Things I do in Six Mile that I can't do in Houston

1. Watch the moon rise over the water.
2. Use the bright lights on my vehicle.
3. Watch the deer feeding.
4. Fish in the bay.
5. See the milky way.
6. Leave my door unlocked.
7. Leave the keys in my car.
8. Get a wave (country wave) from everyone I see when driving.
9. Live in a house with no curtains or blinds.
10. Hear gunshots in the evening and not worry about it.

Travel Dates Set

I've got my tickets ordered, am waiting on word about my new flat, and am chipping away at all the preparations for my move. As you can see from the timers on the right, I will be leaving the country less than a week before Leo returns from Nigeria. Poor timing is right! Still, I have a couple of big activities to prepare for in PNG, so I really can't afford to miss this travel "window".

Here is my flight info:

Fri 19 Feb 10	14:45	Houston (Bush Inter)	16:00	Dallas Fort Worth	1.25 hrs
Fri 19 Feb 10	20:25	Dallas Fort Worth	21:45	Los Angeles	3.20 hrs
Fri 19 Feb 10	23:50	Los Angeles	07:45 (Sun)	Brisbane	14 hrs
Fri 30 Apr 10	11:05	Brisbane	07:00	Los Angeles	13 hrs
Fri 30 Apr 10	09:45	Los Angeles	14:45	Dallas Fort Worth	3 hrs
Fri 30 Apr 10	17:10	Dallas Fort Worth	18:20	Houston (Bush Inter)	1 hr

Now for a list of the additional 'details' I must attend to.

• Australian ETA form
• 3 Paper copies of passport
• Check in online 24 hours before departure
• Printed boarding passes
• Copies of education qualifications
• Company position description (from HR)
• Copy of contract signed by both employer and employee
• Resume/CV
• Letter of reference from previous employer
• 2 color passport-size photos
• Work Permit application
• Completed PNG visa application
• Name and address of Brisbane hotel
• Name and address of PNG hotel and/or flat
• Certificate of good health
  • recent chest x-ray
  • recent HIV test
• "Statement of your good character from your local police authorities"
• Shots, vaccinations, malaria medication

So, as you can see, I have my work cut out for me for the next few weeks. Wish me luck as I prepare!

New Furniture, New Loft

In this final "push" to complete the house, the ladder to the loft has been installed and the wood flooring in the loft will go in this week. Last weekend, we purchased two new pieces of furniture in the worst way possible...on a whim. I worried about the purchase immediately, worried that we'd made a bit mistake, until they arrived and I got to see them on Wednesday evening when I got home.

They were perfect! Well, almost. The furniture selection is perfect, but one of the pieces has a problem that we are hoping will get fixed this week. The first purchase was a kitchen table. It's not anything fancy, but is just the right addition for the area. We had a counter height table that was serving us well enough, but sitting on bar stools for a long period of time was just not very comfortable. The chairs at this table are.

The other piece we bought was a double recliner for the tv room. We had a small sofa in the room that was comfortable, but it is really a piece that belongs with the living room furniture. We were hoping to bring that piece back into the main area to provide more seating there. There is a slight problem to the new piece, however, in that one side of the recliner is not functioning. Hopefully, we'll have it repaired or replaced early in the week.

Pictures, you say? You're hoping for some pictures? Not so fast. I think I'll wait until the loft is complete before posting photos of the entire finished product. So...give me a week and you can expect the updated photos, the final product, posted here.

House Progress

I just thought I'd take a minute to post some photos of my almost-finished house. There is still one room that needs a lot of work--the loft, I am still missing that refrigerator that was supposed to be delivered before Thanksgiving, but otherwise, the left-over items are all small details that need to be finished. All in all, Leo and I have enjoyed this rotation home cooking together, working in our combined office at the same time, and just hanging out together. We are so NOT ready for him to return to Nigeria! But, I digress. Pictures of the house as promised...(don't forget to click on each one for a larger view of the photo).

Already Overwhelmed

After the return of Leo just in time for New Year's Day, a wonderful time of celebration with my family, and a bout with a nasty cold that just seemed to not want to go away, my routine for the next 5 months started last week with the start of my classes. In the last week, I've read 5 chapters of materials, written a number of beginning papers (mostly introductions), created 2 new blogs to track my class activities, and created one website to post materials from one of those classes on. Oh, by the way, only 2 of my 3 classes started last week...this week will be even more demanding.

There's no way that most of you will be interested in following my academic pursuits thoroughly, but you still might to take a look at what I'm working on now and then, so I'm providing some links for you:

• ENGL 5387 Website: Publications Management Project Portfolio
• ENGL 5387 Blog: Publications Management, Dr. Craig Baehr
• ENGL 5383 Blog: Grants and Propoals, Dr. Rich Rice

Today while Leo battles with the cold that I passed on to him (don't you just hate it when that happens), I am getting ready to work on some of my Amaya Consulting projects and trying to decide whether or not I want to drive into Houston and stay there for a few days to work on these. Whatever I decide, I still have quite the busy weekend ahead of me with work, homework, and even some activities waiting on me from my new venture. My oh my, these are such crazy times!