across the universe?

my reverse gear is not working

so i go forward:

london

the old english countryside

madrid

cadaquez (time permitting)

paris (least likely but it sounds good)

milan

florence

rome

naples

siena

sofia

pernik

zidartzi

the rodopi mountains

blagoevgrad

the black sea

samos (possibly)

copenhagen (if i've been a good boy)

__

in the unlikely event that i experience anything even remotely noteworthy

or pixel-worthy

it will be stored here

in my virtual home away from home away from home.

__

i am bound to miss:

the subway

my students

the possibility of multiple culinary adventures within a single zip-code

the noise of life berserk

the smell of roasted peanuts on a street corner

the smell of everything on every street corner

the shows and events i would have missed anyway

the first coffee rush around 10am

the third coffee fatigue around 6pm

my godson

my weekly run in the park (7 miles just under optimum speed)

the schizophrenia of sincerely trying to please everyone

the occasional glimpse of well-proportioned human flesh

my cigarette on the way to work

work itself in all of its incarnations

the music of the city mixed with the eternal shuffle of 5916 songs

and just about everybody i ever exchanged a glance or word with

especially the ones who, over the years, have insisted on exchanging

many words

and

many glances

__

i will return with a book in hand

a book of my own making

__

copenhagen (i promise to be a good boy!)