1 week or 7 days or 168 hours

This time, next Saturday, I'll be on my way to Will Rogers World Airport to meet my team and fly to Poland. 7 short days.

There is no doubt now that I will not get everything done that is on my list, so I'm just accepting it and moving on. Prioritizing what must be done and what can wait. I'm taking Danna's advice and trying to embrace the possibilities. Such an exciting time!

Well, time to prioritize and take action. Wish me luck!

Polish Invasion

American & Polish GSE Teams
Originally uploaded by crymsenllb

Poland has invaded Oklahoma. The District 2230 GSE Team has arrived! This picture proves it... our team and their team (and our District Govenor, Marty Postic, at far right).

Sunday was our farewell brunch. We brought our families and got to meet more Rotarians, and most excitingly, we got to meet the Polish in-bound team. And they are GREAT!

We gave our very first presentation on Oklahoma. The Polish team did not so much as snicker at our Polish introductions, and in fact, complimented us on our effort. I really wouldn't mind keeping them around, they are really neat people!

Having met their team, I am even more excited about our experiences in Poland. And even better, the more I get to know my team, the more excited I am to spend more time with them. This bodes well for a truly rich trip!

I'm so ready to be on the plane, at this point. At least then I can stop worrying about what I didn't get done, what I forgot, etc... it's all out of my hands once that jet bridge pulls back and away we go! I'm ready for that peace already!

Langauge abilities... or a lack thereof.

Our departure is getting closer and closer and my Polish abilities... pretty much the same. I'm positive I won't starve since most of my knowledge of the Polish language centers around ordering food but I really need to learn how to find the restroom; "thank you" and "I want a ham sandwich" can only take you so far.

There are only four days left until we have our first presentation in front of our local Rotarians and family. I've been practicing fairly diligently at learning my speech in Polish and it's not as hard as I thought it would be. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Here are some random tidbits for giggles: Laura has discovered that I turn red in the face quite easily and is very excited about the prospect of turning it more red than usual. Related to that, Danna was concerned my red face was a sign of anger and offered to "take care of" whoever made it red... always good to have some muscle around. Additionally, Sheri and I have worked out a choreographed routine for our Bed Jumping debut. I know, I know - the anticipation is overwhelming.

Oh the fun we'll have

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Originally uploaded by crymsenllb

This is my first post on this blog... so my pre-apologies if the formatting is all off.

That ticker over there, yeah on the right? That is freaking me out. I hardly need a count down reminder of all I still haven't done. Feels like there is no time left, but I still have a list 2 miles long to complete. I'm pretty sure it is time to prioritize those tasks!

Coming into this team, I was a little unsure what it would be like to be stuck on another continent with 3 other women (my experience with women in groups has been less than positive over all). Over the last couple of weeks, I have started to really get to know these women, and let me tell you, they are so much fun. Or a HOOT! to use a southern euphemism.

I am now convinced that I will spend a great deal of time laughing on this trip, and quite frankly, that’s fine with me.

Here’s a little taste of the fun you will miss. Special thanks to Sheri for photos and composition!

Translations

I'm very much looking forward to tomorrow night when we meet our local Polish translator, a senior at the University of Central Oklahoma and a Pole. He's been here going to school and was terribly excited (I hear) to be offering his knowledge to us. We'll be handing over words for him to convert to Polish, but we'll also be handing over our open hands, hoping he'll pass to us helpful culture hints about our visit.

We've written our presentations, but are eager to hear feedback on what he thinks. As a guy who was raised in Poland and has spent 4 or so years in Oklahoma, he's sure to have an interesting perspective.

In other news, my daughter (age 6) is starting to get a little doe-eyed and weepy when we talk about Mommy's trip to Poland. (She says it POLE-land.) I tell her that I'll love and miss her very much, but only when I reassure her that I'll return with presents does she perk back up and Tigger-bounce into the rest of her afternoon. Priorities.

Photo shoot

Would you like to see the team? We had ourselves a little photo shoot at our weekly meeting and here's the fruit of our photographic labor:



Ok, so maybe I went a little Photoshop crazy on it, but I'm excited! And I'm going to be in complete tech withdraw by the time May 20 rolls around.

Excitement building...

Is this really happening!? I'm going to be in Poland for a month! Oooohh excitement.

I was able to attend Club 29's Rotary meeting a few weeks ago and what a pleasure it was to meet everyone. So many Rotarians approached me eager to hear more about our trip. I'm sure I'll have more than enough to share with them upon our return!

I've been doing a lot of reading on Poland and after every reading session I'm starving. Pierogis, keilbasa, packzi... food coma heaven. After reading Eat Smart in Poland, I'm definitely buying pants with elastic waistbands.

Excitement building...