Travel:

I'm tempted to quit my job 31 August, leave Chicago, and go visit T-- in London and do some travelling in Europe. If I don't have another job, it'll be very tempting. I want to go to Spain, and maybe back to Italy, and to Poland and (maybe) Croatia...

Hey, the trip around the world could still happen! Or maybe I'm just doing this because I'm scared about what I'm going to hear on Thursday and am indulging in escapist fantasy while watching the Cubs.

But I do miss Europe, most of all the feeling that in a couple of hours, for a negligible sum of money, I could be somewhere completely different. Sick of London? Three hours and about 50 pounds will take you to Athens. Vienna too expensive? 30 Euros plus five hours equals Prague. Here in Chicago, if I'm sick of the city, well for about $50 and three hours I can be in Michigan, downstate Illinois, Indianapolis, the list goes on and on. Somehow it loses something.

I feel more tied down, even though I'm not really. I can quit my job, leave my apartment, and drive to Mexico if I want. I just need to keep remembering that. Sure it might take a little longer or cost a little more to get somewhere I really want to go, but that doesn't mean I can't get there.