This time tomorrow I will be with my daughter and son-in-law in Portland, Oregon where we will drink our Starbucks lattes in Em’s new store, drive out to the coast and fly kites on the beach, drink wine and eat tapas.  Scott will play his guitar, and I will pet Nia, their chihuahua  I will take lots of pictures and maybe some video too, and I will probably cry a little on the plane on the way home.

It’s a short visit–5 days, but something is better than nothing.  I miss my Emily a lot, and even more so after I’ve been with her for a few days.

I’ve been thinking a lot about “vibe” lately, about how important it is for me to keep a good vibe going in myself, and how important a role other people play in either raising my vibe or dampening it.

Em really amps my vibe!  It’s not that she’s manic or really high energy, it’s that she’s unfailingly upbeat and optimistic. She not only sees the glass “half full,” for her it overflows, and she’s always looking for some empty glasses to catch the excess.

In contrast, I know people who spend a lot of  time “feeding the weeds” in their life by giving most of their energy and attention to negative stuff.  I think when you focus your attention on negatives, those negative things grow like weeds and crowd out all the flowers. When all your water is going to feeding the weeds,  there’s almost none left to feed the flowers.

I am going to Portland tomorrow to stay in my daughter’s house, where the “flowers” are watered, the “weeds” are few, and the “vibe” is strong and sweet.

Can’t wait!