4 days until departure

Countdown is getting short. Planning had begun for my students in my absence: they will each have a surrogate advisor, as well as a staff support they check-in with once per week, and a student mentor who will be keeping tabs on them. I think there's some good here. It's really exciting to be able to approach senior institute students, ask them to do this, and have them so readily say 'YES!' I think that's a great sign. Of course, to be honest, I am asking the ones I think are the strongest and the most up to the task, but still, it's a good sign.

Now the final school preparations, and I'm listing them here because they're so important I cannot afford to forget them, and ask you, kind reader, to help keep me on track. I'd love an email to metkip at g mail dot commie to see if I did what I'm about to say I need to do.

• finalize assignments of staff, advisors, and mentors for my kids


• update excel lists with correct dates and such•done


• prepare a page on each student: contact information, lti info, key pointers to dealing with them, etc


• write a final parent letter detailing the trip, its purposes, and how kids will be supported in my absence•done


• write a letter to the students in my advisory outlining my hopes and expectations for them


• write a letter to the staff at Shepard expressing my thanks, as well as the opportunities I can afford students while in Japan


• write a journal entry (probably here, so be kind, dear reader) detailing my hopes for myself upon my return - namely complimenting the living hell out of all of my students for everything they accomplished in my absence


• update my negative behavior log•done


• write a first TGIF for my trip, to be followed by weekly updates


• put necessary documents online at metkip for my students to access


• create a schedule for DT's and photo prompts during my trip (this raises an interesting question or three: how many prompts should kids have in my absence, how readily will I have internet access, and how much am I going to want to be thinking about them while I'm gone?)

and a bit of non-school specific stuff...

• finish packing


• decide on whether or not to take a flash with me (money issue, but potentially really good for quality images•decision made. no flash. can't afford it. onboard flash will have to do...


• decide on whether or not to take an iSight camera with me (money issue, but makes video-conferencing...possible, as well as easy)•still in debate. must check budget


• have some cash to take with me, get some converted to yen at SFO on our way out.
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• look at budget from now through the end of october and first half of november


• write dad's birthday card, have that ready to go into the mail•done


• keep ripping 24 episodes, organize them, and start on Lost. must. feed. the. monkey.

I've decided that a pair of running shoes are a necessity. I ride my bike most days, and even if it's not usually that far, I am riding, being physical, raising the heart rate. And yes I intend to do yoga and stretch while in Japan, but I don't think that'll be enough. I am going to need to run to keep my wits about me.

And three weeks is a really long time to try to go totally minimalistic with clothes and packing. At some point I'm really going to want something just effing comfy to put on. Gotta be sure to take that kinda thing.