Back to life

After almost three weeks in the US, I am now back to reality and sitting on my sofa in the UK. I had a delightful time at home. My mom and I headed back to Iowa on Labor Day and we spent the remainder of the week hanging low and eating out. It was quite relaxing, and much needed.

Mom took me back up to Minneapolis on Friday (or more specifically Hampton where my friend Tim met us and drove me the rest of the way.) Went to Red's Savoy Inn for pizza and a few Grain Belt Premiums, and then headed to the bar at Mancini's Char House where there was a bitchin' live band with 50 year old guys in Hawaiian shirts and a buxom red-headed singer. They were AWESOME. They could not have been more predictable if they tried...we took a few guesses as to what they'd play and they hit every single one...Proud Mary with a bit of shimmy, Respect, a little Rolling Stones, Born In The USA, Old Time Rock n' Roll and Brown Eyed Girl. Randy people in their fifties and sixties doing a wicked groove to some fine fine tunes is a GREAT way to spend an evening. God bless America!

Spent Saturday morning with my friend KB, and then headed to the airport for my flight. My friend Brad was on his way to Germany for the day (yes, for the day, as he was on a mileage run,) and so he came to the airport a few hours early and got me in to the Northwest Airlines WorldClub, where we drank and snacked and chatted until I had to leave. He even walked me to my gate (though to be fair, what else was there to do with another three hours to kill?). It's much better being in airports with someone else. I had greasy Chinese food at O'Hare, but there was no one to bitch to about it's awfulness...and somehow I don't believe that the nice Portuguese guy sharing my table wanted to hear it.

I tried to sleep on the flight but had very little luck, even with a couple of Advil PMs. We got to London about 45 minutes early, and my Iris Scan immigration let me bypass the lines and head straight to baggage claim. I even made an airport friend with another Iris-Scan expat who could jump the lines but then had to wait for his luggage. He was cute, so I didn't mind killing five minutes with him before my bags showed up, plus he helped me get them off the belt and they were heavy. I was out in my car on the M25 before my flight was even due to land. Stopped for an Egg McMuffin and coffee, came home and went straight to bed. I broke the cardinal rule of jetlag avoidance and slept until 3 pm. I think Brad called me from Germany before he flew back home, but I don't really remember. There are text messages, though, so I must have been awake.

Got up long enough to scrounge some hot dogs out of the freezer, watch Bend It Like Beckham, talk to my friend Bethany and then to head back to sleep. If I get a full night's sleep tonight it will be a miracle. But here's hoping.

Now I have two and a half months left to do the following:
  • Finish my individual globalisation project
  • Start and finish my group globalisation project
  • Complete a Business Law course in one week
  • Write one paper analysing my leadership style and another analysing my personal development over the course of the year
  • Work with teammates to respond to an acquisition offer in the next two weeks, and also draft a personal learning statement on the experience
  • Do 160 hours of in-company consultation about strategic innovation
  • Work a full-time job
  • Find a new one
Gulp.

Comments

Dale said…
I thought of you today and wondered when you'd be back home. I'm glad you had a good trip although all that travel's enough to test anyone isn't it? Iris scanning huh? You're very sci-fi to me now.
lulu said…
You know, there are plenty of jobs for clever ex-pats with MBAs to be had in Bangladesh.

Seriously, you would freaking LOVE living in Asia.
Miss you! :(

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