So it seems as though my dream has become a reality. This morning during a conversation with my mom I came to the conclusion that in order to fully enjoy the rest of my time here in Chile I need to get myself out of a serious rut. Relationships are powerful things, and I have been depending too much on one to make me feel comfortable and happy and I'm afraid that if I don't make a serious change, I'm going to waste the remaining 5 months in Chile feeling vulnerable, resentful, and consequently not in the mood to meet new people to help fortify the support structure I've built for myself here. My time in Chile is so precious, and the idea of not being able to appreciate it and make the most of it is really sad. So, that's why I'm taking such drastic measures and flying up to Seattle where I'll be from April 3-13. Yes, a bit ridiculous right? That's the reaction I got from my host mom when I told her, because it is so much money to spend on just one week in Seattle. She was telling me that I should travel to a new part of Chile to see something new and distract myself. Nope, that wouldn't fix things. My deal has to do with people, not places, and I want to get to the root of the issue rather than throw distractions at myself right and left. Granted, distractions help, but I see them as more of a supplementary remedy rather than that the complete solution. I do think that if I hadn't gotten into a relationship I wouldn't feel this disoriented and weak right now. However, I don't regret it at all because I learned so much in the past 5 months. Plus, now I have this really cool mid-year visit to Seattle, which will be quite an experience...I already have a list of about 25 things I want to either do, see, or eat while in Seattle. My two lives in Valdivia and Seattle have been getting more and more separate, and I think it's starting to wear on me...I am always trying to share and connect separate entities together in my life, and I think this time in Seattle will be a perfect time to do that =)