I feel like pulling my hair out for not starting on all of this sooner. I have 1.5 days left to pack everything up and clean clean clean clean–AND I have to go to school in the morning for speech contest help, AND I have plans with Sally tomorrow night (postponed from Friday); it’ll be the last time we see each other.
Today’s going to be very long. I need to unplug my ethernet cable so I can listen to music without getting distracted by the web, especially since I sent out the mass “hi, I’m returning home so here’s my contact info” e-mail and have gotten 10-15 responses so far. Those are a great way to say hi to people you may not think to talk to otherwise, but replying each message also takes 5-10 minutes, so…
General checklist of stuff to do…
generally pack my suitcases, so I know what I have to ship stillpack boxes,ship them (I’ve sent 2 large boxes of winter clothes and 3 medium-sized boxes of stuff and 2-3 boxes of books so far, as well as my futon via airmail, and I’m still not done. Oof!)- hit up the 100-yen store in Mikamo (since our new one doesn’t open till Monday, which is when I leave for Sapporo–I almost wish I weren’t going!) to get new cheapie plastic stuff to replace the cheapie plastic stuff that has miraculously lasted these past 2 years but is grungy and cheapie enough that I can throw it out guilt-free
- vacuum and dust, scrub the kitchen counters and sink, tackle the bathroom,
clean off the porch and washing machine - make sure all my important documents and papers (like my pension book and info on how to get my pension refund) are somewhere safe and accessible, and packed into my carry-on
consider shipping my smallest suitcase back to the US, unless it’s cheaper to just check it as an extra piece of luggage (I have 2 big pieces of luggage to be checked, and two carry-on suitcases, and my laptop goes in one–AND my violin, which I will not under any circumstances check)- find a cylindrical cardboard tube so I can roll up my posters
- take down artwork and cloths off the wall, but photograph the apartment before I do!
- buy a “housewarming” gift for Kanno-sensei, one of my Japanese professors from my Georgia Tech days; I’ll be staying at her house (with her mother and brother) for two nights in Sendai
pack for my 8-day Hokkaido/Tohoku trip next week (shit, I keep forgetting about this)copy Lonely Planet Hokkaido/Aomori/Miyagi pages, bring plane and bus ticketsfind people to claim my spices and lentils and stuff- toss out perishable goods
- sort non-burnable trash and toss it into the bin, since Wednesday is moenai gomi day
- pack stuff I don’t have time to ship or deal with into the car, because I still will have a week in Tokushima after I get back, spent crashing either at Brian’s or Julie’s
- stop writing this freaking list and GET STARTED!
Oh, yeah. MOM! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE send me that list of things you’d like soon! I still have no clue where to find a doll, and I need to know what size tea strainer you’d like!
Okay, one quick note before I go…it has been suggested to me on more than one occasion that I open the floor to questions. I regret not doing it earlier, but I hope you knew that you were free to ask me questions anytime, and many of you have done so!
If you have any questions about the JET Programme, Tokushima, Shikoku, life in Japan, life in Japan as a foreigner, life in Japan as a woman, life in Japan as an Indian-American, or anything else, ask away! I’ll answer them eventually. I’ve answered many of my friends’ questions already, but I’m of course always up for answering more! I just don’t know when I’ll respond, but I swear I will.