This. Is. The. Life.

I couldn't be happier than to spend my last 10 days in the good ol' USA in Roosevelt, MN at my parents' place. Truly. I couldn't be happier.

I love the food. I love the activities (light to lazy). I love taking 45 minute walks with my dad down gravel roads. We laughed because a few cars drove by us and we had to go single-file and I was in back, so I pretended my hand was a pistol and I was walking my dad down the gravel road at gunpoint. Even though nobody probably saw or got the joke but me.

I love fishing. I don't love catching fish. But I love fishing.

My mom had surgery and what better way to help her in her recovery than to get the heck out of her house and let her rest and do a little father-daughter fishing?

That's right. Don't take the bait.

We had no net, so we had to flop them in the boat. And I don't like touching fish. I don't like it one bit.

Oh no. Crap

Yes! A MONSTER! (And yes. Those are stripy socks inside rubber Crocs. It was cold. Sue me.)

Look at that sucker! It must be 30..31...17 inches!

God's Country.

Self portraiture. And a tiny little shout-out to my former employer, Arnesen's Rocky Point. I won the hat. COMPLETELY ineffectual at shielding my upper lip from the sun and resulting freckle-stache.

Oh, and the garden. THE GARDEN. My mom has been canning every day since her surgery. Here we have the spoils from the bean stalk...my dad claims he picked the whole bucketful and my mom only that handful. Ha!

Do I really have to leave? Why don't I just work for six months, save my money and then live with my parents for six years? What is WRONG WITH ME?