i will always love you like a long goodbye.

Nashville has been my home for 10 years. It is the longest I have lived anywhere and will probably remain that way. Not only has Nashville been the place in which I've resided, but it has been my home. This coming from an Air Force brat is kind of a big deal. I have a home...and I'm leaving that home on Thursday.

I spent tonight with a couple of the closest friends I've made here. All of them from Sewanee, and say what you will about that, but I literally teared up on the way home. I would love to regale you with fantastical descriptions of these friends that are, of course, well deserved but I think I would leave something out, and the fact that I just left them makes me too emotional to do them justice.

But no, this post is about my city, my home.

One of Ellyn's friends, I don't know who, put the song "Nashville" by David Mead on a mix that was in her car when I was driving it tonight. I'm not really sure if the song's about leaving Nashville or coming home to it, but I listened to it on repeat while I drove around tonight. I kept coming back to the last line in the song... "I will always love you like a long goodbye." That really truly is the way I feel about leaving this place.

I've never really had to leave home before. Firstly, because I didn't really have one. I have moved every three years for basically my entire life. And secondly, because I went to college about an hour and a half away from here...then promptly moved back. So now that I am going off to teach overseas, I am leaving home for the very first time. I think that's a good thing, though...don't misunderstand. But I love Nashville.

I love lower Broad. I love the Titans. I love Karl Dean. I love country music (seriously.). I love the Flying Saucer. I love the neighborhoods. I love the hipsters in East Nashville. I love the weird restaurants that think they're in Portland. I love Baja Burrito. I love how Old Hickory Blvd. is one road, but really is like 10 different ones. I love how all the roads have 3 different names, but are all actually the same road. I love Brentwood High. I love Vaughn's Gap. I love that the Parthenon is made of concrete. I love that you can drive 20 minutes in any direction and end up in the country. I love the Ryman. I love that my AP English teacher sang for the Opry. I love that my friends came here from all over and all of them love it. I love the name Nashthrill. I love the Batman building. I love the concerts on the river.

I've spent so much of my life here and it's hard to think of how I'm going to be anywhere else. Am I the same Tyler taken out of the context of this city? I think I'll always be the same guy...but shaped by the city that I've lived in and loved for 10 years of my life. Nashville, you will forever be my home...and I will always love you like a long goodbye.

Vicariously yours,

the weather and other interesting things

Ladies, Gentlemen, Clint...

I've been thinking a lot about how everyday life is going to be in Saudi. I keep coming back to the weather. In Nashville, it's a balmy 59 at night in early September. In Saudi, we're looking at 84 at like 3 AM. We're almost in hoodie weather in middle Tennessee. I suddenly don't think I've packed enough shorts.

But then again, if I remember correctly, winter on the Arabian peninsula was fantastic. It got sweaterish cool and that was about where it stopped. I always think of Sewanee in February when I think of the worst of winter weather. I remember thinking, "good grief, if it would have just stayed October temperature it would be perfect." Fortunately for me...that's about what I have to look forward to. The average low in the dead of winter is about 65. I'm pretty excited about that. I'm not gonna lie...great weather is something that I have come to really love about fall in Tennessee. The absolute worst time of the year here has to be February. During my freshman year of college, I had a series of 3 weeks where there was NO SUN. Clouds literally the entire time. Nothing brings on the seasonal affect disorder like no sun and cold, rainy weather.

However, Saudi will be different because there will be sun. Now, there will be some oddities that are very specific to the area we're in. Like sandstorms. Not like Plant Earth sandstorms...but just the ones that turn the sky orange. Like this...

Pictured: Khaled

I'm totally ready to have that be the weirdest weather thing that I have to deal with. I'm certainly not the type to be excited about digging my car out of 3 feet of snow. Like this...

Pictured: Raina's Saturn

Weather is something that I haven't really thought a whole lot about outside of, "wow, Saudi, huh? gonna be hot there, right?" Yeah...it's gonna be hot. Also, the sky is blue...who'd of thunk. As we count down the days (there are 4 of them) until we get to the big sandy, I get more and more thoughtful about the regular stuff that we're going to deal with. Weather's just what I'm thinking about now.

Vicariously yours,

womp womp

A common question we've been getting is, "Are your parents going to come visit you while you're in Saudi Arabia?"

Previously our answer has been, "Well, it's really difficult to get a tourist visa in Saudi Arabia, so probably not."

But now, our answer can only be, "No."

womp. womp.

In other news: WE LEAVE ON THURSDAY!!!

Vicariously yours,

so there i was...enjoying my potato chips...

...when all of a sudden I was struck with the thought that I'm about to be working again very soon. Normally this wouldn't be something that I'd be worried about, yet here I am...really kind of concerned about the year coming up.

I really haven't been thinking about it but Ellyn left today for her own crazy adventure in Cairo and Amber has been napping away the afternoon. So without the distraction of...well, anything, I've been alone with my thoughts. The adjustment of living in Saudi is going to be a challenge in and of itself, but the challenge of teaching in a Saudi school is something that I'm totally overwhelmed by.

As part of my homework for this coming year (yeah, I had homework...) I read a book called Destiny Disrupted which basically explains the way that Arabs and Muslims see history. It's been totally mind blowing, but not for the reasons you would think. Take, for instance, the way that westerners look at world history. It's totally chronological and linear. If I asked my 8th graders at FRA to give me the history of the world really quickly, they would look at me like I was crazy and then go back to texting.

OMG i totly dk!

