It's my birthday and I'll have a present if I want to

It's my birthday in a few days and I told Luke I didn't want a present - I just wanted to do something fun. I honestly didn't want anything. I wasn't just saying it, like those pesky people who tell you not to get them a gift, all the while expecting you will, and then getting huffy when you don't.  

But then I changed my mind! I decided I would finally like to own an e-reader to make it easier to carry books around with me day-to-day, and also when travelling. It is a thing - a new possession -  but it replaces 'real' books that take up a lot more space, and it's a possession that facilitates experiences. I think it will also help me achieve my plan of reading more. 

We'll still do something fun, of course. We're going for a drive up to Woods Point - a wee township about three hours from home - to have lunch at the pub and explore. I'm currently in love with that part of Victoria (the high country and the Yarra Valley/Yarra Ranges, which we'll drive through to get there). 

I grew up in the country (south-west of Melbourne), but I've lived in Melbourne since moving here for university about 24 years ago. (Ack!). Until recently, I thought I would never, ever want to go back and live in the country, but now I can see myself returning one day, perhaps when I retire, possibly sooner. It would be the proverbial tree change (tree regression? I'd definitely be a tree changer, not a sea changer, although I'd want to be able to day trip to the coast).

Mostly it's the lack of shops that had me thinking the country is nice to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there again. Of course, now I've gone all minimalist and non-spendy, that ceases to be an issue, doesn't it? (I might not get much of a chance to wear all the nice dresses and heels I already own though...)

Country life does evoke images of simplicity, of wholesome, ruddy-cheeked pursuits in the great outdoors with its fresh air and nature, with cows grazing in the background, away from the crowded, noisy, busy city and its superficial cares, like whether you can get a table at the hot new restaurant or if your watch or car or suburb is cool*. 

We could cultivate a garden with flowers and vegies, and we could have a lemon tree, and an open fire. And we could own pets (I want a 'blue' cat and a greyhound), and we'd be part of a community (provided we weren't shunned on account of my purple quiff). We would marvel every day at how bucolic it all is. 

I think I want to move there tomorrow. 

* not things I've ever cared about anyway...