from home has really made me miss it.  I've been able to put a lot of priorities in check ... and all signs point to going back.  Of course we'll see how long that feeling lasts before I'm wanting to come back to St Croix =)

In the spirit of being ready to go home, I somehow misplaced my bucket list this week.  Ironic that I was just telling a friend that I had crossed off all the "must do's" and truly felt that I have accomplished what I set out to do on this journey.  I even felt so complete that I started looking into a trip to another island for one of my last weekends.  When I moved down here, I assumed I would be hopping all around the islands.  Though it's hard to justify a vacation in the Caribbean when you already live there!  At least I have learned a lot about many of the other islands, so I have a nice list of new places to visit someday.  I will save my Caribbean vacations for when I'm living back home and really in need of an island getaway!