Lucullian delights
I like your "take" on life.
And I agree - we ask so much of it and thereby sometimes ignore all it has to offer.
Did you always think this way or has it come to you as you have gotten older?
We can only take life one day at a time. What happens after you leave will happen and you will deal with it on that day. Have a safe trip home.
I've been wishing for a magic wand for a long time now and the only thing that seems to come of it is the dust gets thicker. If you find the umbrela for house cleaning PLEASE let me know; share if you would even!
I love the bean photo and would love to try them but my forks not reaching.
So true, again 
. Some people, younger people perhaps, think, demand, ask even expect life to be all sweet but without the touch of acidic however bitter, who can appreciate the sweetness?
Like your drop of balsamic elevates the sweetness of the beans. Very elegant presentation, I like the long lines.
I like your thought that life doesn't have a positive or negative value, it just "is." This is a relatively easy concept to grasp intellectually, but much harder to integrate emotionally, in my experience. I'm glad you got to have some time with your mother, and still I'm sure you'll be glad to be home.
The photos in this post are wonderful. I got a brand new computer with a much better monitor (thanks Bradley for the technical assistance!) Now all the photos on my favorite blogs look even better. These are really beautiful plates too, and I like the way you used fabric (a towel?) in the background. See, I am observing and trying to learn!
Gorgeous beans! My garden is way overproducing beans right now. I wish I could send some to every blogger I know!
I don't have the Mary Poppins gene either...but I've developed a very keen sense of looking beyond the dirt and dust...
Have a safe trip back!
I've enjoyed your trip and didn't have to clean a thing, thanks for taking us along. Having lost both my parents I savor each moment I have with family and friends and am thankful for what I have had in the past and excited about what is around the corner.
I was looking for something to use my of sage. My garden is going nuts right now with herbs.
Safe trip home.
Good photos, great post!
Freefalling-I think I begun to look at life this way when I was a teenager and my 'soul' was troubled. like most teenagers'...
Barbara-that's right, I cannot prepare myself anyway. And it will come sooner or later anyway and in this case I feel sooner is better whatever I feel about it.
Tanna-I promise, if I ever manage to find an easy way out of that cleaning part of life, I will share it with you!
Karen-Thank you! Yes, without the ups and downs life eould be dull!
Kalyn- Thanks! well, I never saw the need to blame life for things happening, a lot of them are part of life after all, and for the rest we just have to think hard about the consequences of our actions and then hope for the best! I'm happy you've got a new computer, I'm beginning to think about that too!
Katie-Thanks! your approach works at home but not when you rent other peolpes flats unfortunately. But today we will do it all in a burst, short but efficient!
mooncrazy-thanks! I have enjoyed having you as a fellow tripper!
Jim-Thanks!
It is hard to realize that suffering comes to all of us in one way or another and that death is just up ahead for us all. I guess it makes it easier to understand that although it can be tough to go through. Just have to enjoy each day that we have-and trying one of your great recipes or looking at your wonderful photos helps.
I second what Linda wrote. Suffering is a given. And as you said, there is no negative or positive, life just is. The more we can remember that, the happier we will be. Indeed, blogging and cooking do bring joy to our days. Oh, and remember, your mom feels you love.
I just tried this today. Fantastic with the grilled wolf-fish that we ate today.
As usual the family rushes to the table when I tell them I am serving one of your dishes.
I really don't have much to add to what you were writing. First the profane: I gather those dishes come with the apartment. I would be tempted to ask if they'd be willing to sell them. 
Then, about life, oh dear, I am a diligent student of the art of procrastination, in the sense that I want to enjoy every moment of beauty and happiness I can grasp right now and get angry when somebody starts talking about the "what ifs". Worries can wait. I also suffer people who always see the water half empty badly. I have learned that they don't want to believe otherwise.
Linda and Jeni-Thank you both. I do feel a bit emotionally exhausted right now though...
Paul-This is a wonderful compliment! Thank you!
merisi-No the dishes are ours, I made a couple recipe posts to use in Sweden but you are right, they are not for sale! Unfortunately I just have 3 big ones and 4 small ones, wish I had them all!
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