More than a name or a face in the crowd...

I am a huge, huge nerd. But I feel as if that was already solid fact. So I'm not entirely uncomfortably documenting that my "last song" before shutting down my computer was David Cook's "Magic Rainbow."

Catch you on the other side of the ocean!

"It's here. The day has come."

I just zipped close my final suitcase. And on the questionable bathroom scale, it weighs in at exactly 50 lbs. Which means more than likely, US Air is going to say it's like 52 lbs. Which means I'm going to pay. Which is frustrating.

But still, more or less my life in three suitcases? I'm proud of me.

(Okay, my life minus the stuff I'm shipping, like my winter coat, two pairs of normal boots, one pair of hiking boots, my favorite oversized purse, and my Norwegian troll.)

I've got about six hours till I have to be at the airport. Six hours in which I need to shower, dry my hair, pack my carry-on, and have lunch.

I'm almost glad that I'm moving at a hundred miles an hour today, so I don't have time to sit around and be sad that I'm leaving everyone.

It was kinda pitchy...

Packing also sucks.

It's almost like American Idol, deciding what stays and what comes with me. There have been several rounds of eliminations, cuts made, things I would have liked to have kept, but just can't...

BCBG mod print sheath dress? Congratulations... YOU'RE THROUGH TO HOLLYWOOD. And my suitcase.

I miss Idol already and it's not even January.

Also, I realized today that I have enough CBJ items of clothing that I could reasonably wear a different shirt for three weeks straight before doing laundry. I'm going to Scotland clad in all Blue Jackets stuff. Carry the flag!

Memo to self: pack more, blog less.

Are you ready for some (American) football?

Google is my friend, and let me know that there is a sports bar in Glasgow where I can go to see events like EAGLES-COWBOYS MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL. I can't believe I leave two days before it! Not that I want to spend my time in Scotland watching American sports, but should the need arise, it's good to know there's a place that shows baseball and hockey and football, and that if I get a bout of insomnia at 1:30am on Monday, I can hop on over there and watch the game.

I really, really should start to de-Yankify myself though. I think in my last two days here in the States, it's just a bit difficult, because everyone's gearing up for all these things, and I'm skipping town. I'm sure once I get to Glasgow, I'll be very much Ameriwhut? But for now, I'm slightly (but only slightly) melancholy that I don't have the option of being in Philly and Chickie and Pete'sing it for MNF.

Ode to a Wonderful Companion

I just cleaned out my car one final time in preparation to sell it, possibly tonight, before I move to Scotland on Friday. It's an emotional process; this car has been with me my entire adult life. I've changed jobs, moved to new apartments, moved to new cities in new states, but the one constant has been my little red Hyundai. It wasn't ever a fancy car, but it got me from A to B to Canada (lots). I am going to miss her so much.

Farewell, little Hexy car. You were a dear, dear friend and I will miss you terribly.

Hit 'em low, hit 'em high...

Thought: I really, really hope I love Glasgow as much as I love Philadelphia.

Thought: I was contemplating spending the $40 for the voltage adapter that allows me to use my US dryer and straightener, but decided against it as both items would probably take up too much room in my luggage, so I'll just have to go out on Day One and purchase a coffee maker, a blowdrier, and a quality straightener. Lest I look like the Lion King when I get to Scotland. First impressions last a lifetime. Rawr.

Thought: I am worried about the withdrawal symptoms from when I quit Chipotle cold turkey. I have a feeling that I'm going to break into cold sweats. Just one hit. One little dolop of guac to shoot up into my veins. I won't even ask for chips, I promise. Mama needs her fix. This could be bad.

Thought: Goodbyes are really hard. Even if you're looking forward to where you're going.

Thought: I haven't made as much of a dent into my summer reading list as I would have liked. Some things never change.


T-four days...

To the elephant sitting on my head: PLEASE LEAVE.

This is it, this is the homestretch.

