Coffee

For years I have flirted with coffee.  At times I'm a committed connoisseur, other times I swear it off completely.  When we left Juneau, I decided to have a last hurrah with the hot and steamy beverage.  After all, we were embarking on a several week road trip USA (mainly to bring our dog, Kayan, to stay with friends in Colorado) and what’s a road trip in the states without coffee???  I would fully indulge myself and then planned to break free of my caffeine love affair once we got to New Zealand, because I assumed the hot beverage of choice would be tea.  WOW, was I wrong! 

Cappuccino, note the chocolate powder on top!

Travel

Nick spotted two sets of familiar shoes as we descend the stairs to baggage claim.  With each step our friends were revealed to us from toe to head.  Suddenly our tired bodies and minds, from 33 hours of travel, felt an overwhelming joy and slight mania at having arrived.  We exchanged hugs and some stories of our travels as we waited for our bags to take their turn around the carousel.  On our drive to M and J’s home fireworks exploded in the sky.  Apparently everyone was excited about our arrival.  Well, that and it was Guy Fox day. 

The Decision

As we made our way back into granite creek basin, a popular hiking trail in Juneau, M, J, and I talked about how lucky we were to have each other in our lives on a daily basis.  We also talked about where our lives would take us in the future.  M and J planned on returning to Dunedin [New Zealand] in a year and a half; Nick and I planned on moving to Portland [Oregon] at about the same time.  We fondly talked about how we would take