However, if I posed the question to one of my peers it would probably sound like this: cavemen, fertile crescent, Egypt, Greece, Rome, Middle Ages, Renaissance, exploration & colonization, America, WWI, Depression, WWII, Cold War, and the present.

What's missing (besides most of world history)? Duh. Arabs. The development of the entire Arab & Islamic world has been ignored by westerners in our timeline of world history. I honestly don't think this was a conscious choice. We have traced our western civilization back to the beginning and not really been that concerned with the rest of the world. And in the course of creating a world history curriculum for schools, the priority was learning where the ideals and customs that we utilize in this country come from...and those do not come from the Arab world...or the East Asian world and Africa, for that matter.

SIDE NOTE: Of course you could argue that last point with me, but let's focus on the subject at hand, hmmm?

It's really important to remember that the way that I learned history and more importantly the way that I learned to look at history are based on this idea of education. I needed to learn from whence our customs, ideals, and traditions come from, so we learn about the history that concerns us. This is, in essence, the same thing that goes on in the Middle East with history. But they are obviously concerned with the history that led to the creation of their own civilization, which is totally different.

Countries like the United States which are made up of a plethora of peoples from all places and histories (the great mixing bowl, as Mrs. Blevins calls it) have to face teaching history in a different way. Ignoring the entire Arab, Asian & African worlds in world history is ignoring the kids sitting in the classroom!

So here's the question: How do I address this obvious gap (chasm, really) in our versions of history?

American schools have taken a stab at it...we toss in China, even Babylon into the world history courses in 6th grade. We do Africa in geography...which ends up cramming thousands of years of history into one slide on a powerpoint so that the poor guy teaching can get through their standards by the end of the year. This usually ends poorly. One of my 8th graders from my first year at FRA told her mother that I was moving to Saudi to "teach children in Africa". *sigh* Another one told me, "dude, the city youre moving to has a bad word in it". Yes, Dammam, the third largest city in Saudi has a bad word in it...incorrectly spelled of course. And these are just comments about Saudi! Let's not even touch the simple fact that if you asked most American middle schoolers, they would probably tell you that Africa is a country and that African-Americans live there. But I digress...

After pouring over it, I decided that the best way to approach it is to look at the world as a Venn diagram. Kinda like this:

Because the history of each is linked to the others, but they each have very specific histories to themselves. We have to address each individually, and yet connect them all together. Now the obvious problem becomes...how do we do this in a year? How do we break it up? Now that...I'm still working out. But I think that this makes the most sense. There is going to be a gap in the way we both approach history...so I say, let's toss both notions of history we have out, and start with a clean slate.

The ultimate pursuit of history is to answer the question: Who are we? I think that chasing that question will take us everywhere we need to go. Who the Saudis are...Who the Americans are...Who we as humans are. I'm excited about the opportunity to do this...but it just makes me nervous, man!

I will now return to my previously scheduled potato chips.

Vicariously yours,

Amsterdam, here we come! ...in a few weeks

So, before we entered the pathetic financial situation we're in now, the Mister and I booked our flights to allow a quick trip to Amsterdam en route to the Big Sandy. It seemed like a good idea at the time. It'd give us a chance to put another European city on our list of sites seen, and give me a chance to walk around uncovered for just a few more days.

I'd been putting off booking our housing because we were on so many other trips, so that was my project for the week. Initially I figured we would stay in a hostel. That was what we were familiar with, and I thought it would be the cheapest way to stay.

Heavens, was I wrong!! The hostels were only moderately cheaper than the hotels, and none of them really stood out as bastions of cleanliness or safety.

So I turned to craigslist....and quickly turned away. We found all kinds of great listings, but if they weren't booked already, they were posted by a scammer, or by someone who would only accept a wire transfer of money. I watch Teen Mom. I saw how Farrah just got suckered out of 3k. Mama don't play that.

Luckily, I found out about a website through a craigslist post that led us to this great guest house.

Isn't it cute!?

This guesthouse is in Karen's backyard. From what I can gather, it's like a carriage house that she doesn't use, so she rents it out. Airbnb (the website linked above) is this really great place where travelers can open their homes to other wandering souls and rent out a room, a couch, a home, an apartment, etc. It was a super easy website to use, and I'm really pleased by the fact that you pay with a credit card on the site and the property manager doesn't get any money until your arrival.

We'll of course keep you posted to let you know if the guest house turns out to be everything Karen claims it to be. I'm sure it'll be great. Even if it's not up to snuff, it'll definitely be more secure than a hostel or hotel because we'll be the only people with access to the house (an especially important detail as we'll be carrying everything we own in our luggage).

In other news, now that we've found lodging, the floodgates have opened and I've booked all kinds of wonderful things for us to do on our trip.

We're going to tour the Anne Frank house (I'm so excited, it's a little wrong), as well as take part in the Heineken Experience. Thanks to TripAdvisor, we found a bike tour of the countryside (about which I could not be more excited), as well as a WWII history walking tour that was VERY highly rated.

All we'll need to worry about after we've arrived is our transportation and finding a grocery store so we can cook our own meals in Karen's guest house.

Hurry up, September 9! I'm getting bored!!

Vicariously yours,

p.s. here are a few other sites that I also used to look for self-catering places to stay:

Flip Key

Home Away

Rentalo

In the end, you end up paying the same amount as a hotel, but you could end up with an entire apartment/home. Definitely the way to travel, even if it's just for a weekend.

We're baaack!

The Mister and I have returned from our whirlwind month of travel. We now have a little over 3 weeks left in this country, and we plan to stay put as much as possible during that time.

