I am not one of those who loves to travel but appreciates being back home to sleep in my own bed and use my own bathroom. I can sleep or have insomnia anywhere and in any bed. When I must use a bathroom, I don’t care whose, or where it is unless it’s too disgusting to fathom, then I manage to have amazing self-control.

What is more appealing to me when I am home, is that I’m not living out of a suitcase. And this trip, more than most, was surely an “on the go” never unpack trip. For example, we landed in Marseilles, France, around 6:00 p.m. and took a taxi to the hotel. I stood in line to check in while Daniel ordered us drinks at the bar (we are multi-taskers).

After checking in, Uber drove us to the restaurant and back. We slept for a few hours, woke at 3:00 a.m. to dress, and then took another Uber to the airport for our flight to Milan. We were in France for less than 12 hours!

The longest stay in any hotel was for three days on our first stop in Lisbon. The only thing I had to unpack were the shopping bags with clothes I bought because my luggage didn’t make it to Lisbon when I did.

When we got home, I unpacked that same day. My clothes went into the laundry or neatly into my closet and drawers. That was more comforting than sleeping in my bed or using my bathroom. Strange the things that calm us.

I missed Mugsy and was appreciative of his exuberant tail-wagging welcome. Evidently, he missed me too. Our house and dog sitter took my instructions about watching his diet to heart. I think he lost another pound or two while we were gone. Now he follows me around the house, waiting for a crumb to drop or begging me with his sad eyes, hoping for a treat.

I am glad I had the time and thought to head over to Jay’s Auto Shop before leaving town to change over to my snow tires. We were well prepared for the slushy, icy pass driving back from Seattle this time. Our car was filled with our over-stuffed suitcases and fresh fish we bought at Pikes before we headed home.

It was a great trip, but now it’s time to face the world of laundry, cleaning, and walking Mugsy in the snow while negotiating the ice and trying to remain upright. We’re keeping a close eye on the temperature because this year, we will run the water when it drops below 20. I am adamant, no frozen pipes this year.

Next up: digging out my thermal underwear, big fluffy, warm socks, and continuously mopping up the ice, snow, and gunk on the floor that we drag in every time we go outside. Today, it’s time to dig my car out of the snow, clear the windows and make sure it’s ready to roll out tomorrow so I can drive to Walla Walla for a tennis game.

Right now, we have a great reminder of our trip. World Cup Soccer is still going on, and now it’s down to the finals. Of course, it’s not as much fun watching the games from our couch as in the bars with locals, but to compensate, I don’t have to dig through my suitcase to find something to wear. So, I’ll eat some French cheese, drink Italian wine and pretend I’m back in Europe and the balmy 67 degrees while the soccer teams compete.

Publisher’s note; Since this article was submitted, the FIFA 2022 World Cup final score was Argentina 3, France 3, with Argentina winning the world cup 4-2 on penalties.