Back to Her Island

The women of my life don’t get nearly the amount of blog attention they deserve. This could be due to the fact that since the blog began, more than 4 years ago, I’ve never found myself with a girlfriend. Still there have been times where I mentioned or should have mentioned a special female in my life regardless of the fact that its not “romanticly” related.

So this evening when the phone lit up, I saw that it was the Fleur, and remembered that she’d be returning to her island at some point this weekend. You may recall me talking about island girl long ago, as she lives 6 months out of the year in the Azores (the Portuguese archipalego), and studies whales and dolphins.

Every year around this time, there’s usually an email or a sms or a phonecall saying “ciao bicyclemark, see you in the fall”. It’s like the passing of the seasons; springtime arrives and the Fleur must return to her island. It’s an anual occasion that always sounds exciting to me, as I’ve long hoped to go see more of the Azores and see first-hand the incredibly beautiful work she does there.

As I learned from her phonecall, the journey begins again in a few hours. We didn’t get to do an in-person goodbye, which is normal. But these past six months I’ve grown more attached than in the past. Maybe it’s because as you get older you become more choosey about who your friends are and who you’ll spend quality time with. Through our occasional swimming evenings and dinners, I guess that’s what I was doing.

Anyone who’s ever lived in Amsterdam knows that that’s how it is. People come and go, and they usually return – so no worries, don’t make too big a fuss with goodbyes. And so I decided that this year I would do better than that, the world could use some interesting podcasts about the ocean, whales & dolphins, and these very unique islands – come September, I’m gonna find a way to get myself to the Azores. Island girl, I’ll see you in a few months.

(and if you’re reading this right now the Fleur, smile, the internets are watching.)

==ps== for the podcast listeners, slightly delayed this weekend, to give you a chance to catch up and me a chance to play in a frisbee tournament.