Wednesday, July 31, 2013

You know you are leaving for home assignment when...

You know you are leaving for home assignment when...

  • You panic about leaving all your village medicines behind...and then realize that if you do become sick/feverish/bleeding to death, whatever country you happen to be in will have an accessible doctor. And medicine.
  • You look up how many grams of ground coffee are needed to make a cup... so you know how much you should bring home.
  • You decide a bilum (string bag) will be your purse since it can expand...
  • You maximize your 3 pieces of clothing for 6 climates, 3 countries, and 4 cultures...
  • All your clothes and toiletries can fit in a 2L bag...but you are maxing out the weight allotments for baggage due to gifts.
  • You have your artifacts organized in the suitcase so that customs can look at it all without destroying the packing job.
  • You bring half-used fridge items as hostess gifts to your pre-departure dinners.
  • Your paperwork folder includes currency, visas, and travel info for (at least) three countries.
  • You research food in the airports so you can hit all the restaurants you’ve been missing.
  • Your phone numbers/contact information are organized by time zone.
    lots of mail...
  • You have mail being dropped off at your door...and it’s not for you (87 items and counting).
  • You pack all the essentials in your carry-on so when your luggage gets lost for two weeks while crossing the Pacific Ocean, you can still brush your teeth.
  • You wonder if the model bow and arrows you are bringing back is included under the airline weapons restrictions.
  • You defrost the freezer and find exciting food in the back that you forgot (in between washing your sheets, cleaning the house, dropping off keys and any number of sundry details).
  • You take deworming medicine before you go...
  • You run around centre closing up mailboxes and financial paperwork and retrieving passport and visa and store runs and other offices...and then you run around the next day doing everything you forgot the day before.
  • You find someone to babysit your PNG phone because if you leave it too long without adding minutes, the company will take back the number and give it to someone else.
  • You lose the ability to perform basic functions...like signing your name, filling out a simple form, or adding 9+15.
  • You have charts to make sure your baggage fits the limits in both kilos and pounds.
  • You wake up to find new emails about your departure of PNG, your arrivals (and departures) in each of your stops, your time in the US, and then your departure back to PNG...
  • You pack the things that you don’t want to bring back...and add to your list for when you reach The Land of Stores (like underwear...).
  • You try to squeeze in time with lots of people, knowing that some of your goodbyes will not turn into hellos until heaven.
  • You take your camera everywhere, trying to remember to photograph light switches and other oddities that will be useful illustrations in your speaking Powerpoints.
  • You look forward to getting on the plane because then there is nothing more you can do about the list!
Have you noticed other indicators in your family as you have prepared for home assignment? (Obviously, since I don't have kids, I'm missing a rather large chunk of many family's preparations!)