My last day of work was Tuesday. Today, my arrival date showed up on the ten-day forecast.

It's suddenly hitting me just how much I have to do before I go, and how maybe (just maybe) I shouldn't have put everything off all summer. All summer long, every time I wanted to do something Scotland-related, I'd think to myself, "But it's too soon, I'm jumping the gun, I'll wait till closer to my leave time." And now I really wish I hadn't.

And now I'm sick -- not the most pleasant development or convenient timing. It is hard to have raucous rounds of goodbyes when you can't get out of bed.

Unrelated, but it must be noted that Banana Republic is so completely on the Michelle Obama bandwagon it has me giddy. Their two feature colors right now are a deep purple (identical to The Dress, that phenomenal purple shift dress she belted the night her husband claimed the Democratic nom) and a teal that is suspiciously similar to the color she wore the night she spoke at the DNC. And they're featuring both in shapes similar to those worn by her. Considering it's been fifty years since we had a truly stylish First Lady, this copycat fall line is a most welcome development.

He's got the whole White House press corps asking each other how to spell erudite!

This is an auspicious occasion indeed. Not only did Barack Obama just deliver one of the defining political speeches of my lifetime, but on a a far more personal level, I just officially used my new University of Glasgow email address to join the University of Glasgow Facebook network.

And lest it seem as if I'm being completely facetious in my excitement over the big Facebook switch, I actually truly am excited about it. Changing one's Facebook network, oh so big a deal.

As was accessing my Glasgow email for the first time, and already finding it full. It's a preview of my new life that starts in two weeks. Signups for conferences, calls for papers, special events, gym memberships. It makes it all seem a bit more concrete. I have an email address@student.gla.ac.uk. It's not just an acceptance letter. It's digital, baby!

But it would be irresponsible of me not to properly mention Obama, or how the promise of him as president almost makes me not want to live in another country. At least not the entire time he'd be in office. It was one hell of a speech, from one hell of a speaker.

It would further be irresponsible of me not to properly mention how Michelle Obama rocked it again. Fantastic dress. And the flats! M.O. as first lady could encite a footwear revolution in which women are firmly on the ground. Not that I don't love wearing heels; the pain is worth it for the height and the walk. But oh, to live in a country where my children were guaranteed healthcare, where American jobs weren't shipped overseas, and the feet of American women give up their addiction to foreign footwear... it's an America I want to be a part of.

And finally, it would be really irresponsible of me not to properly mention some of the eerie similarities between Obama's speech tonight and Andrew Shepherd's speech when he called out Bob Rumson. Just sayin'.

T-minus fifteen...

I have fifteen days remaining Stateside. This fact suddenly dawned on me yesterday when starting vacantly at my Outlook calendar at work. And when I realized how few days I have left until I leave, it also dawned on me that perhaps I somehow fell into a time warp that jumped me through a large part of the summer, because I swear the last time I looked at the countdown (and I'm quite obsessive about countdowns) it was well in the 40s. And now it's in the teens.

I am also realizing that perhaps it's time I starting taking this whole Moving to Another Country/Continent thing a bit more seriously!

For all the lists I've been compiling all summer long (To Pack, To Do, To Put in Checked Luggage, To Put in Carry-on Luggage, To Ship, To Leave Behind), I haven't actually been ticking many of these things off the list. I've done the big stuff (visa, student loans, new computer), but all the little, nagging things are most likely going to send me in a tailspin right before I leave. Which is maybe a good thing. If I'm in a tailspin, maybe I won't cry at the airport.

The excitement of leaving is there. As is the anticipation of living in Glasgow and the nerves of starting this program (programme?). But the realization that I'm moving to another country in fifteen days (not going on vacation, not job hunting, but m-o-v-i-n-g) is suddenly a very heavy thought. There's the chance that this summer I have treated my leaving as if I were moving to Pittsburgh or Boston or somewhere else with the same monetary system, same television shows, and same beer.