Big Day

[kurtdesign1]

This smacks of a few future, dead lawyers and a sudden change in the interest of said Government investigatory committee.

[Kip]

Pondering what it is I'm going to share in one of the church services at which I'm supposed to speak while we're stateside. We have a couple churches that support us, so of course I get to talk when we're in. I love coming in to visit....but these trips absolutely wear me out. In a month long visit, we get about a week of actual downtime. The rest is making sure we see and spend time with as many people as possible, and give an update on what's going on since our last trip. Speaking to large groups is *extremely* taxing and stress-inducing for me. Then, of course, there's the endless stream of comments about "how nice it must be to live on a Caribbean island supported by other folks" from all the people who don't realize I see the ocean exactly thrice a year (one of those with @Stewmuse ), and carry an annual family vacation budget of $500. There's something backward about spending such a large chunk of annual support to make this trip. It's a heck of a lot easier and more effective to bring down a group of 6-10 people to actually participate and see what it is we do. Not because of any trouble or expense to us; it's just better to come get your hands dirty than to listen to me ramble for a few minutes about it, and a small group of ~10 makes it both more intimate and cost-effective.

I'm committing to full-on enjoying the daylights out of this year's trip. I'm working hard not to become wearied. Last year was a shorter trip, and I came back home utterly exhausted. Not this year. I'm going to eat, smoke, and laugh....say what I have to say, then repeat the eating, smoking, and laughing.

At least this tobacco parfait will help for today.

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[Kip]

^All the above being said, take it with a grain of salt. My medication has been difficult to get lately. I may be entirely imbalanced chemically/hormonally and thus more crotchety than normal.

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[Stewmuse]

Keep up the good work, man. Do you have some sort of presentation where you can show pictures of the various places and people with whom you actually work? That might be a good wake up call to all of those “Caribbean dreamers.” Might might your talks more enjoyable for both you and them, too.

[Kip]

Meh. No biggie. The last time this particular group didn't have an easy way to incorporate visual media, but I haven't asked this time around.

To clarify my whining, neither these speaking engagements nor the trip overall are negative things. I'm thankful for them. I'm just introverted enough to get myself worked up into a tizzy whenever I have to step outside my comfort zone....hence my daily affirmation to keep my head on straight to make this a fun time rather than letting my tendency to be high-strung wear me out.

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[Kip]

I guess what I'm saying is, I'm going to have fun whether I like it or not

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[Kip]

Just under 17 hours until we'll be taking off. I'm incredibly ready for some time on US soil.

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[Kip]

Not that I'm anxious or anything....

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[Stewmuse]

Not that I'm anxious or anything....

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Ah, yes, to the land of affordable Fuentes!

[815DC]

Also the land of awaiting parcels. Its like a kid rushing to some kind of Christmas.

Did you get the Fishers website updated a bit before heading out Kip? People will probably want to go there after meeting you/hearing you speak. I suppose I could have just looked myself, but you know, lazy.

Actually, you could probably cherry pick some of the stuff you put here and put it in a little daily blog on the site...