Where The Dream Has Led

This is a Google photo of Pont Valentre spanning the Lot River at Cahors, France. Cahors (pronounced Kay-Oar) is the capital of the department of the Lot in southwest France. My dream has led me to the river valley of the Lot upstream from this city. Through a cyber-friendship with Laury at Soar-Dream-France, I have an opportunity to spend a month exploring this lovely region of France. I'm going; the only thing in question right now is the exact dates. If you click here, you'll be whisked over to Laury's blog where you can read all about Melange-ing Magic at her home, Chatette.

Be Careful What You Wish For....

You know that saying..'be careful what you wish for because you may just get it?' Just like Jiminy Cricket here, I've wished on many a star in my day. Big stars, little stars, shooting stars, and even stars that were really planets ( I never could learn to tell them apart). Today, one of my wishes actually came true, kind of. I was offered an opportunity to do something I've longed to do by a very generous person whom I don't really even know. I'm mulling it over right now. Of course, every fiber in my being is shouting "Go for it!" And of course, my brain is shouting "How can you ever make this happen?" I've read all those books that advise you to take the leap of faith and say YES! to opportunity. I know I should let God take care of the 'how to do' this. I know in my heart this is a chance that I can't let pass me by. I know those things; now I just need to make my brain know them. Which will win....heart or head?

Click here for a hint about my dream. It's not Paris, but close....

One More Step Towards My Dream

As you walk by Cafe de la Poste on your way to see the village windmill, you notice a woman 'of a certain age' sitting seul at a table, her face tilted to catch the afternoon sun. In front of her is a small, metallic blue mini-laptop. The woman sits quietly; you can tell that behind her tres chic dark glasses her eyes observe everything. She ponders, then begins tapping on the keyboard, a story spilling out. She takes a sip of her pastis and begins writing again. In the space of time it takes to stroll past the cafe, you know...this is a woman who is living her dream, a dream of a literary life in Provence. She is writing something important or entertaining or poignant; her publisher is eagerly awaiting this manuscript. Perhaps she is even writing about you!

That's the dream. This is one more step towards attaining it...my new Asus mini-laptop! I devoted part of my income tax return to its purchase, and I'm thrilled with it. It is wireless-ready, has the capability of both Skype and Bluetooth connections, has a built-in webcam and a word processing program. While it won't be good for storing a lot of photos or manuscripts, I can use it for both and then download onto a jump drive to save pictures and documents. It has a 6 cell battery with a 9 hour battery life. The screen is 10 inches, and it weighs a mere 3 pounds making it perfect for travel...it fits nicely in my luscious red Longchamps bag!

Here are the best parts about this lovely little gem...it was cheap and it seems to have been made especially for me!

Reality Check

Much as I like to blog only about non-whining things, this week I was slapped by a huge 'reality check,' so you are forewarned that I'm going to whine a bit. I'm trying really hard to get my ducks in the water. So, I started to gather information about the nuts and bolts of getting to France for a long term stay...you remember...it's my dream to live a literary life in the south of France? Well...here's reality. First, as an American citizen, I must apply for a long term visa. This applies for all visits to France for over 3 months. My passport alone is good enough for 90 days. In order to apply for this visa, I must go, in person, to the French Embassy in Chicago. So far...not too bad, eh? I'd love to spend some time in Chicago; I've never been there, could be fun. Here's what I have to provide the Embassy:

1. One long-stay application form per passport holder fully filled out and signed - Note that this form is only available in French and must be filled out in French. NO COPY required
2. 1 picture glued/stapled onto EACH application form + 1 picture left loose. All photographs must be recent, in color on a plain white background, of full front view, taken facing the camera. No side or angled view are acceptable. Chin to top of hair should measure about 1"
3. Questionnaire duly filled out in French
4. Passport valid for at least six months (make sure your passport has blank pages left to affix the visa)
5. Status in the US - If you are not a US citizen, copy of your green card or visa.
6. Recent Police Record to be obtained from the F.B.I. (even if blank record)
7. Letter promising not to engage in any employment in France (signature certified by a notary public)
8. Letter of employment in the US stating occupation and earnings
9. Proof of means of income - letter from the bank, investment certificates, pension slips, …
10. Proof of medical insurance
11. Marriage certificate or family book + Birth certificates for children
12. Proof of accommodation in France (title deeds, lease or rental agreement)
13. Processing fee
14. an "express mail envelope" from USPS, self addressed and stamped, for the return of your passport -if you allow the Consulate to keep the passport. If you need it to travel, you may send your passport to the Consulate when the visa process ends (we would contact you to let you know the process is over).