I'd like to think of myself as a tolerant person. I can pretty much roll with the punches. In my old age, I'm getting less and less spontaneous, but I'm working on that. But there were a few things I noticed on our trips these past few weeks that I really just can't put up with anymore. Here are the top 5 things that should be avoided at all costs--especially when traveling.

5. T-shirts with a message. I'm not talking about the Bono-inspired "Save the Whales" kind of messages. I mean the ones that have full sentences that are meant to be snarky, but they're just annoying.

like this beaut. We saw it more times than I'd like to admit while we were traveling.

Granted, there are plenty of baby onesies that have messages like "My mom's hotter than you mom," and some of those can be annoying in their own way, but for the most part they're cute because they're on a baby.

I mean, really. Who wouldn't put this on their baby?

But if you are old enough to form complete, coherent sentences, I don't want to know whether this is your happy face or not. I'm not trying to make you get your flying monkeys, I'm just trying to enjoy my day without having to wonder whether you're really as big a tool as you look or not.

4. Ill-fitting bras. You know what I'm talking about. Mama's a DD, but she's wearing a C, so her cup is literally running over and it is NAS.TY.

you know what I'm talking about

I have seen more tank-top wearing busty ladies who seem to think the phrase "less is more" doesn't apply to the upper chestal region. I guess I can't blame them. What's sexier than the 4 boob look?

3. Inappropriate/gratuitous cell phone conversations in inappropriate places. Call me old-school, but I think that phone conversations should stay private. If you must talk in public, keep your voice down, and keep your conversation short. I don't want to hear all about how crazy drunk you were on your last night in New York as I ride a bus to Washington D.C. I don't need to know what your baby's diaper looked like while I'm buying a sandwich at Publix. There's no need for everyone to know how annoying you think her boyfriend is and how badly she needs to dump him while I'm waiting in line for an amusement park ride. All of those are conversations I was made privy to over the past month.

I'm going to catch flak about this, I just know

Before you jump down my throat, let me clarify: I understand that some people never get to see family, so cell phone conversations are the only conversations they get to have with dear ol' dad from time to time. When the opportunity arises, please answer the call. Just make sure you find yourself a corner away from other people so that we don't all have to hear about how frustrating your doorman is.

Another clarification: I'm not a creeper eavesdropper. I don't go out of my way to listen to people's conversations. All of the conversations I have mentioned were overheard while standing an acceptable distance from the person in front of me, or while being held hostage in a bus/train seat and hurtling down the highway/rails at high speeds.

2. Ignoring posted signs. I've worked with the public before, and I understand how infuriatingly annoying it is to answer a question that can be easily answered by reading the signs posted to avoid having to answer the VERY QUESTION YOU'RE ASKING!! I try to make a point of looking for signs or maps and reading them carefully before asking a question. What can I say. I aim to please.

Obviously, I'm willing to make exceptions.

I cannot tell you how annoying it is for me to have to witness someone dealing with an irate nincompoop who is blaming them for an easily avoided situation.

Lemme give you a for-instance: Universal doesn't allow you to take bags/purses on their rides, so they provide lockers in which you can store your things while you enjoy the thrills. (side note: their lockers are free, where as the lockers at Six Flags are going to cost you, every time. Well done, Universal) It's a pretty handy system. They've made it as easy as possible. There's no key to keep up with, and you can store your bag for the entire day for a fee that isn't ridiculously exorbitant. You just have to follow the directions on the touch screen.

Well apparently that was a little too hard for one fellow thrill seeker. I got to witness her meltdown as she cursed out the poor kid who was manning the door to the locker room. Despite her insistence that there wasn't a single locker available for her to use --"Not a single one, and I think it's ridiculous that you require we use your lockers, but you don't provide enough lockers for people to use!" she said -- as I watched at least 5 people who had just emptied their lockers try to squeeze by.

The very polite and patient Universal worker kindly pointed out what an idiot the woman was, and she was thoroughly embarrassed--though she never apologized for holding up the 10 people waiting in line behind her or for being so rude to the guy. She had, in fact, not followed the directions correctly and had somehow rented two lockers at the same time, so when she tried to rent a third, the system wouldn't let her. This entire episode could have been avoided if she had just READ THE FRIGGIN' SIGNS!!

1. Stopping in the middle of a walkway. I realize that plans change, and you've got to change your trajectory unexpectedly. But if you're going to have to do a 180, or you've got to stop to read a map/text message/batch of directions, MOVE TO THE SIDE and then stop. I lost count of how many people I was broadsided by because they weren't aware of their surroundings.

Oh, excuse me!

And my favorite was when THEY ran into me, I was the one who gets the angry glare! Like it was my fault! If you run into me, apologize and move along, don't give me the stink eye!

Vicariously yours,

We haven't even moved yet and already the lessons learned from this experience are pouring in.

First, the next school we go to has GOT to arrange for our visas themselves. Yes, I realize that most countries aren't going to have a process as drawn-out as the Big Sandy. But I still think that this bit should be left to people who are used to dealing with all the paperwork and ridiculousness.

Second, the next school has GOT to at least reimburse us for our shipping costs! We finally got an address that we can ship our belongings to, so we've started getting estimates.

Third, we need to go into the shipping business!! We've got 5 rubbermaid tubs that we've packed with the essential items: teaching materials, pictures and frames, a couple blankets, etc. I was trying to low-ball it and get an idea of what we're up against, so I got an estimate for 4 tubs. The cheapest for that amount of tubs was over $1,500!!! And that was taking about a month to arrive!! Holy cannoli!!

