Heading for the airport in just over 8 hours. The suitcase is packed. Have made a list and checked it twice. The doggie always gets anxiety attacks whenever he sees luggage by the front door. His nose is placed gently in my lap, his eyes cast up at me as if to ask: "Are you sure you're coming back?"
The pellet stove is heating away in the corner. Perhaps when I return, that's a sound that I won't have to hear for a while.
A myriad of details have been addressed and coordinated and harmonized. Notes of e-mail addresses and phone numbers tucked away. E-tickets double checked. Passport safely tucked away. My special "travelling shoes" are ready to go, the kind that slip on and off easily so I don't spend an eternity at airport security getting dressed and undressed in public. An empty water bottle has been stowed away. All is in readiness.
I expect I will be a zombie when I finally touch down in Sydney, 2 days from now.
I see the road ahead is turning. I wonder what's around the bend?
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2 comments:
This comment is from Carolyn:
A gray and raw afternoon has settled over Rhode Island, but I suspect that the Rhode Tripper himself is in a totally different place and mental model. It has been nearly 24 hours since Stephen’s last report: the first of what would probably be many waits in airports --- this one, Detroit --- to begin his odyssey. What time is it in Australia if it is 5 p.m. during Eastern Standard Time in the northeast of the U.S.? Have the matter-of-fact routines and the ennui over a winter holding its harsh claws dissipated for our global traveler? Are NCAA brackets, Red Sox spring training games, and Celtics’ injuries a distant memory?
We’re looking forward to the tales of life down under, Stephen. And, oh, by the way, have fun! We’re living vicariously through your experiences.
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