Yikes!! And all these documents have to be accompanied by a translation in French for each one.

Then....after arriving for my long term stay in France (provided they grant me the visa), I have to apply locally for a Carte de Sejour. The requirements are just as lengthy as for the original visa. If you want to see them, click here and scroll down to the part about non-EU citizens. When I googled images for the Carte de Sejour, I was amazed at how many pictures there were, many with their holders proudly showing them off to the camera. After reading through all the requirements to get one, I understood why those folks wanted it recorded for posterity to remember just how hard they worked for their little card! I emailed my cyber-acquaintance, Jo Anne, who spends several months each year living in Provence and asked her "Is this really as hard as it seems?" Her answer was a resounding YES! She did say she'd help me through the process if I decided to forge ahead, though.

I'm thinking this over; I'm not ready to give up my dream, but maybe I need to tweak it a bit. Maybe I need to work on other parts of it instead? Gettin' those duckies in the water is turning out to be harder than I thought.

Be Bold!

I promised a fellow blogger that I would give her some 'press' in my blog. So, I direct your attention to one the blogs I follow faithfully, The Bold Soul. Lisa Taylor Huff is a woman after my own heart...she took a giant leap of faith to make her dreams come true...and they did! Lisa blogs from Paris. She's a life coach who shares some of her secrets and a lot of her life in her very entertaining blog. Yesterday's post about not worrying about 'how' to make your dreams come true, but rather determining 'what' exactly your dreams are and 'who' exactly you are, really made sense to me. I get very caught up in the 'how' part. And of course, when you do that, it becomes overwhelming. So, I know what I want to do and I'm pretty sure I know who I am (I've had lots of years to figure that out). And I also know I'm getting pretty tired of waiting for 'something' to happen. I think that all boils down to...I have to make that something happen. Now, I just need to figure out what that is! Maybe Lisa will give me some ideas.

A New Journal

I started a new journal this morning. Does it surprise you that I have been an almost daily journaler for many years? My guess is...it doesn't! And I have a whole shelf on my bookcase dedicated to filled journals to prove my daily habit.I actually had two new bright empty journals to choose from; I picked this one for its 'connections.' Entitled Provencal Entree, the photo is by Lisa Taylor Huff who is the author of Bold Soul, a blog I've recently begun following. If you click through the link on the photo's title, you can see some of Lisa's other photos on items for sale through CafePress.

Of course, I love this journal because it combines two of my favorite things...Provence and Provencal doors. It also connects with two other passions I have...photography and writing. Lisa is primarily a writer who is also a life coach inspiring others to become their own Bold Souls. What better inspiration for a journal?

Because I've been told that the only way to make dreams come true is to put them out there for the Universe to work on, I've decided to share part of my very first entry in this journal.

"Here is my goal that I will work on from now until this journal is filled...and beyond! The goal:

a new life living and writing in Provence. I have no idea how I'll make that happen...but

today, as I begin this new journal I'll re-dedicate myself that with God's help, I will make

this happen!"

Okay...so now you know my deepest dream. I don't know how to make the dream come true. I don't how in the world to come up with the money to enable this dream. Yes, I know I'm 'way too old to go off and live in a foreign country with no income, possibly no talent, all alone. Yes, I've thought about all the 'what ifs.' What if I get sick, what if someone in my family gets sick, what if I never see my grandchildren again, what if I end up being a homeless bag lady. My feeling is you can 'what if' yourself into never doing anything. And anyone reading this who knows me (like my family and friends) knows that I've always had a tendency to seek the adventure instead of the safe, non-what if path.

Wish me luck! No matter what happens, no matter if I never make my dream come true....it will be an adventure!