So, my plan was to update you on my trip to Paros and Naxos, but the timing feels off. It was an amazing trip, and I will let you know all about it soon, but not now. As you might know, I’m from Tampa, FL. I have lived there for my adult life, and I built an amazing life there. My sister, parents and Jeff’s siblings all live in the area. Right now, the Tampa Bay area is nervously keeping an eye on its 2nd hurricane in 2 weeks. Helene was a monster – houses were destroyed, areas were flooded, and families are still cleaning up. It’s hard not to be there but honestly, I always hated hurricane season – how can you not? Watching a storm move in, hoping it doesn’t destroy your house, worrying about losing power for several days, hoping you did enough to prepare, it sucks. In the years that I have lived there the worst of it seems to always miss Tampa. There’s an old Indian legend that says the Tocobago Tribe blessed the land and that this blessing protects it from major storms. After every miss it’s customary to mention this and while I’m not one to believe in stuff like this – whatever works, right? Everyone knows we have been lucky, and we all know our luck could run out at any time.

While I’m happy not to be there now, I worry for my friends and family so writing about my amazing trip feels ick. If you want to help, the Red Cross is a great organization and is always looking for donations so they can help in situations like this – Hurricane Relief Donations & Ways to Help | American Red Cross

Small update on my life – I have started a weekly ceramics class and Greek is still going well – siga, siga. We had a lovely expat happy hour and I made some new friends. We found a dog babysitter who we really like and can’t wait to take our first mini vaca from the dogs in 10 days. We are staying on the island – headed to Elounda – a cute little sea town on the East side of the Island. We have decided that we will be staying on Crete past our current 1-year lease. Life is going well, and we are enjoying the slower pace and chill lifestyle. While it’s hard to be far from home when big things happen, we are hoping to see more visitors and go home for our first visit in May 2025.

So, Tampa peeps – I know you’ll be porching, drinking, and watching the weather channel on Wednesday and I will be also watching closely – stay safe and keep me updated.