I Also Overuse Caps Lock

He's just begging for a caricature, isn't he? I mean, this picture makes me reeeaaaalllly wish I had cartoon-drawing skills. (To add to my nunchuck skills and computer skills. Gosh!)

Anyhoo, today is Begin Packing Day. Jack bought me this nifty backpack-duffle bag-rolling suitcase combo thingy, to add to my big traveling backpack from last year's Europe trip. I am determined that I will take only what can be fit in these two bags. Which, for a normal person, wouldn't be that much of a challenge, but no one ever accused me of being normal, especially in the clothing, shoe, or toiletry departments.

I've started doubting my English-language skills lately, which is funny because objectively, I think I have excellent language skills. But I keep thinking that maybe I overuse the commas, and will I scar my students' comma-usage forever? Or that the funny way I sometimes say "bathroom" will rub off on them and forever afterward my students will sound like a hick transplanted to Chicago whenever they need to use the toilet. And then, of course, I remind myself that I'm only going to be teaching these kids for nine months and I SHOULD BE SO LUCKY that they would remember a word that comes out of my mouth. The grammar in that last sentence was a little tricky, but you get the idea.

Overall, the anxiety of the last few days has passed, and I'm feeling pretty upbeat again. I know it's ornery of me, but I think all the well-wishing and "it's going to wonderful"-ing of my relatives the last few days made me feel worse. Probably because, as a rule, I don't trust anything a fundamentalist Christian step-grandmother says.

So, in conclusion. . . . . HOLY JESUS I AM GOING TO MISS THIS PUPPY!!!!