The Beginning

Up before the phone alarm goes off at 5:30 am, coffee made. I am wondering around a bit just looking, details jump out and I do them such as sweep the floor, do some ironing. Trying to get ready to really start packing. The stuff that I have out where I can use it looks like a mountain of stuff to try to push into neatly packed boxes. First I have to unpack what I had already packed in the suitcases to go on vacation. Priorities changed. The issues to consider are timeline - it will take at least 2 months to get the things that are shipped - and safety. My computers and cameras need to be with me in carry on. That is 3 laptops and a tablet, a tablet/phone, a video camera and a quick shoot digital camera. A lot of weight to schlep through the airports. I will hopefully need interview outfits, and all the heavy winter clothes that I've been pushing to the back of my closets now need to be packed in my checked luggage to wear as soon as I get back. Jeans come out to be packed, shorts pushed back to be shipped. Nicer clothes packed, what I've been wearing, well, not so sure where it goes, but I'm thinking that sleeveless tops won't be what I'm wearing every day for awhile. Coffee maker, shipped, backpacking drip coffeemaker in my carry on. Cleaning supplies given to... someone.

I sit down and drink coffee and play on the computer. The desktop computer that will be shipped. Oh, guess I better pull a backup of it as there is no guarantee that my things will actually show up at the other end. Trying to figure out timing all this, so I'm not left with my clean underwear in a different country than I am. The short answer to this is that I can just replace anything I have for not a lot of money. There are stores on each end of this trip. My friend here has said that I can crash on her couch in the time between when my stuff (to include my bed) is shipped and when I leave. Hopefully that will only be one night, but who knows.

And so it begins.