Its getting down to the wire now... and I'm sleeping less and less. Not so much because of the things left to do, but more nervousness, anticipation and a bit of anxiety. My brother arrived yesterday afternoon, and so now we have the whole family back together for one last time before my departure. My parents' house isn't all that big, so with the four of us and a dog, its a bit tight, especially with all of my bags and preparation for the big adventure. I'm basically packed now and most of my financial house is in order, so I'm feeling comfortable about the state of things.

My trip to Raleigh was quite fun, if only for a short time. I was able to get together with some of my best friends that I have known for many and in one case, many, many years (Marcus is my "oldest" friend- since 7th grade!!) We spent lots of time laughing and eating and laughing some more. It was quite a sad goodbye, as it has been with a number of good friends who I have seen over the past few weeks.

Back in Hopewell, my parents have been great, trying to feed me all my favorite foods, have some quality family togetherness, and helping me get all of my long list of "to-dos" done. I even got a brand new Virginia drivers license yesterday (after 3 trips with the wrong identfying info). Its so much nicer than my old NJ one which kept falling apart!

At this point I have gone over my decision about 2 billion times. There have been thougths and events which remind me of the wonderful life and friends I have here in the US. Its not an easy thing to do, yet I feel compelled to go out and explore the world, meet new people and become a citizen of the larger world out there.

If you want to send mail or anything else to me, this USPS site has lots of pertinent information! I'm not exactly sure why sending used clothing is prohibited though... something to investigate when I get there...