Never Dare Mother Nature

So, I left the hotel this morning without a jacket or raincoat (see blog entry below). Basically, I dated Mother Nature to rain on me on my last day in Manchester. Never DARE Mother Nature. She *always* wins. I should have known better.

Oh, well.

Living Dangerously

It's my last day! The countdown is over, even if the work is not. By this time tomorrow, I will be making my way to the airport and coming home. Hard to believe. I have one more week at home, supporting the client over here, but that's it. My teammate Paul will be coming back to Manchester to pick up where I have left off and hopefully get this project live (I may have mentioned the ah, minor, project set back we've had?).

Anyways, thanks to the blog readers who have posted comments and kept me going through this experience. You never know where I might be.... next project is in sunny California - after that, who knows?

Why have I titled this entry "Living Dangerously?" I decided, as I walked out the door this morning, NOT to wear my rain jacket and NOT to carry an umbrella. I just dare it to rain today. Hah!

Not sure why I can't seem to put titles in any more, but just add that to my ever increasing list of technical difficulties this week..... Sigh. Some days, technology just stinks.

So, the countdown continues.... TWO days from now, I will be headed to the airport at this time. Tomorrow is my last day actually at the client site. But, that only means there is MUCH to be done between now and then. So, I had better get back to work. Many, many thanks to Katie and Debbie Jo for blogging a comment. It's nice to know you're out there.

I do have pictures to post, but I keep falling asleep when I get back to the hotel. I actually fell asleep the other night with all my clothes on. I vaguely remember waking up in the middle of the night, realizing I still had my clothes on, but just couldn't muster up enough energy to do anything about it.

I am really not sure who, if anyone, is reading the blog besides Katie and Jane. But if anyone is interested, I am coming home.On.Friday. It seems hard to believe that all these weeks have come to an end. I wish I could tell you that my project would be completed before I fly home, but that will not be the case. The project suffered a major set back last week when one of the users at the client mistakenly overwrote a major piece of code. After spending 2 days trying to resurrect it, they decided to install the last back of the code that was taken - a week previously. What that means, to the non-technical out there, is that this process effectively deleted a weeks' worth of my work. So, if it wasn't enough fun the first time around, I get to do it all.over.again. Ah, clients. Can't live with 'em; can't live without 'em. Sigh.

So, my last few days in England will be spent getting them to the place where they can begin testing everything I have done (so maybe its not such a bad thing that I will be 3 thousand miles away next week!). Although, I will be supporting these guys for 1 more week from home (well, technically, Mom and Dad's home). And then it's off to.......

Sunny California. My boss has already assigned me to my next project in southern California. So, now I will begin a 3 thousand mile commute in the opposite direction. Thankfully, it is only a 3-hour time difference to the left coast and I CAN come home every weekend, if I so choose. This new project is slated for approximately 5 months. I understand I will be very close to Disneyland, and several friends have mentioned the possibility of coming out for a weekend (what? you'd rather come visit sunny California than dreary, rainy Manchester? I'm shocked).

If I can stay awake long enough tonight, I will try and post some pictures from my trip to Edinburgh this past weekend. Beautiful city, would love to go back. I have my requisite bottle of scotch already packed in the suitcase. Yes, I am already packed to come home. :-)

England Goes Smoke Free

Today is July 1st and England officially goes "Smoke Free." Mancy cities and towns across America have instituted smoking bans in public places over the past few years. Today, England insitutes a country-wide smoking pan in public places - including resturants and pubs. :-)

Not sure if it applies to Scotland. I'll let you know next week.

That is your English trivia for today.

Countdown

12 Days...... until I fly home. Seems hard to believe, but its true. Of course, I am feeling a bit overwhelmed by the amount of work to do between now and then, but I am looking forward to going home and re-establishing my own routine. While this has been a great experience, there's "no place like home."

Today may be July 1st, it does not seem like summer to me. I feel like I am in a bit of a time warp. Each day is like the previous. I have heard that it has been HOT and HUMID at home. I can't say its been hot here at all. We are lucky to get to the mid-60s most days. As far as humid, well, I guess we are generally at 100% - that is - RAIN. It has rained here for several days now. I still see people wearing winter coats. I myself am still wearing a sweater - wool or cotton - every day and sometimes adding a jacket on top of that. I will be throwing out my umbrella before coming home as the darn thing just doesn't close right anymore. Too much overuse, I imagine.

Do I sound homesick? Yeah, I guess. But 12 days is nothin'.