The Countdown Begins

No, Mass.  This isn't about your job.  Although I have seen that crap up close (buddy of mine works for NASA), and it is definitely f'ing cool.

A little over a year ago, the wifey and I decided it was time for us to take another big vacation.  The last one we took was a week long drive out west hitting Vegas, LA/Malibu, and the Grand Canyon.  That was 3 years ago and I am in dire need of another one.

So last March we began discussing where to go and what to do.  She brings up the idea of saving up for a year or so and going to Europe for a couple of weeks.  Well OK.  Why not?  So we started a plan and adjusting our budget.  Saving up over a year meant we could only slightly alter our budget, and we had just moved and both started new jobs and wouldn't be able to take enough time off for a year, so it worked out really well.

Soon after we came to this decision, we made the mistake of telling my parents about our plan.  They immediately decided it needed to be a family vacation and got my sister and brother-in-law in on the plans, and away we go.  Here it is a year later.  My parents are now paying for our flights (so maybe it wasn't such a mistake after all to tell them) and we will be spending a little over two weeks backpacking through Europe with my folks, sister, and brother-in-law.  Not a huge deal that they are going.  We will at least have the last 4 days of the trip to ourselves.

There is a whole lot more to that back story.  But that is for another day.  This trip certainly has taken on a life of its own, though.  My parents now have applied for a Visa and will actually be in Europe from the time we leave until Thanksgiving!

Where are we going?  Well, here's a brief itinerary...  We fly out of ATL May 22.  First stop is Paris for 3 days.  Then on to Munich for a day and Salzburg, Austria for two.  From there to Venice for a day, Florence for two days, and Rome for 3 days.  At that point we all will part ways.  My parents will be heading fro Scotland to do some mission work.  My sis and bro-in-law are heading to London for a week.  The wifey and I? On to Athens for 4 days.  Ahhhh Athens.  What a great place.  We will actually only be in Athens for 2 days as we are taking a short 2 day cruise of the Greek Isles and spending part of the day we get back from that in Corinth.  Regardless, we will be in Greece.  And I love it there. 

This will be my 8th time to go to Europe.  I'm actually not going anywhere I haven't been before.  But, I can't wait to experience it all again with my wife.  Plus, the wifey and I have already decided we are moving to Italy in ten years, so this will be a good scouting trip.

8 times to Europe.  I know.  I am a lucky SOB.  4 of those times were on mission trips.  Once was to spend the summer going to school there.  The others?  My former job I mentioned in a previous blog.  One of the worst things in the world is to be in Italy or Greece and not be able to really enjoy it because you are working the whole time.  I'm still a lucky SOB, though.

So why the countdown?  Well... we leave 5 weeks from today.  AND, today begins my wife's list of lists.  I may have mentioned somewhere in a previous blog, my wife is slightly touched in the head.  I call it Obsessively Organized and Compulsively Anal Disorder.  Or OOCAD for short. 

Beginning today we have a list of all the things we need to get done each week for the next 5 weeks.  And I do mean everything.  Packing is on one of the lists.  How in the world would we forget to pack?!?    A list for everything we need to pack.  A list of appliances to unplug before we leave.  A list of all the lists and a calendar with each weekly list on it.  It is slightly overboard.  It really is.  But it is a little funny too, and she knows it.  I can't make too much fun of her, though.  There are several things on her lists that I had not thought to do.

So today is day 35.  The beginning of week 5.  What is on this weeks list?  Convert and put videos on the Zune and put music on the MP3 player.  Also on the list is to find one of those battery powered quick chargers for the Zune.  I know they make them for Ipods.  Has anyone seen one for the Zune?  I haven't been able to find one yet.

I'm going to do my best to follow the countdown on here daily.  I'm sure I'll have some interesting, if not hilarious, stories of my wife's OOCAD rearing it's ugly head.  Its going to be a long 5 weeks.