Any and all donations to our shipping expenses are now welcome!

Vicariously yours,

Ooooh yeah!

We wake up this morning to this tid-bit of fun news: American's Dream of Finally Owning a Smart Phone Slowing Slipping Away.

Alright, so that's not what the headlines read, but they might as well have. We've been purposely waiting to get a CrackBerry because Saudis love their gadgets, and we'd have a great selection of affordable smart phones when we arrive.

So basically, we'll be able to get BlackBerries, but they won't email, message, or browse the internet....so they'll be JUST LIKE THE PHONES WE HAVE NOW.

dangit.

Welp. I guess that's progress

Great news! We DO finally have a visa. Well...one of us finally has HIS visa.

Our wonderful friend Matt was finally able to pick up the Mister's visa after 3 attempts. The Mister now has 90 days to enter the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. And get ready for a big shocker: I still don't have my sponsor letters from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Those letters are the last piece I need to send everything to the embassy. I got word from someone at the school that he is working on the letters, and they'll be ready on-wait for it- WEDNESDAY.

The day after we leave Washington D.C. to return home to Nashville.

God's testing me. I can just feel it.

We haven't even started our contract yet and already I'm getting major tests of my patience. If I thought working for the US government was annoyingly bureaucratic, I apparently ain't seen nothin' yet! The message that I keep getting is very clearly, "Calm down, little girl. We'll get to it when we get to it."

What's so frustrating about this whole process is that it's like they've set it up on purpose to that we have to jump through their hoops. Anyone who's ever worked with me knows how much of LOOVE to jump through irrational hoops.

There's the online visa application that we have to submit before the embassy will even look at our paperwork. It seemed simple enough, but we couldn't get our picture down to FOUR KILOBYTES in order to successfully submit the darn thing. I found a forum that said other people having the same problem just had to bite the bullet and pay a visa courier. I called one company to see how much that would cost us: $175 per person!! FOR ONE STEP! Almost $400 for a company to press submit.

That, ladies and gentlemen, is one hoop this show dog would NOT jump through.

Thankfully, I don't have to because we have a wonderful friend with an undergraduate degree in computer programming. And even Matt was stumped at first, but he was able to get the picture to the right size and we could proceed.

We came to DC for the sole purpose of submitting our paperwork in person. Mailing my passport and many other important documents makes me very nervous and I would really prefer to do this transaction face-to-face. We even scheduled this little foray up and down the East coast later in the summer because surely everything would be worked out over there by now!

Once again, "Calm down, little girl. We'll get to it when we get to it."

In happier, less frustrating news, we have a lot of photos from our trip to share with you! I can't wait to get home so we can load them all up!

We spent a few great days in Boston with my sister and brother-in-law. It was so nice to see them, and saying goodbye was very hard. When we arrived in DC, I was hungry and tired, and the Mister asked if I was a little frowny because I was sad to have not had more time with my sis.

"I am sad, but there's never enough time, you know?" I answered. "Even if we'd spent 2 weeks with them, I would be just as sad to say goodbye."

Anyway, we're in DC...pretty much killing time while our friends are working. We leave tomorrow night to go home.

meh, maybe we'll go see a monument or something. You know.

Vicariously yours,

Late breaking news...

We still have no visas.

Shocking, I know.

As the Mister has already mentioned, we weren't able to drop off his visa paperwork till the Friday before we left DC. That translated to our wonderful friend Matt volunteering to go by the Saudi embassy on Monday to pick it up. Sounded easy enough but we should have remembered we're dealing with Arabs here, and expedience is not their middle name.

So Matt went to the embassy, and their computer system was down, so he was told to come back later.

So Matt went on Tuesday. He was told the visa wasn't ready yet and to come back later.

The Mister and I owe Matt copious amounts of love and adoration because he's going back again today to hopefully pick up the stinkin' visa! Here's hoping they can stick to the 24 hour waiting period promised on the embassy website when we return to DC to get my visa next week.

Oh, and here's hoping the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs can get me the only piece of paperwork I'm missing before we return to DC to get my visa next week.

Meanwhile, the school has already asked us for our travel information so they can go ahead and book our flights (!!!). OhmygoshIcouldn'tbemoreexcited!! We requested to leave the States on/around September 9 and arrive in the Big Sandy on September 12th. We're going to spend those few days in between in Amsterdam soaking up the last bit of female independence I can get.

Until then, we'll just be forced to go to DisneyWorld with the Mister's family (it's a hard knock life for us) and hang out with the fam in Nashville. le sigh

Brooklyn, Brooklyn, take me in...

So, perhaps I'm not off to a great start with the blog...since I've only posted once...but here I am to bring our experiences to the masses (okay so I might be using "masses" a little liberally).

Anyway, I should probably catch you all up to us and where we are in our "farewell tour". We had a wonderful time in Charleston. I'm not normally a beach guy, since it involves sand everywhere and sitting in one place for a long time, but the weather was perfect and just being able to sit in the ocean and float was pretty awesome. There's nothing like that feeling of going to bed still feeling like your floating in the ocean. We've decided to spend every anniversary we have on a beach somewhere...

Then it was off to our nation's capital. We got to stay with our friend, Matt, who was the most gracious of hosts (and offered to be again, for which we love him). There, of course, our main purpose was to get at least my visa for Saudi. This was filled with crisis after crisis.

