Time to pack

I've got my ticket. My return ticket, too. I'll be leaving Friday, April 10 at around 1pm. This is all very exciting. Especially when I think about the extreme, fast-paced action of flying through the well-oiled machine that is security at LAX. Oh, and if my suitcase weighs over 3.5 stone, I get to pay 50 dollars for the convenience of having all of my stuff in Japan with me. It's only three months, right? I guess I don't need that much stuff...

I had a party at my mom's house on Saturday. It was fun. It would have been nice to see a few people that were unable to make it, but I am pleased that I saw who I did. Some surprises, even. Zandra showing up was an eye-opener. No JR, however. Captain D, John Vitro and Mike were a blasty-blast from the way back. Yeah. All around, it was cool. And seeing my mom and Tom and Rhiana and Amanda was awesome.

I received and subsequently looked up the address of the place I will be living. The street address, that is. No results. Apparently Google Maps will have nothing to do with labeling street names of tiny towns in central rural Japan. At least I know the area. I think. I did manage to see some photographs of the town, however. Lots of rice. And a mushroom farm nearby. That's exciting.

I hear that the cherry blossoms are blowing up right now. The blooms usually only last a few days, so maybe I'll miss the show. That would be a damn shame. I suppose I'll find out when I get there.

Productive under pressure (sometimes)

Here it is, ten days from departure, and I'm watching Swedes build an ice hotel on the Science Channel. It's really very interesting. But not what I should be doing.

My list of feats to accomplish is actually fairly short. Some bills to pay. A car to drop off. A few loose ends to be tied up. All told, not a huge mound of stuff. I got a huge amount of shopping done this weekend, with Jen's help. I've ordered a few things on the internets that (hopefully) will arrive soon... Excitement is helping me along, but I'm beginning to get nervous. Even a little overwhelmed, I think. Just need to take a deep breath and get it sorted.

I haven't even really thought about the situation I'll be in when I arrive. When I met with Uchida-san on Friday, he told me that I'd be flying into Osaka. I know I'll be teaching English to kids. I know I'll have a place to live, and money to buy food. And that's about as far as I've gone in my head. Of course I've thought about being away from everyone I know, most especially Jennifer. But I'm not dwelling on that, because I need to stay focused.

Okay. Time to get stuff done.