Sylvia's Journal

After flying in relatively old and tired airplanes in and out of Kabul, the trip to Washington in a new Embraer jet was a joy – sleek and fast. This flying in and out of Logan is a taste of what’s to come – this week, next week and then a few weeks after that again. Work assignments, the kind I am looking for, tend not to be in Boston.

I was up early to prepare for my Japan assignment and pack my bags for the trip to DC. I wanted to clear my desk to be fully present for my friends from Holland who I had to abandon on their very first evening at our house.

They arrived at noon from Boston. We vacated the master bedroom for them, an easier solution than, once again, organizing the studio. Axel is trying out the bunk bed mattresses in the guestroom for the next few nights. It is always good to know what you are asking your guests to sleep on.

We drove to Lanesville to Tessa’s dollhouse, ate a hefty kale/bean and potato soup and went for a long walk around the reservoir in Gloucester – a part that Axel, after having lived most of life in the neighborhood, had never known existed. The walk was a treat for humans and dogs alike – a beautiful though somewhat nippy fall day.

We finished our Gloucester outing at the brewery wanting tea rather than beer but drinking beer anyways – it is partially the location/view that makes this place so attractive.

And now I need to concentrate on helping to get a brand new project team started off on the right foot.