First: we have to fill out an online form...fair enough. However, the online form requires a photo that is only 4k-5k. For those of y'all that don't speak computer...that's really freakin' small. Like can't see it small. It is almost impossible to get it that small. I say almost, because Matt somehow figured out how to do that...I think it involved his iphone and several google searches and loads of patience. But crisis #1 averted.

Second: I want to preface this by saying that I checked and rechecked that I had everything I needed to send in my diploma to get authenticated by the Saudi cultural mission. But I am an idiot. I took a look as we were about to head to the embassy...I did not put my transcript in like I was supposed to, but a recommendation from my first 8th grade team leader at HMS. Apparently, my sparkling recommendation was not enough, and we had to take my stuff back to the cultural mission to get my stuff authenticated before we went to the embassy for the actual visa. Now I want to make sure people know how nice the gentlemen at the cultural mission were. It took about 15 minutes and they even walked us out to make sure that we knew where the embassy was. Great guys...crisis #2 averted.

Now, one 90s dance party later, and we were off to NYC. By bus. Behind Mr. "I'mgoingtotalkonmyphoneloudenoughforeveryonetohearbecauseI'mreeeeeeeeallyimportant". Seriously...that was his name...moving on.

Fast forward to the present and I'm writing from Washington Heights in New York City. We've been able to do a lot of cool stuff including going to Brooklyn, which was just as hip as they say. The Brooklyn Brewery was pretty awesome though. The entire experience was made awesome by Eric and Lu. We are staying with them and they are definitely on the list of people I will be missing like crazy when we are off to travel the globe. It is so great to see people that are as smart and as fun as those two. We are able to make horrible puns that we sometimes have to explain (Lu's first language was Portuguese, though her English is just as good as mine) and then discuss educational reform all over dinner. It is also nice to see a couple at about the same stage in their relationship/marriage as we are. It is wonderful to know that you're not the only ones. Whether it's a cute thing or a fight thing...it happens to couples. We were actually talking about that today...how people quit so early in their marriages because it gets hard. Money gets tight, families have issues that seem to pop out of nowhere and every choice has to be made understanding that it affects another person. That stuff isn't easy or fun. But the key is doing that with someone who is worth it. Eric and I are lucky guys. Our wives put up with us not closing the shower curtain or an affinity for really depressing movies about South America. I can't imagine what makes me worth it.

But this brings me to the last thing I wanted to write about tonight...Amber and me. I've noticed that I'm not as freaked out by this whole thing as I probably should be. And I really think that's because Amber and I are going to be okay. On this trip we have been together pretty much every moment of every day since we left and it's been great. We get to continue building on the relationship that we've had since high school every day. This only gets better with things like this trip. I mean between the burping Hertz guy, pizza & halal meat at the Watergate, the great cardigan hunt of '10, and negotiating the NYC subway carrying a laundry hamper, we've got stories. And not just stories, but a shared experience. I always love hearing "he's been with her longer than he's been without her" when discussing older couples. That's incredible. Think of how much they've shared and how they've grown alongside each other. I look at this adventure in teaching internationally as doing exactly that but our way. I don't know about you, but I'm excited.

Vicariously Yours,

Not to be xenophobic...

I'm usually very much against the whole English-first way of thinking. But as I'm trying to fill out visa applications and figure out what exactly we need to bring to the Saudi embassy so we can get our visas, I'm starting to see where total fluency in the English language might come in handy.

Example A: "Follow the visa authorization number from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs when choosing between single or multiple entries." Normally I can follow directions well, but the number from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is written in Arabic, so I've got to trust an online translator to tell me what that number is. Insh'allah, the translator will get it right.

Example 2: "In the religion section, enter either Muslim or Non-Muslim (Other)." Again, normally I would have no issues with that, but "Non-Muslim" ISN'T AN OPTION! But Christian is...so should I just put that?

Example 3: "Medical reports should be used within three (6) months from the date of issuance." Uh, you're a little vague there. Is it three, or six months?

Another personal favorite: where I put my name on the online application. There's a place for "last name", "second name", "other name" (other name!??), and "last name." Let's just say that the last name box isn't even big enough for the cursor, much less letters...

sigh.

Vicariously yours,

Ah, glorious South Carolina

The Mister has promised that he will finally create a post tomorrow, so we'll see if that actually happens...

We're on our big farewell tour at the moment, and it has been so wonderful to see so many family members in just a few days.

We started out our trip with an over night stop in Atlanta. We had a quick visit with my cousin and her husband in Alpharetta and it was really great to just sit and talk to them. Because my family pretty much just gets together at Christmas time, the house is usually really loud and busy and there's not much time to just have an adult conversation. I literally don't think I've heard my cousin's husband say so many words consecutively, and it was really great to get to see them both.

We then went to stay the night with my college roommate and her boyfriend. We stumbled upon a trivia night, and Court and Shaun refrained from mercilessly making fun of us when we gleefully exclaimed that we are proud trivia team members and could own everyone in the place.

...Then we proceeded to embarrass ourselves and our trivia teammates by not even placing in the top 3...

But I digress. There literally was a moment when I was talking to Courtney in her apartment and I just squealed with delight because we were actually standing in the same room and carrying on a conversation. It was so wonderful to see her and I wish we had gotten more time to just sit and talk and catch up. Those few hours only made me miss her more and wish that we lived closer to each other.

From ATL we moved on to see my grandparents, and you people would not believe the amount of reading a person can get done when there is no internet and your grandfather's main selection of television viewing is Fox News and John Wayne/Chuck Norris films! Actually, he didn't watch too much TV because I was so busy riddling him with questions about his childhood and such.

