It's the Final Countdown

So I am home in NOVA for a few days before my flight leaves, The preparation I have completed so far (serious and not) follows.

* My goal for today is to do laundry and pack most of my luggage if not all of it. You guys would be proud! As a veteran over-packer I only plan to take a backpack and a tiny duffel bag. The mission is not to check my luggage... though who knows if that will actually occur because of the new standards about carrying on liquids.

* The hardest temptation to resist is the urge to pack all of the books in my house into my backpack and convince myself that I will read them all. I've settled for choosing thick classics that will take me at least a few days to get through and that I feel fine about leaving along the road. Maybe I'll finally get past chapter 27 of David Copperfield without going back to the beginning again.

* I have prepared myself with numerous securities against theft. There are secret compartments in all of my clothes and luggage (which will be locked) and I have copies of every vital document in at least two places. The icing on the cake is the alarm doorstop my mother insisted on ordering which will prevent anyone from coming into my hostel room at night.

* I am attempting to savor all the foods I will miss out on in China. For example, Luqs, Alex, Angela, and I went to Casa Maya on Friday to say goodbye to each other and to say my personal goodbye to burritos and quesidillas. Still on the list for me to relish are cheeseburgers, pasta, pancakes, and numerous other delicacies. This is not to say I am not ridiculously excited about Chinese cooking. Ever since I saw "Eat Drink Man Woman" a few weeks ago I have been craving authentic jiaozi.

* Last night the end of Zhang Yimou's "Curse of the Golden Flower" happened to be on and I was so excited to remind myself that I will be in the Forbidden Palace in a little over 3 days! Of course it won't be swarming with ninjas, but the elation remains.

Tomorrow I will be finalizing my day by day itinerary which is a daunting task. I may get a haircut and go to the library to get some audio books that will serve as entertainment without weighing me down. Other than that, I am set to go. This will be the last time I post before I fly out on Tuesday so I hope everyone is having a happy finals week and that the summer treats everyone well!