still in love, but in need of a break
Vienna is taking a toll on both me and my wallet. Today, just as yesterday evening, I notice a little restlessness, as if I were dreading something; I suppose, in hindsight, this is due to my knowing I'd be doing some necessary spending. It feels like I'm really not used to handling money anymore. I got the pen ink, but it felt like I paid two euros more than I did last year for the same item; I got the yoga mat, but it felt like I could have done a better deal someplace else; I got the tupperware, but found one much cheaper and versatile just outside of the store I made the purchase in; for once, I left the store without getting the receipt, and thus the refund was impossible. This is all very silly and exhausting – I'd just prefer to avoid these situations, and maybe not to be consuming so much.
Luckily, I still had João's apartment for the day, and I could spend some time in the kitchen. It has been giving me lots of pleasure and peace in the last couple of weeks, and I'm quite interested in further engaging my knowledge and skills in this area. With some leftovers of the last couple of days, I managed to devise something up; not only was it a delicious and very hearty lunch for me, it might be dinner for him later in the day as well.
packing stresses and the ever present feeling of leaving something behind
As soon as I was done with cooking, eating and cleaning up, I took a shower and started to pack. The hours slipped by a little quicker than what I expected, and I inevitably found myself in a bit of a hurry to get to the bus station. Google Maps suggested a whole different route than the one I'd naturally do, and I trusted it – I was at Erdberg some forty minutes after. All went well.
All went well, of course, until I realised something: I have left the tupperware with tonight's dinner in João's fridge. I know myself quite well and there's always this lingering feeling that at any given point I might leave something behind. I wish I could, every once in a while, offload the burden of being responsible for all my actions and take a break at being myself. Sigh.
the cozy feeling of being back home
The bus trip was not so bad; in fact, these two Flixbus trips were the most pleasant I've had so far, mostly due to having a proper table available. A little earlier than halfway through, I did some NSDR to clear my mind after the busy day (and the food container fiasco), and got back into solving the Puzzle #1 – which I managed to pull off not long after.
Crossing the border to Slovenia, and soon after arriving at Maribor, felt in some way to be back home. The Slovenian roads are quite nice, most often than not bordered by fields to both sides, and it was a nice contrast to the busy streets in and near Vienna. Soon after disembarking the bus, I was walking into the city's centre, which was very lively, given that it was Monday afternoon; but I soon remembered the Maribor Lent Festival is underway, and that explained most of its activity.
Almost by chance, I encountered my farm friends. It was nice to see them all again. I shared all but one of the homemade cakes, and we soon parted again – there were excited about attending some of the festival's shows, while I, on the other hand, just wanted some calm, quiet, and hopefully a sitting place.
The public transportation to the farm is in a dire situation; I arrived in Maribor at 8PM, and the only available bus would only take off at 10 past 10 in the evening: that was my earliest chance at getting home, save for a private taxi or lift. I somehow managed to miss the bus a couple of hours later, but the farm gang were going home shortly after anyway. It was no big deal: I had plenty of time to finish some notes on Utopia for Realists. In the meantime, I also got to know some of Maribor's shops and cafés; a little out of the city centre, there's also the climbing gym – which I visited and got some good news from, as they have a summer pricing promotion.
It felt very nice to be back home; soon after, I was out in deep sleep.
(the picture and description were added much later, on 2023-07-29-Saturday)
