Bom dia!
First, two news flashes:
1) I'm not flying out till the 23rd of April due to payroll/pay period complications. Sort of deflating, having already said my goodbyes to office mates. But the unanticipated week here is proving to be a blessing, in spite of logistics - changing the shut-off date for my phone and the hotel reservation for the night before we fly out. Also, l had to take Emma to the vet again to get new health certificates - they can't be dated more than ten days before we travel (hint). Putting back my departure date means that Ann, another of my unconditionally generous and loving friends, who was going to take Emma and me to BWI (hint), will be in Roanoke for Easter weekend. So Steve will make the Friday - Saturday trip with us (hint). At the hotel Friday night my brother and I will enjoy our last "Pizza Night," a tradition we established in the three years we've been house mates. We order Papa John's pizza on line, rent a Red Box movie, and eat/watch on his couch. Yum!
2) RE: hints - From a follow-up phone call to USDA, I learned that Portugal has not yet implemented the requirement for the blood test that would have kept Emma here for over a month. This means she can fly with me! I hustled our butts right over to Kinko's from the vet clinic and FedEx-ed the new forms to USDA. The approved documents should be back to me by Tuesday.
Charmed, I'm sure!
* Yesterday was a glorious spring day - sunny and breezy. A shame to be in the office, especially since I've turned over both operations and energy programs to Terry and Major Betancourt, leaving me little to do. I'm mostly serving as a "consultant," making recommendations for how they handle issues.
* Next week I'll write a couple of energy articles for the AFDW e-newsletter and put my documents and e-mails on CDs.
* Also, during lunch with Marsha, a friend in a high place in AFDW, I learned that Major General McDew, our 2-star, is disturbed by the results of a climate survey he sent to all of us, which made it clear that morale is low. In an effort to counteract that, he's implementing programs to promote professional and personal development. From his Commanders Calls, in which he briefs AFDW personnel on current issues, we're all aware of his focus on saying "thank you." I had told Marsha about an appreciation program I knew of from one of the architecture offices I worked in, and she encouraged me to put it into a plan to give to Maj Gen McDew. That will be my last "project" at AFDW.
* Now it's gloomy, cold-ish Saturday morning, and I'd very much enjoy staying in bed - even if that bed is a twin-size air mattress of which I am allotted slightly less than one-half due to my not-so-small four-legged Velcro friend, who is dozing on her "half" as I write.
* Most of my pre-travel business is already under control, so today will be laid-back. Just a trip to the post office to mail boxes to my Lajes P.O. address. Steve and I will do our traditional Saturday lunch. Then dinner with Mike and Karen - you might remember them from the sewing machine and vacuum cleaner story.
* Last night, Ann helped me acquire a new wardrobe. We had planned to see The Lincoln Lawyer, but I pointed out that sitting in a theater for two hours wouldn't be "quality time" together. So we headed for TJ Maxx. She loves helping me spend my money. The movie would have been MUCH cheaper, but I'm excited about my fun, island-oriented new clothes. Besides, having set aside outfits for only this week, I had to have new ones for my four additional days in the office. Right? Now if I can just fit them into the suitcase!
* A friend at the office asked if there's a way to comment on/respond to the blog postings. There is! If you look at the top, there's a dark blue strip that includes "Follow." When you click on that, it opens a box that gives you the opportunity to "Follow this Blog." Nothing to sign up for. Just select one of the two options and "presto!" you'll be able to make comments.
That's all for now. Sorry there aren't any photos. The next posting will be from Lajes!
Tchau for nau
Aisha
Terceira Island - Azores - Portugal
