At this time, five weeks from now, I'll be making my way to Andilly, France. Lately I've been getting a lot of, "so it's coming down the wire for you isn't it?" "are you starting to get nervous?"
.................Since being in Taiwan, whenever I read or hear the word "nervous" I always think "nevrous" or "nevers" in my head. That's the way most Taiwanese students and teachers said it. They could never quite manage the correct pronunciation, but I thought it was cute....................
My answer is "no," to those eager questions. Of those asking, there seems to be a preconceived expectation that my response will be something like, "Yes, I'm really nervous about the language, whether or not I'll get along with the family, if I'll feel isolated with the children, and I'm just not ready to leave home again after having just returned from Taiwan 3 months ago!" Well all of that is false. I'm sure if I dwelled on those possibilities, I could become worried or nervous. However, as irresponsible as it sounds, I'm not really thinking too much past what will go in my luggage.
....................I've decided not to pack my Dynastar ski equipment, circa 1999. Besides the bother of a ski bag, I figure they'll be too old school for the Alps. I'm content to rent or borrow. Compared to Taiwan, however, my clothing is going to be much bulkier since it will be all-around colder (not to mention snowy) during my stay........................
I know from previous travel and living abroad that any expectations are never perfectly met, positive or negative. I can only hope for the best, but I'm prepared for challenges that I'm sure will come. I remember, a few months into Taiwan, trying to recall what I thought it would be like before I arrived. I could only recall about 10% or what I imagined because as soon as I got there, I was LIVING it. Whatever images I had before had disappeared. So why should I waste the time thinking about France now, when I'm in the midst of such an exciting and fun summer?
I have been staying in touch with Flo throughout the summer, and she's shared pictures of the kids, and I pictures from our Canada vacation. Pretty much the only other business in the France department right now has been applying for my "long term stay" visa, and collecting the appropriate documents for that. I did get to schedule a trip to the French consulate in DC for a visa interview :) Yay, day trip! So I'm looking forward to that on Wednesday.
I intentionally booked the appointment on hump-day to break up this work week since my two best friends at work are on vacation this week. Serene and Megan have both left me for beach vacations at LBI and OBX respectively. Hopefully the mid week trip will break up the days of filling in as lunch hostess until Serene returns :P I had a good old fashioned BBQ/Badminton fete last week, and at request, hopefully another one before the summer's end (aka when I leave). Got to catch up with some church ladies at the Ledvina's one night last week (despite my lack of Sunday morning attendance this summer).
Dad's report from Canada: one of the Fickel girls lost something whilst tubing today, and had to swim about 20 meters to retrieve them (no pictures were taken :P ) hahahaha...wish I could have been there to witness that. Stefan comes back from Canada on Tuesday, and thank god because these pets need ATTENTION. Well, maybe Nick Nick's grown used to my ignorance by now since I shut my door so he can't sleep with me at night. I let Ruthie in the house most of the day to be in the AC, but she gets wound up by the squirrels, groundhogs, barn lifters, and neighboring dogs outside.
I'm reading "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," a crime-thriller/mystery. Has anyone read it? It's hard to get into at first with in-depth Big Business and Political jargon, and lots of Swedish characters. I'm excited to see what happens though.
I'm going to eventually rename this blog, but I'm still waiting for it to hit me. I want a French phrase that describes what I'm doing, but I don't want to think of one now. I want it to be fitting and have a story behind it. So I won't know what that is until I get there. Any creative suggestions are welcome.
I'd love to hear from anyone reading via facebook, skype, phone, or email :)
