We're Baaaack....

Yes, it’s been ages since my last post. In fact, for what it’s worth, in the blogosphere I might as well have last posted in the Jurassic age, but this week seems as good as any for a re-birth of our blog—Only Planet. Eleven short years ago we embarked on the adventure of a lifetime, parenting a tiny bundle of baby who we named Dylan, after one of the greatest poets in the modern age. We’ll let you guess which one. After a rockin’ birthday party at the climbing gym this weekend, Tuesday saw a quieter celebration, with dinner at Mio Sushi (our favorite Portland sushi) and a macaroon from Pix. One birth among billions, yet for us, it was the birth of a universe—the parenting universe, and so we think about beginnings.

Ostensibly we started Only Planet to record the trip of a lifetime, or at least, our lifetime. Even though the trip eventually ended, there still seem moments I find worth writing about. They may not be as exotic as balancing on a wobbly camel in Cairo, or as disorienting as seeing Thais wearing white wings bowing and wishing you a “Happy Valentines,” but there are still snapshots worth noting as we throw ourselves through the ultimate journey—this modern life. And since I’m a writer, and writers write, whether about dashing through airports or the Arbor carpool line, I know there are stories I need to tell.

But I should come clean: we are traveling again. Spring Break starts Monday and Dylan’s school has a two week vacation, a truly civilized amount of time to go somewhere. Since we had enough airline miles on United to fly to the moon and back, or maybe Antarctica, we spun the globe and our finger landed on Bali for a destination. While we’ve seen much of Asia, we didn’t venture to Indonesia on our Trip (capitalized in our minds as the TRIP of 2005-2006), for various reasons. But I’m glad we didn’t, because now I feel rested, fresh and ready to tackle any of the challenges thrown our way… Another full body massage? Don’t mind if I do. Hot humid weather? Bring it on. So if you’re interested in following us as we do a little bit of praying, and a whole lotta eating and loving through Bali (with apologies to Elizabeth Gilbert), check out our blog for our many ponderous posts. With any luck there might even be something from the Travel Rat. It’s good to be back. Namaste!