Back in the Groove

After a fitful night's sleep and strains of Hawaiian slack-key guitar songs repeating in my dreams all night, I finally tumbled out of bed at 9:30 local time and tried to feel completely here.  Jet lag after a simple two-hour time change is hard to imagine, but I'm feeling it.

We sorted through a pile of laundry, accumulated mail and the odd flotsam and jetsam that gathers itself to you when you travel and then decided to go for a quick walk and breakfast at Holly's in downtown Pacific Grove.  It was packed.

On the walk there, it looked just as gray as the skies in Kauai had often looked, but it's at least 20 degrees cooler.  It feels odd to wear jeans again and have to bundle up.  My eyes keep finding what they've been keyed to look for over the past two weeks:  Bright flowers.  Bougainvillea does grow here, and every time I spotted one on the six-block walk to the cafe, my mind shouted, "Look!  Just like Hawaii!"  It's a recognition-sensitive response I'm going to say, trying to explain away reverse homesickness, and I know it will gradually fade, but I hope not.

Holly's Lighthouse Cafe, in case you've been patiently waiting for me to say so, is the local hotspot cafe, one of the warm hearths of the town where locals feel comfortable and everyone wants to return to.  It's a small space, can be crowded (i.e., get there early or be willing to wait for a table), but the food is satisfying and the ambient roar of lively conversation ebbs and flows at a comfortable level.  For the record, I had minestrone soup and their Spinach Apple Tossed Salad, both exactly what I needed.

Following our meal, we walked home via Bookmark Bookstore to peruse the newest releases; bought three books, which I'll write about later, and then walked to Grove Market for staple items.

That's my day.  I'm physically here, but my head's somewhere between the islands and the mainland.  The cure?  My heart's saying go back.  My head's saying:  Plan another trip and make it happen.  So, they agree, which is a very good thing.  Tomorrow:  I'm planning to make a must-take-them list for my return trip = things I forgot to take this time or wished I'd had with me.