I felt like such a boob asking Granny and Grandaddy questions like, "Did you have indoor plumbing growing up," but I realized that I really don't know what their childhoods were like, and I wanted to know more about who they were before they started their family. I absolutely loved hearing them talk about the games they played, the friends they had, and their courtship when Granny would go with Grandaddy as he made his delivery runs for his father's grocery store. At one point Granny just chuckled and said, "This is fun!" It's genuinely a moment I will cherish.

The Mister and I have now dined with just about every member of my extended family thanks to our yummy lunch date with my aunt and uncle and cousin, who were our mid-point on the way to visit ANOTHER aunt and uncle. Suzanne and David were gracious enough to buy us lunch and give us some great tips for places off-the-touristy-path to visit next week when we're in New York. Again, we hardly ever get to REALLY have a conversation with them at Christmas because everything's so crazy, so it was nice to get to know them better.

Then it was off to Chez Dixon where it's business as usual for Becky and Bill. We were whisked away to the bustling metropolis of Pageland, South Carolina where they were having their annual Watermelon Festival. According to the website, "thousands of people" flock to Pageland every year for this festival, and let's face it, everyone should experience a real Southern watermelon festival at least once.

I would recommend that you find a watermelon festival that actually has WATERMELONS! At one point we asked someone where all the watermelons were hiding and she goes, "Oh, I dohwn' noe! I haven' seen none today, come ta thin' of it!"

wow.

The Mister rocked the Dixon's world last night when he whipped them up his mom's recipe for fajitas and his grandfather's recipe for guacamole. My man can cook!

We were sad to leave, and considering the waterworks that I produced after leaving my grandparents' house, I decided to just tell myself that I was going to be returning to the Becky and Bill's house later today when we left this morning. That way I didn't cry and my husband didn't have a chance to make fun of me for being such a sap.

Had dinner tonight with the Mt. Pleasant cousins (both generations), and it was great to see them. I think the Mister and I have really gotten our spiel about all the why's and where's and when's down to a science, and the cousins really heard the best version of the answers to all those questions tonight.

Now we're in Charleston and I couldn't be...well, I don't know how to describe how I feel about it. The best comparison I could give Tyler was it's like running into an old boyfriend. See, you don't just go to college in Charleston, you enter into a relationship with the city. I literally sobbed like a baby for 2 hours when I moved away after graduation. My heart ached. It was like breaking up with a boyfriend.

"Do you mean a boyfriend that you had a bad break up with, or was it a mutual decision?" my husband asks as I'm trying to explain the emotions I'm having as we walk through the Holy City.

"A good break up kind of boyfriend. You know, I've moved on with my life, I've found someone new, and we've just run into the old boyfriend on the street."

I'm flooded with happy memories every time we turn a corner or I take in a breath of that wonderful plough mud stink. Houses where friends lived and we had great parties. The Customs House where I spent so many mornings running the stairs with the rowing team. The College Lodge. Classroom buildings, the Cistern, and of course our old Spring Street house where the ghosts of my past still live.

But so much has changed. Favorite restaurants are no longer in business. THERE'S A FREAKISHLY INVASIVE APPLE STORE ON KING STREET NOW! New dorms, a state-of-the-art math and science building, and a fantastic new art building all stand in places where parking lots and old stores once stood. My old boyfriend has moved on as well, and he's thriving without me. It's just weird. Nice, but weird.

Anyway, my hubs and I celebrate two years of marriage tomorrow in a similar way we began this crazy ride: on the beach.

Sullivan's Island, here we come!!

Vicariously Yours,

More questions answered

Now that summer is definitely in full swing and we're seeing some friends/family for the last time for a while, we're getting a lot of the same questions. I thought, in the absence of any news on the visa front, we should take some time to answer those questions for those of you we don't get to see face-to-face:

1. When are you leaving? This one's a frustrating one, because the answer is still "We don't know." It's JULY. Why don't we have a departure date!? I've been pestering our new boss for any sort of news about how the process is going, but I just get the same answer: no news. We're still hoping to leave by mid-August so we have the chance to travel around some of Europe before we arrive in the "big sandy," as our friend Kimmie has dubbed Saudi Arabia.

2. Where in Europe do you want to travel? Well, since nothing's for sure, we have not really solidified any plans for Europe either. We know we'll be going to Amsterdam, a city I've never visited and the Mister has only seen the airport. We'd like to spend about a week there doing the touristy stuff, and then head to Belgium. I think Belgium's one of those random countries that isn't really high on anybody's lists of places to visit before they die. At least, that was its status on my list before this whole process started. The Mister wants to visit some WWII battle fields and historic sites. And of course we have a few Trapist breweries to visit, as the Mister keeps reminding me.

3. Are you getting scared or excited? I'm DEFINITELY getting excited. I think restless would probably be a better answer. Now that we're in temporary housing mode, I really want to just get on the plane and go. My teacher friends are starting to get their classrooms together and I've usually got at least the first week of school planned by now. But this year I'm just kind of waiting for paperwork to process. I have no idea how to begin planning for this school year, and I won't have even left the country by the time America goes back to school. So yes, I'm excited, and restless, and only moderately scared.

4. How are you getting all your stuff over there? Well, here's the beautiful part: The school is providing us a furnished apartment, so we don't have to bring any furniture, kitchen stuff, and general household items. We've got all our worldly possessions whittled down to 16 rubbermaid tubs and 4 suitcases. We'll be taking 5 tubs and all the suitcases with us and that's ALL! We'll hopefully be able to put the tubs on a cargo ship bound for big Sandy, because that'd save us a lot of money. But if that doesn't work out, we'll just FedEx the tubs and pay baggage fees for the extra suitcases when we leave.

