27monthswithoutbaseball

I thought I'd check the photo-uploading ease on blogger (it is easy! So I hope to be able to add more). This is from the walk to the light at the North Avenue Beach - one of my favorite walks. The tall building is the John Hancock building, one of the first buildings I learned about in my first civil engineering course; because of that course, I switched into the engineering school in order to major in civil engineering. The building where I live is the red brick building about halfway along on the right (it's a twin building; I live in the north one, the one to the right). Lake Michigan is my "big swimming pool across the street" - in fact, I am headed there shortly. I have a feeling my skyline is about to change dramatically! I'm up on the 14th floor, and the street noise of Lake Shore Drive is nice white noise - it sounds like the gentle tides of the lake (if there were gentle tides).

I've been telling people that if I were moving to Morocco for 2 1/2 years and coming back to this apartment I'd be overwhelmed, and if I were moving out of the apartment where I've lived for 19 years I'd be overwhelmed, but the combination of the two is completely overwhelming! Yesterday I stopped the cable, internet, phone, TiVo, Peninsula Spa, and Blue Cross as of September and arranged for auto-bill-pay of my credit cards and for my absentee ballot. That took all morning! I'm working on a will and living will and power of attorney. I asked my friend/lawyer if I could specify, "now when I die, now don't think I'm a nut, don't want no fancy funeral, just one like old King Tut." He recommended that I leave that out....

People have done this before - moved. And moved to other countries. And joined the Peace Corps. I just haven't moved in a while, and I haven't done anything so - adventurous? Out of the mainstream? Challenging? I measured my suitcases the other day - you're allowed two suitcases L+W+H no more than 107 inches, and a carry-on - mine were exactly 107 inches! I still can't imagine narrowing things down to fit - even though I have a carton of books that a friend will send me already picked out, and am planning to fill at least one more carton with things to send. As I said to someone, I am not a minimalist. His response was, "I imagine many of the people who go into the Peace Corps are." He's probably right!