Mental Vacations

We all need them, especially when the creative well dries up. But what if you can't take time off from work or you don't have the means to fly (or sail or drive) off somewhere? One alternative is to close your eyes and take that trip in your mind. I polled friends and acquaintances to find out favorite mental vacation destinations:

• Town in Tuscany: Sun-baked houses with red-tiled roofs embanked on a sunny hillside with clusters of olive trees interspersed.
• Caribbean Paradise: Vivid turquoise sea, diamond sand, waving palms.
• Green Pine-y Forest: Better yet, with a crystal-clear glacier lake.
• Sidewalk Cafe in Picturesque City.
• Imaginary Spa: Hot water for soaking, a massage, lovely scents...
  
• "My Grandparents' House."
• Seaside (Oregon) in Winter: Cool, misty and solitary, tide out, breakers rolling peacefully.

What's your favorite mental picture or visual memory? What calms you? What makes you happy? Choose some favorite images for a mental photo album. When you're feeling stressed, tired, sad or depleted, close your eyes and get outta there, even if only for a few minutes.