"Less than 6 Months Left" Syndrome

There are, of course, lots of things that I have missed over the last couple of years during my time here in Bulgaria. For the most part, though, the absence of these luxuries and conveniences have all been a part of the adventure (except the intense food cravings... those I could have done without!!). I can honestly say I have enjoyed the simpler lifestyle that I take part in here, and a big part of me dreads going back to the "land of plenty."

Lately, however, the list of things I am anticipating upon arrival on American soil is growing. At the top of the list... a washing machine!! And DRYER SHEETS (and obviously the correlating dryer - although line drying my clothes is NOT a part of the process that I have grown to resent)!! I would say that a great number of volunteers in country have access to washing machines, and to be honest, I technically have one (shhhh - don't tell). When I asked my landlord when the last time it worked was, she laughed at me, and I deemed the archaic thing worthy enough for counter space and nothing else. At this point, I suppose I could have found someone to try and fix it (Bulgarians are incredibly resourceful), but I... just... never got around to it. Washing clothes in an unheated bathroom in an Eastern European winter is nothing short of brutal, but truly - it never bothered me. Until lately. Its gotten so bad that my laundry pile is just growing and growing. So really, I'm just making my life MORE difficult by neglecting my household chores (you can only wash so much at a time when you do so in a small plastic bin), because at some point, I will need to catch up! And sheesh, I was helping a friend with a dryer (the only one I've seen here - but she has 6 kids!) the other day fold her laundry, and I think I sat there smelling a used dryer sheet for a good 5 minutes. Heavenly. 

A couch. Oh my goodness. I love my little peach, purple, and red one-room apartment.... it IS wonderful. But I'm a reader. I miss curling up in the corner of the couch with a giant mug of tea and being all cozy for a bit. There is a time and a place for reading in bed (usually before bed or early in the morning), but I can't wait to snuggle up on my parents couch with a good book and just be absorbed into a page turner. Or watching an edge of your seat film on said couch. Again, watching a movie in bed can be nice... but my tush is looking for a change in scenery. One of the hotels up in the ski resort has this nice big lobby with leather couches and cheap coffee.... I've been frequenting there just for some prime couch sitting and productivity (more sitting, less productivity). 

My car. Not for transportation purposes. I like being able to walk everywhere. And in recent years I've had a hard time justifying the insane gas money to just get behind the wheel and drive, but that is EXACTLY what I want to do right now. 

I'm sure there are more things I could add to this list, but these are the ones I've been thinking of lately. And I'm certainly not going to get into all of the food I'm craving, but I suppose I need to not throw away all of the pants that are too big for me now, because I am certain that after a few weeks of indulging my ICE CREAM, Mexican, Thai, cheeseburger, pizza, Chinese food cravings... I'll be needing them again. And ya know what? As much as I want to get back to my pre-accident active lifestyle, I'll sacrifice it a little while longer in order to indulge. ;)