And I haven't even begun to pack!

Having trouble getting to sleep tonight, I think it is finally dawning on me that we are actually leaving for three months in China two days from now! Before leaving for Africa, we were so immersed in literature, vaccinations, insurance, visas and general anticipation of what was coming that I actually felt hugely relieved when the plane finally took off. I feel less prepared this time, and actually a bit in denial I think. I haven't even begun to pack, which is pretty unlike me. Perhaps we are just more seasoned world travelers now...

A few nights ago I had the most terrible nightmare that our mattress had suddenly turned into a writhing pile of snakes ala Indiana Jones. It seemed quite vivid and I actually leapt out of bed screaming. I was all the way to the front door when Eric caught me and managed to calm me down and convinced me to come back to bed. I was having trouble breathing and just sort of freaking out in general. Oddly enough this is not the first time I've had this dream.


I don't know if I would call this a reoccurring dream because it is more like a panic. I always wake up immediately with a start, but have never been so frightened that I jumped out of bed. Poor Eric, I think I really scared him. I can't imagine what I would do if he started screaming in the middle of the night. I'd probably faint or do something equally unhelpful like call the police. Rehashing all this doesn't seem to be making it easier for me to fall asleep (shockingly!).


Tonight we had dinner with Linda, her sister MaryLou and their mother at the Horny Toad. It was such an unexpected treat. Linda is back in the States for a visit and, lucky for us, her sister lives here in Scottsdale. The other night, we went to MaryLou's for dinner and we thought that might be our only chance to get together, so it was really lovely to have one more evening together. I was thinking to myself how funny it is that we met Linda in Kampala and ended up having dinner at the Nelsons' favorite restaurant...but without them! It felt very strange because I think we've eaten there with them at least once every trip we've made to visit them here in Scottsdale. The Horny Toad serves up amazing fried chicken, excellent ribs and the most buttery strawberry shortcake you've ever tasted. We had a lovely meal and lovely conversation and Eric and I will look forward to our next chance to see Linda. It seems that opportunities arise more often than one might suppose. Remember how we ended up seeing our friends Maggie and Mike from Chicago in London? You never know which corner of this planet someone you love will pop up in. It really is a tiny planet, getting smaller all the time. Now that seems like a thought a girl could get to sleep with. Goodnight.