Finalities

This time tomorrow, I'll be on the way to BWI to catch my flight. Over the past couple of months I have racked my brains in preparation for this trip. When did it start? At what point does one person decide that they are going to do something a bit crazy. I think that it was after my parents returned from Africa. They talked about the trip and said that I should visit Jeremy in Africa. At that point, the very notion that I could do something like that did not cross my mind. I had little vacation leave and I was not ready to leave my job.

Things deteriorated over the course of the year and by November or December I was starting to throw out "What If?" scenarios. (Forgive the blatant self aggrandizement, this is my blog after all.) Could I do this? What would it cost? Would my job give me the time off? Do I give a gosh darn if they don't give me the leave of absence? By January I honestly believe that my mind was made up. I was going to Essen. I don't know if I was 100% about the rest of the trip, but I had a room booked for the show. In February, Scott Fischer contacted me and hooked me up with a better room arrangement for the show. Now I wasn't alone, I would be with friends. The apartment wasn't within walking distance, but it was within easy walking distance from the subway, and that is what matters. I signed up and canceled my old reservations.

As my plans for Essen solidified, I continued to plan for the rest of the trip. Berlin, London, South Africa, Lesotho, and Italy. Every part needed reservations, tickets, and planning. I contacted friends on the geek and found help, hosts, and travel guides for most of the locations. Let's set something straight. If anyone says that they have lost faith in people, they need to get some new friends and hang out in a new community.

And I cannot give enough thanks to Kim from Gamer Adventures for all of the time she put into finding me plane tickets for an excellent price and for all of the help and advice that she gave me.

Today, I bought some additional Euros, cursed the exchange rate, bought socks, deposited checks, put money on my travel card, and finished packing. And shucks, it's not time to go yet. So I'll sit around now, wondering if I have packed too much (the pack is heavy), too little (arrgh, my socks stink!), or trying to figure out if I have taken care of everything on the home front without taking too much of the home front with me. If I know one thing, it is that Europe does not want my crap and extra baggage. Heck, the good 'ol USA doesn't want my extra baggage.

And still, when I contemplate leaving, I have to wonder about what things will be like when I return. 3 months. It's not that long, but things will be sort of different. I may return to graduate school. Teaching did something for me that other jobs have not managed to accomplish. It made me feel worthwhile. I helped people. We (the students and myself) each had goals, though we had different motivations for those goals. The kids wanted a grade, often a good grade, and I wanted them to enjoy the class and to get that grade. We worked together, and more often than not, the people that cared achieved.

I may return to state work. Tom, my good friend from the PBPP, will be at Labor and Industry when I return. I may try to score a job there. It's state work, but I know there are good state jobs. Perhaps I will find one.

I may seek private employment either with a gaming company or with some other company. Or I may......join the FBI? I think that could be fun.

What I find intriguing is that many of these options will pull me from the awesome people that I have met here in Harrisburg. My Age of Steam group is one of the best. And my weekly gaming group is composed of great friends. If I come back to leave, I will deeply miss those bonds.

Ack, this is starting to get cheesy. Again, I will offer my apologies. And to end this on a brighter note:

I LEAVE TOMORROW!!!! MY SUPER COOL TRIP STARTS!!!!!