-20

Short post.

What does a guy do 20 weeks before he leaves for Egypt?

I try to answer a lot of questions, most of which are still unanswerable.

It's funny to see what reactions people have when they learn I've made the decision to leave. I suppose the reactions are as varied as the people who ask them, but they are always revealing. What's hardest is most questions that are asked are not yet answerable by me.

Everybody wants to know so much about Egypt. What I'm most concerned with right now is what is here. While many are excited for me and wonder about the next step, I am spending more focus and time taking care of the business at hand. I'm working hard to leave my personal and professional life here in good stead. I want to make sure the transition for the students and school here are better than they were when I started. (For those of you that remember, my first semester was impossibly difficult, and I wouldn't want anybody to have to experience that - students or adults.) Certainly, I'm taking measures to prepare, but the bigger worries currently lie at home.

So, what does a guy do 20 weeks before he leaves for Egypt?

Nine things come to mind.

1. I start taking the shots. Hep. B is a 4 month process...a series of inoculations that can not be hurried. Typhoid is easier. Either take one single shot which protects for 2 years, or ingest 4 pills that protect for 5 years. It's weird how that works. But despite my fear I'll screw it up, I'm taking the pills - they must be taken 48 hours apart, on an empty stomach, and cannot be washed down with hot liquid for at least 60 minutes. So, I'll take them in the morning and struggle until I get my coffee fix.

2. I visit with bankers and other financial gurus to set up securities for my investments, and protocols for procedures and controls I can maintain via internet and from a distance.

3. I visit with potential renters for my house. (Things look good on this front.) It's a bad time to sell, and in the larger picture is silly to sell a good home that I know will appreciate in value. My portfolio will always need diversity, so why not keep a little real estate...and a cushion - a place to come back to live in.

4. I contact my future employer about my future job expectations, and await their response. (Yeah, this is looking ahead, but it's necessary to begin that preparation...)

5. I purchase the rest of my photo equipment needs, and wait eagerly for it's arrival. This anticipation is greatly increased after taking a group of high school students to a lecture at Creighton by Bill Frakes, where I and many students are reinvigorated while witnessing the power of photography and photo story.

6. I continue to listen to the poor man's version of "The Rosetta Stone" on my way to work and back home after work. Sometimes, I can remember on demand how to order food in a restaurant for myself or for another man or woman, say hello, or tell another person that I, he, or she is thirsty in Arabic. Other times, I don't remember a thing.

7. I work harder to cherish the relationships I have while here. Certainly, distance will not be my best ally in this area, so I'm trying to enjoy every day with the people I care about.

8. I start reading voraciously. There is so much to learn.

9. I write in my (currently) weekly blog.

To those of you following, thanks for caring, or at least thanks for reading. :-P

Scott