Countdown

Until now, I haven't really been spending a lot of time thinking about my upcoming London trip. Oh, sure, I think about it, but I've been refraining from doing the endless planning, just because I know that if I allow that, the time will crawl.

But I did note to a friend recently that after Winter Break, when school resumes in January, I'll be a mere five weeks away from my departure. The way my weeks fly by, in a flurry of business, it will hardly seem like anything.

Then, this week, I got my annual Christmas card from Kathy and Derek, in which Kathy had written, "Can't wait to see you!!" I had written pretty much exactly the same sentiment in my own card to them, so it's safe to say I'm not the only person looking forward to February.

To top it all off, Bill Bryson has a new book coming out just before I leave--one about England. His Notes From A Small Island is the one book that went on the plane with me in August 2004, as I started that whole year-long adventure off, and it is one of my favorite books of all. It seems fitting to take another Bryson book about our favorite island nation on another London-bound 747 out of San Francisco.

Right now, I'm just enjoying my two week Winter Break--especially as I've been battling a sinus infection that really knocked me on my butt. I'm not rushing January. But in the back of my mind linger thoughts of London, and Essex, the people there, and how happy I am at the prospect of seeing them again.

Come January, I won't be fit to live with.