Operation Update Blog is a go!

Operation Study Abroad update will commence in T-minus three... two... one... BLEEP!

In spite of the universe throwing roadblocks all over my plans, things are coming along nicely. BRING IT, UNIVERSE. I CAN TAKE IT. Just let me knock on this wood right here and cross all appendages and also go hunting for a four-leaf clover...

One of the big things that happened since last we spoke is that I sent off my visa application. My passport is currently hanging out at the British embassy in New York, where it will hopefully return to me soon with a nifty little card or sticker or something indicating I'm a temporary citizen of the United Kingdom. So far the only news I have is that they received it and thus I can stop fretting that the USPS dropped it somewhere in Salt Lake City or Miami, never to be seen again. My only real worry for the application is all those fields I had to mark "unknown" in the "Father's Information" section; it held me up once before, I can only hope it doesn't delay things this time.

The saga of Operation Brit-Kittehs continues. I contacted some transport companies, and after one quote back at $4000 (FOUR! THOUSAND! DOLLARS!), I decided to just go back to plan A. I cancelled my Delta flight (got about half my money back, which I count as a win after all the runaround I got) and booked with Iceland Air instead - after calling everyone ever associated with either Iceland Air and/or British Customs to make sure they were really going to allow my cats on the plane and then back off it. As of right now I just need to choose a kennel for the boys and attempt to weigh them so I can get that info to the airline, then book with a company right at Heathrow that does Customs clearance for pets; not for free of course, but presumably for considerably less than FOUR! THOUSAND! DOLLARS!.

Much less exciting is the beginning of Operation Purge or Pack. (Yes, every aspect of this will now have an "Operation Official Name" tag. The visa application will henceforth be referred to as Operation Gief Citizenship. I make my own fun.) The roomie was kind enough to loan me a ginormous suitcase for the duration of my stay, so I decided to practice pack. Yes, I know. It's insane. I'm comfortable with that.

I've got about four trash bags full of clothes to donate, and I haven't even gone through my dresser yet. Once the clothes are done, step two will be tackling the general crap that I keep in piles because it's my stuff and I don't know what else to do with it. Some will be boxed up, most will go in the trash.

That's about it for Operation Study Abroad news. I know I'm not updating that often, but that should change as I get closer to my takeoff date... which is less than seven weeks away now. Stay tuned for more updates!