Pick any one of these and you’d be correct. In less than two weeks I will be in Russia facing a group of students speaking a language I don’t know, written in letterforms I barely recognize, in a place I cannot navigate, with customs that are unfamiliar. Of COURSE I’m excited!

I’m also just a little nervous. After all, I’d hate to offend someone accidentally. And I want to make sure I’m prepared. I’m a little nervous about the schedule – since I’m not quite confirmed on the final details. Not that it really matters. If I learned anything from living in the Pacific for six years, it’s that you can’t let an uncertain schedule get in the way of having a nice time. 🙂

But I’m a bit anxious about all that is still to do before I go. Monetarily, I’m cutting it very close. Some funds are due to me such as professional development, an innovation award, a “travel advance” for the airline ticket I put on my credit card… and yes, I’m supposed to get a nice tax refund. I just hope some of this happens before I leave so I can get a months worth of bills set up to be paid for, and still bring a little $$ for day-to-day expenses.

Then there is my final assignment for my qualitative research course for my doctoral studies, and grading of all my own students’ work this weekend. And… writing a final report for a research grant, a 1-hr plus lecture for a public talk in Russia, the classroom lectures, jury my Mott students work for the student show, draft the Winter 2013 schedule, and… prep. Flickr feed for our new GD website.

And… I’m sure there’s something I’m missing…like packing, my daughter’s graduation, and my birthday! (and my mom’s, too).

Okay. Enough blogging. Now we pause for a little motherly bragging…..

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This is a photo of my daughter Anastassia at her BFA exhibition at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. She’ll graduate on April 28th at the big stadium. The family is very proud. She already has a job! Not an easy thing for an art major! But her work at the UM Museum of Art has been good training.