It is tuesday in Seattle, 50 degrees.
The sun is blazing away at a slant here on Queen Anne- okay there ARE some wet fuzzy looking rainclouds lurking on the edges of downtown - and I' m sitting on the porch, blinking. I feel warm for the first time all winter. What on earth is a muggy 76 degrees going to feel like (San Jose, CR today), or a rainy 91 degrees (Bocas Town, Panama) ? I can't quite imagine it right now.
I am making my final pre-departure arrangements for two months in Costa Rica & Panama. Will be doing field work for my independent research project, staying at ITEC on Isla Colon in Panama.
Thursday afternoon I fly out, with my travelling buddies Dallas and Whitney. We will fly into San Jose Costa Rica, make a beeline for the bus terminal and head out of the city to to east coast. We are meeting our friends Jesse and Wes in Cahuita Costa Rica, to do a little unwinding, snorkeling, and perhaps a bit of drinking (and dancing!) before school officially starts (in Panama) for us on march 28th. We are all part of the same program, Tropical Animal Behavior and Zoology, and have been working and studying together since last fall.
So, here I am in the Pacific Northwest, crossing things off my to-do lists (yes, somehow there are multiple lists going, all w coffee stains and muddy dog prints), running errands, driving Mike generally crazy, hugging my dog and cat a lot, and trying to stuff all my gear into my backpack. This last week I've had those 'change is coming', 'I can't remember any Spanish', 'my backpack is too heavy', 'augh!', and 'i am so going to get lost' nerves, but this afternoon I'm starting to relax. Am meeting my friends Chad and Candace for a goodbye supper at my favorite restaurant tonight, and will still have tomorrow left to hang out w Mike and Leelu and evil cat, and to cross those last few things off the to-do lists.
