re-hab rules

i am closing the year out as far from work, life and stress as i could go not need to wear a parka and duck penguins.  i did as close to no planning for this trip as humanly possible.  it was very simple; the weeks aligned as though it was a sign from god, there was a thing to do, and a friendly travel agent pointed me in the right direction.  when you need to recover from a crazy year, and prepare for the next wave, a beach on the edge of the gold coast is an easy choice.

sitting in the MAS lounge in KLIA i looked up and saw one of the staff looking at me while she talked to her friend.  they both blushed and smiled when i looked up.  when i went to get a glass of wine i asked what they were talking about.  one of them said, "i think you are handsome.  you have a nice face."  it was my turn to blush.  i said "thanks, that's nice" and went to have my wine.  i wondered if that was the high point for the trip.

three flights, each progressively worse as the planes and airports got smaller and time dragged on.  the last flight was spent wedged into the economy seat trying to stretch my cramped neck.  i decided to just ignore the pain and go to sleep, waking up just before landing in the worlds smallest airport.  i got to experience a landing that felt like the pilot was rushing his mini cooper into a spot in a busy parking lot.  i decided that moment was the last bit of tension i would feel for the week.  we were down, now i could just recover.

a beautiful drive 60 km up the coast, with a roadside wardrobe change to shed the jeans and button down for cargo shorts and sandals, was capped by a check-in where the only issues were deciding on the length of the massage to be scheduled for the next day, and the fact that aussie and american are only mostly the same language.  

for dinner i found mexican and was invited to share a table with a lovely aussie woman; one who had lived in the US so communication was far from an issue.  not planning a thing, and ending up in the best mexican place on an entire continent, finding a wonder dinner companion and enjoying hours of conversation was more than i would have hoped for during the entire week.  being smiled at in KLIA was slipping down the ranking in high points.

back to the room, jacuzzi tub, shower, another chapter of "good germs, bad germs" and dvds of my favorite serial killer followed by louisiana vampires and the night was over.  the morning started with bright sun, a call home to check on my bug and a run to burn the flights off.  when i got back i asked about a coffee place and was told to try re-hab.  the name made me smile, the place is even better.

i am sitting in a coffee house that could easily be on the beach in california. there is music going, the coffee is strong, the internet pass is cheap and they have banana bread.  i am beginning to ask myself why i would ever leave here.  coffee, music, books, internet, beautiful empty beaches, good mexican for dinner and comfort foods that are "no nut" but almost as good as i remember.

if anyone asks, i am in rehab; and its the best thing i have done all year.