Attacking Packing

I will be the first to admit that packing to live for 27 months in a new country is no easy task, especially when the constraints include limiting your checked luggage to two bags under fifty pounds each. (I'm paying extra to take my guitar--I'd die without it for 2 DAYS, never mind 2-plus YEARS). I've also tried to cheat the system with a large carry-on. Oh, and note that 1 of the 2 bags can't be accessed for the first three months of service. So...yeah, there's that. Here's where I started (also note that this is the night beforehand--procrastinators unite!):

Stuff laid out and semi-organized

After several hours, here's where I was (somehow Theresa remained in good spirits despite our negligible progress):

(Spongebob's French narrator voice): four hours later...

But, with a little help from my "Li'l Ray of Sunshine"...

Theresa is the packing queen. Hands down.

...(OK, so A LOT of help), we managed to
condense 2 years worth of crap into the pinnacle of organization, which is included for your viewing pleasure below:

Now I just have to deal with the "You must be able to manage your own bags" clause, as well as tweak the duffle bag, which is a mere 54 pounds of horrid, horrid unmanageable weight. No worries. I'm not leaving for the airport for another...8 hours. Who needs sleep before a two-day barrage of non-stop activity while transitioning 7 hours into the future to live in the heart of a community with a new language and culture for 27 months? Not this guy. That's for sure.

This will probably be my last post for a while. I've heard that the first couple weeks of Peace Corps service are brutally busy, so I promise to check in when I'm free. If all goes well (inshallah in Arabic), I'll at least have some neat pictures (possibly a video) of the wonders of using a Turkish toilet! Wahoo!

Raking Leaves Before Conor Leaves

Nothing would make Big Daddio prouder than preparing for Peace Corps with a chore-related send-off. As such, he, Mommio, Theresa, and I raked and bagged some leaves in preparation for me leaving. We captured some of the hilarity with the camera:

Conor & Theresa in the leaf pile

Daddio & Mommio in the leaf pile

Daddio & Mommio throwing some leaves

Theresa with a leaf-ly new scarf

And what happens when you "leave" Daddio alone in the leaf pile...

...he "throws" a party!

Even though we were technically doing chores (and Dad was happy about this), we all had a lot of fun! This will be a great last memory of autumn in the U.S. for me. Thanks guys!

An Unceremonious Goodbye

Exactly 2 weeks from today, I will be flying out of Washington, D.C. headed for Amman, Jordan...Ahhh!

Now, I'm a guy who enjoys a very unceremonious goodbye. As such, I wasn't: a. planning, or b. expecting anyone to plan a goodbye party. But, the surprise party this Friday was SURREAL and so great! It was inexplicably cool to see everyone from all different phases of my life in one place at the same time. I want to use this post to thank the folks who put it together and came to support me!

First, thank you to the lovely Theresa for arranging it all! I love you! Second, thank you to Jon for hosting it and teaming up with T to do Facebook things. You rock! Third (or perhaps, more chronologically, "first"), thank you to Stacey for reminding Theresa that she had the idea to do this and to get it under way. Also, thanks for the inspiration for the new Strawberry Jam Band (SJB) hit single, "Wake up, Stacey!" off our new album "Go Ahead, Make My Day." And, finally, thank you to everyone who came! Seriously, even if you were only there for a few minutes, it meant a lot to see so many people come out, especially given that it was homecoming weekend and everybody had plans. For those who couldn't make it, no worries. It only made our goodbye all the more unceremonious, which is right up my alley, too. I also want to thank Garrett for staying so late when he had work the next morning--it was great to see you, man, and I'm so glad you could hang for most of the night and jam out vocally and spiritually. Another special thank you has to go to Matt "Hoez" Hoelzel--I still can't believe that you came, man, and it really made me so happy to see you again! The SJB hat will definitely keep the sun out of my eyes over in Jordan, and it will always remind me of the great times we have jamming. Plus, I'm stoked for a jam get-together on Thursday!

My Strawberry Jam Band mates. "SJB's in the house tonight! No preserves, but we reserve the right!"

Food, friends, and music. That's what I'm about. This party hit all three, and culminated in an all night (into all morning/day) jam session with Jon and Matt. I couldn't have asked for more. Finally, it was so great that we all got to get some breakfast in the morning (thanks for coming Jon, Matt, Theresa, and Stacey!). The Big Bean is one of my favorites and it was really cool to eat there one more time with my close friends. I love you all and can't wait until we can do something like this again...even if it is 3-plus years before the next one. :)

Press Release

Hello e-readers!

This is going to serve as my Peace Corps blog. I have nothing riveting to write yet because there are still more than two weeks until I leave the country. However, I wanted to post a link here to an article that the Laconia Daily Sun just released about my upcoming adventure. (Please try not to stab your eyes out on account of the "g" that, by typo, appears in "valedictorian." I have already emailed the paper about this, and perhaps it will be remedied by the time you view the link. Meanwhile, enjoy the irony of this misspelling!)

Here's the article: 2007 LHS Valedictorian Joins Peace Corps; Assigned to Teach in Jordan

Well, that's all for now.