Now
I’ve always wanted to experience a tiny house, which, to be clear, is different than wanting to live in a tiny house. I read somewhere recently that over half of the people who bought tiny homes a few years ago when their popularity peaked had converted them to Airbnb rentals. So, I took advantage of the trend and booked a tiny home in the mountains of NC for a long weekend for myself and the wife.
To summarize, the tiny home was just about perfect for a short stay, but I had my instinct that I wouldn't want to live in one confirmed. That understanding was probably one of the best things I could take away from the experience. For the vaction, living lightly was ideal for allowing us to getaway to destinations like Boone and Blowing Rock, where we enjoyed the hiking and downtowns, but allow us to come back to a space that felt comfortable to us and didn't require a lot of upkeep.
We were also able to catch up on some movies we had been meaning to check out, which is actually a pretty rare treat for us. I paid only minimal attention to the news, which was centered around the crisis in the Middle East, the new Speaker of the House, and the death of Matthew Perry — depressing topics, all.
I got a few pictures on the trip, as did my wife. When I reviewed the pictures, a selfie that my wife took of the two of us reminded me of my resemblance to my grandfather on my mother's side.
Of course, we got some shots of the amazing fall colors.
The colors of the Smoky Mountains in the autumn
We attended Divine Liturgy at Saints Peter and Paul Antiochian Church. It was a beautiful little parish and I'm glad we were able to experience a service there. The homily helped my wife understand the veneration of icons, which was a mystery to her previously.
Sts. Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church
A Return to Normal Life
With vacation behind us, I'm turning my attention towards more studying and training. I'm going to be preparing for the MS Azure AZ-900 exam. The subject material is pretty basic as far as understanding the platform goes, so I'm going to probably have some trouble keeping my attention on the subject, but I need to get through it so I can move on to more complex material.
Current Reading
Thinking Orthodox by Eugenia Scarvelis Constantinou