Dreaming (because nothing's open right now).

Before we moved to Tanzania, I made a list of things I'd want if I lived overseas. I wanted to live in a small town (or at least one that had a small-town feel). I wanted warm weather. I wanted English to not be the primary language. I wanted whatever language that was spoken to be written with the same alphabet we use in English. I wanted a place where my kids could go to good schools in English (given that we don't speak another language). I wanted a place that was politically stable.

Minneapolis was a great great place to live and if we had never left, I would never have regretted raising my family there. It's not a small town, but it is a small city for being a pretty major national player and I think it does have a small town feeling to it. But I never. ever. liked the weather.

Arusha fit the bill. The weather in Arusha was absolutely perfect. Seriously. I learned the language and would have gotten better had I stayed on. It was diverse--something I didn't know that I would appreciate so much.

Beijing...well, let's just say it's not those things. So they don't speak English, but turns out that's not making up for the other junk. Turns out pollution is much higher on my radar than it used to be.

Cluis...OK, seriously, I'm not moving to France. Yet. My kids really can't go to a French school and the thing about having jobs and making money seems to be a sticking point at this time in our lives. But should that stop a person from looking?

The kids can't go to school until they are academically fluent in French so it's going to be homeschooling. Sadly, however, we will need to work. Using my amazing powers of French and deduction, I believe the sign in the upper right window says "for rent." Using my amazing bargianing powers, honed in developing countries, I will get that flower shop below for a song. Since the flowers already come looking very pretty in pots, I don't have to actually KNOW anything about them. I'm sure I can learn all the French words for different colors pretty quickly.

Maybe the shopkeeper's life is not for me. I grew up in Montana, I owned horses, I've milked cows. Maybe what I need is a small farm. Hard outdoor work suits homeschooling, we'd have a horse or two, a couple BIG dogs...I could sell milk and eggs. Theoretically, I could learn to make some crazy fancy butter that would make me rich. I'd steer away from cheese, though. These people already have a lock on that. This sweet place is a looks like it used to be a barn. It has at least 3 other barns (one of which could be repurposed into guest rooms for travelers on the Compostela Trail or as guest rooms per the custom here). There are fields and green grass aplenty for the 10 or so cows, and neighbors that look like they could talk me out of any trouble I'd get into.

There is the fixer-upper possibility. Paris is known for its flea markets and, given the casual attitude towards things old here, I should be able to snap up a whole bunch of stuff at reasonable prices. There are a baJILLION sites devoted to women who can transform anything with a can of spray paint and a hot glue gun. This balcony will be transformed into something irresistable and I WILL have working shutters on the doors and windows (red, please, not blue).

I can rent out rooms, but Mark would still need work--that modern heating system I'm going to install won't come cheap.

Memo to self...avoid new French-looking houses. They may be less work, but they are clearly devoid of personality and style. Also, spend some time getting a really cool gate. It matters.

Impossible? Just remember, someone bought this entire CASTLE 25 years or so ago for the low low price of $162,000. I bet he thinks it was worth it, even if he does have to let people basically go in and out of his house every day.

Did I mention that I read Under the Tuscan Sun at least twice a year?

Where will you live in your next real or imagined life? Is it an actual place or something you need that you might find in many places?