Walking to Australia

Sunset at Mawelton Beach, Whidbey Island

I have posted twice in one day because I have fallen behind in my commitment to my blog and because today's the day I'm walking back to Australia!  Having done something horrible to my lower back, I have spent the past few days in varying states from lying down to walking non-stop, and at times not being able to move at all.  The power of mind over matter - or it may just be time and anti-inflammatories - has improved things, but this could well be the mother of all trips!

The Clinton Ferry dock

I've enjoyed this flight for years, ever since I started doing it by myself, and when people ask how I can stand it, I remind them that I used to do it for years, often alone, with three kids and I always have that to compare it to.  No movies, no meals in peace, no reading, and almost no sleeping - these days I get to do all that, plus drink free wine! 

Leaving Whidbey Island - Mukilteo ferry dock

But this trip may end up being one other I have to compare to - it may be the longest one yet; longer than the one from Saudi Arabia to New York (about 20 hours) in a middle seat, newly pregnant, with an 8 month old baby on my lap and a sweet Arab man next to me with a 14 month old - on his lap.  It may even feel longer than the 48 hour one from Seattle to Hobart, with three children under five, when we had two plane problems that caused two delays and then a man had a heart attack and we had to turn around and go back to Hawaii, then wait 10 hours to get on another flight, with a bunch of partiers, in the "smoking" section (yes, they actually used to have those on 14 hour flights!!)

Even with the long flights that I've enjoyed, there's always a moment where you think you can't stand it and you're going to flip out and run amok through the cabin.  Once I reach the halfway mark though, it's usually ok, as the second half of anything involving time always goes faster (except for pregnancy). 

The most uncomfortable thing for me at the moment is sitting down, and of the 19 hour trip I'm about to take, 14 of those are non-stop from LAX to Melbourne.  So I'm thinking my only choice might be to walk the whole way.  Once everyone is asleep and things calm down, after meals and general settling in,  I'll be the annoying person pacing up and down the aisles, trying not to bump people who inevitably have various body parts overflowing their seats. 

And still, somehow, I'll find a way to love the trip.  I always do.  The day the smell of jet fuel fails to stir my imagination.......even with a sore back I don't think it ever will.

Thanks for listening...