5. So wait, what made to choose Saudi Arabia?! It's not like we set out on this international job search hoping and praying for a position to open up in Saudi. Really, our only preference was that the school not be in North America. Saudi really wasn't on our radar, but after the interview back in February, we really felt like this was the school where we were meant to be. We didn't search out the school, the school found us. We're registered with Search Associates, an agency that staffs international schools. I describe is a being similar to monster.com, but for international schools. When we went to a job fair organized by Search, we were able to interview with lots of schools, and the experience was GREAT. We quickly figured out that a lot of schools wouldn't even consider talking to us until we had some international experience, and a lot of times international teachers have to start in the "less desirable" locations. Thus, of the job offers we got, Saudi won! Who knows where we'll go next.

6. So, are you going to just make boatloads of money? The short answer: not really. We'll pretty much be making the same amount of gross income as we made in the States, but the big advantage is there is ZERO tax. And since our housing and utilities will be paid for, we'll have very few expenses. We'll be putting one salary directly into a savings account, and living on the other one, so we'll be set up for a while if we decide to come back to the States after our two years in Saudi.

We leave on Tuesday to visit friends and family and then we head to DC to ::fingers crossed:: work out at least one visa and then continue up the East coast. Here's hoping for safe travels and few delays!

Vicariously yours,

Worst. Bloggers. Ever!

Oh my goodness, it's been 10 days! We are horrible bloggers.

I think the main news story in our life is: there's no news to share yet! We're winding down on our packing efforts. We've officially got to be out of our apartment on Wednesday, so we spent today doling things out to our respective parents' houses where they will stay for at least the next two years.

I recently compared this process to a roller coaster: this week feels like we're waiting in line for the ride. Nothing really fun about it, and it's a little boring. After Wednesday, when we'll be living out of a suitcase and schlepping ourselves up and down the East coast, I think it'll feel like that upward climb at the beginning of any good roller coaster. We're not REALLY on the ride yet, but we're definitely committed. There's no turning back after we're moved out of our apartment! And then, when we finally get on a plane--whenever that may be--that'll be when the REAL fun begins!

I'm very very excited to get this ride started! I just really don't enjoy the waiting in line part. I've never been good at packing, or patience.

Figuring out this whole visa thing has certainly been a test of my patience. It's really difficult to figure out what the consulate wants from us, and when I call to ask for clarification, I get brushed off. I'm trying to convince myself that it's because they're busy people up there in Washington, and it has nothing to do with my gender.

But let's be honest, I could probably get results if I had a penis...at least in Saudi, that is.

A few weeks ago we received word that there had been a hitch in Saudi Arabia with my visa. My school had never directly sponsored a female employee, so they didn't realize that the visa process for a woman is different, and more drawn-out than that for a man. le sigh.

We were advised to go ahead and get the Mister's visa so that, if need be, he could leave for KSA before me, set up residency, and then apply for me to join him. Apparently that's how it's usually been done.

That caused me to have a small panic attack--but just for a minute. The Mister and I have been planning to spend some time in Europe before we arrive in KSA. If he arrived before I did, how would that little detour be possible? And don't even get me started on his housekeeping skills! Set that man loose in a brand new apartment and it'd become a frat house in 2 days.

Thankfully, we later got word that the Ministry of Education has approved my educator status (woo!), and that was the biggest hurdle in my process. So according to our new boss, we can proceed as planned.

Whew. Crisis diverted.

Vicariously yours,

Packing = time to reflect

Wow! I never realized how much stuff we had hoarded over the years! We're really trying to pare down as much stuff as possible since we'll be storing what we don't take to Saudi at our parents' houses. I've been channeling my inner "hoarding specialist" psychologist (a la TLC's Hoarders: Burried Alive) and really trying to decide if I want to keep this random article of nostalgia because I really need it, or because I really need the memory.

The Mister and I both need a quick refresher on what's supposed to go in the keep pile, and what's not. For him, it's T-shirts. He's got shirts from MIDDLE SCHOOL, and he doesn't want to part with them. Thankfully, God has given us the T-shirt quilt, and I think that's the compromise we need.

My weakness, apparently, is my old notebooks and textbooks from college. I haven't looked at them in over four years. I'm sure there are second and third editions of the books out by now--they're not even worth posting on half.com. There has only been one spiral notebook of notes from a class that I've thought about digging up to use as a reference for a lesson, but I never actually did.

But today, I found a justification for hanging on to these things. I found a notebook from a practicum in North Charleston my senior year. I was observing a teacher in a semi-middle class middle school and I remember being SO BORED watching her teach. I remember thinking she was better than the other teacher I was observing (who was painful to watch), but I actually listed ways I would have made her lessons more interesting. I remember looking around and seeing really bored students.

But today, when reading back over my notes, I realized that if a practicum student were in my classroom, they'd see basically the same thing. She had multiple transitions that went smoothly. Nothing lasted more than 15 minutes in her class, and they were all focused on the standards. She had review games, she used direct instruction with academic language...AND SHE WAS SO BORING.

I have become her, and I needed this shot in the pants to help me realize that I'm doing what I promised I wouldn't do. I need to step up my game big time in Saudi, especially since I'll be speaking a foreign language, and we all remember how engaging those classes were in high school.

