By land or by sea

Jason and I occasionally go through spells where we get this urge to just chuck it all in, move to the middle of nowhere and live the simple life. Somewhere no one cares or even knows the bag on your arm is by Louis Vuitton. Where no one checks the back pocket of your jeans to see what brand they are. Where a "Real Housewife" is one who makes scrambled eggs on toast every morning before jumping on her bicycle and pedaling off to work at the local coffee shop. Make just enough money to pay the bills, eat and travel a little. Wear flip flops every day of the summer and chunky fair isle sweaters every day of the winter.

This usually happens right after we've returned from a trip to somewhere like the tiny island of Ocracoke in North Carolina's beautiful Outer Banks. Which is exactly where we've been since Wednesday of last week. What I wouldn't give to be back there, sitting by Silver Lake with friends and a bottle of wine, watching the sun go down over the sound.

And when these thoughts permeate my mind, I usually spend an inordinate amount of time listening to music that reflects these ideals.

The argument for countryside:

Blow up your tv

Throw away your paper

Go to the country

Build us a home

Plant a little garden

Eat a lotta peaches

And try to find Jesus on our own

{From Spanish Pipedream by John Prine}

And for seaside:

I will live my life as a lobsterman's wife

On an island in the blue bay

He will take care of me

He will smell like the sea

And close to my heart he'll always stay

I will bear three girls all with strawberry curls

Ella, Nellie and Faye

While I'm combing their hair

I will catch his warm stare

On our island in the blue bay

Far away, far away

I wanna go far away

To a new life on a new shoreline

Where the water is blue

And the people are new

To another island

And another life

{From Far Away by Ingrid Michaelson}

Either way, it all sounds pretty good to me right about now.