See, Mister?! Hoarding can be good!

Vicariously yours,

In the mean time, we'll travel!

As you can imagine, we're a little restless now that school is out for the summer. Add to that the fact that we have a REEALLY extended summer this year, and you've got a recipe for travel....before 2 years of extended travel...ahem.

Anyway, we've got lots of friends and family to visit on our Farewell America tour of 2010, and we'll be spending the better part of July traveling the Eastern seaboard. Here are our stops:

Before we board our first plane, we've got an epic road trip ahead of us. We'll be going to:

Atlanta (it's where the players play) to visit one of my college roommates and her boyfriend... and *fingers crossed* visit with one of the Mister's cousins. Then....

The thriving metropolis of Easley, South Carolina! (So there aren't all that many shots of its skyline, so I had to go with the MapQuest shot.) My grandparents and an aunt live in Easley, and it wouldn't be a farewell tour without visiting the hot spot of Pickens County!

We'll head East, inching our way to the coast, and take a stop in....

Another center of commerce and culture: Florence, South Carolina! Not only is this stop one stop closer to the Carolina coast, but it's also home to my favorite pseudo aunt and uncle, and I couldn't be more excited to spend a few days with the family we chose.

From Florence we head down I-95 to a city I haven't visited since I graduated in 2006, and I've missed it dearly:

CHARLESTON!!!!! Oh, Holy City, how I've missed you!! We're going to spend our second anniversary in my most favorite city in the world and excited doesn't even begin to describe how I feel about it. We're going to eat shrimp and grits, walk the battery, and--best of all--spend hours lying on the beach, any beach, all the beaches, of the fantastic Charleston coast.

One of the best parts of this trip to the coast: I might get to see one of my old rowing teammates for the first time since I graduated! Our timing couldn't be better because she's about to relocate as well!

In Charleston we ditch the car and hop a plane to....

Washington D.C.!

What better way to begin the end of our time in this fair country than by visiting the capitol city? We've got some obvious business to take care of at the embassy that'll hopefully expedite our visa processing, and at the same time we'll have the chance to visit with friends-some of whom we haven't seen since our wedding!!

Personally, I'm REALLY looking forward to finally visiting the Washington Monument!! When I visited in high school, that giant phallus was closed for renovation. Then 9/11 happened, and it was closed due to security concerns. When the Mister and I visited DC last year during Spring Break, I didn't get tickets in time, so we missed our chance.

But not this time, my friends! I've already called dibs on a trip to the top for two at dusk! I'm suuuper excited!!

After all that excitement, we're heading up the coast to....

THE BIG APPLE! We'll hopefully be able to reconnect with old friends who were also at our wedding who will be relocating to New York City very soon. Even if we don't get to meet up with those lovely friends, we'll get to have some time together in a city we've never shared. We've both been to NYC, but we've never been together, so that'll be fun and I predict lots of love-challenging trips on the subway in our future.

For New York, we continue up the coast even further to...

Yes, its skyline isn't really all that recognizable, but we'll be visiting Providence, Rhode Island for a few days. We were originally going to visit close family friends outside of Boston, but I'm a horrible person and I scheduled our visit at the same time they were out of town, so I fail. I guess the bright side is we get to visit what we've heard is a really nice New England town. From what I can tell, it's got a nice urban park, lots of cute historic sections, and unique shops. We'll meander our way through one of the oldest places in the country and soak in the Americana.

After a few days of that, we'll take the train a little further up the coast to....

The stunningly historical city of BOSTON!! There we'll be able to spend a few days with my sister and her husband in their new home. I'm really excited to have some time before we leave the country with my sister and the Mister and I both really love Boston, so it's a win-win!

From there we ride the train back to Washington D.C. to finish up the last of our business with the Saudi embassy before we pack up and head home! I can't speak for the Mister, but I'm really getting restless, and I hope all this travel will quench some of my travel thirst.

Vicariously yours,

Amber's Answer

So, we're only getting moderately better at operating the flipcam and its editing software. Apparently I'm also only moderately able to speak. Please excuse the mumbling, stuttering, and overall bad rhetoric in this video post.

So, dear readers, I give you my answer to the eternal question: WHY?!

Tuesday was a big day for me. I had a dental appointment, which is why my cheek is swollen, and I had a hair appointment, which is why my hair is slightly fluffier than usual.

As you can see from all the boxes and laundry in the background, we've started packing, and it's going slowly. We'll be posting most of our worldly belongings on Craigslist soon, so keep an eye out for that if you want some stylish ikea furniture.

Vicariously yours,

One. Step. Closer!

We were notified today that our validated college degrees are on their way back to Nashville!! While it took us a looong time to decipher what exactly they wanted from us, I must say I'm impressed with how quickly the Cultural Mission processed this paperwork.

But now, we still have to wait. We also were notified by our new school that we have to put the brakes on submitting our paperwork to the embassy because they need to change my authorization letter. Apparently they wrote that I've accepted a job at the boys' school, which is illegal in KSA. So now they've got to write a new one, submit that to the appropriate authorities in Saudi, and then mail it to us.

But really, it doesn't matter, because we're on step closer to getting our visas, and that means the giddy butterflies have begun!!!

Sooo excited!

Vicariously yours,

On the Dark Side...

Just thought we should share:

We took advantage of a day off from school, had some doctors appointments, and made this video on May 4th.

You're welcome.

Side note: Please excuse our rough exterior. The floods had just happened and we were still under water conservation orders, so we'd skipped the shower that day...