This is not my house, but gosh, it feels so much closer to being so this afternoon. Yes, this morning I put my grandad on the plane, and now I feel like I can relax for the first time in three weeks... phew.

The last couple of days have been busy and packed with much goodness also. Yesterday I headed into uni to pick up my graduation certificate, which somehow looks plainer than my first degree, but maybe I'm just getting used to the sight of Very Important Paper. This one does say that I graduated with distinction though, which means I graduate with a Dean's commendation... still not sure exactly what that is or what I'm supposed to get for that... maybe a phone call: "Hello, this is the Dean. I commend you. Goodbye.". Something like that? Dunno. Graduating with distinction sounds pretty spiffy though.

From there I headed into the city to book my flight... managed to get the one I wanted. I'll be arriving in Japan on the 30th of March, it's a nine hour flight but I'm going via Sydney so it's plus another hour and a half and an hour in between planes for me. I decided to take this one because it's an overnight flight and I am gifted with an innate ability to sleep anywhere, including planes, and a figured I'd just get bored sitting there otherwise... hope I don't miss any good movies.

The guy booking me in had to take a call so left me sitting on the stool at the counter for a moment, and when he came back he began apologising rather profusely... it seemed I'd been looking bored sitting there. I had to explain to him that in actual fact I'd just been daydreaming and having a quiet 'holy shit, it's really happening' moment, which I was. I actually can't begin to describe my emotions in that moment, it was everything all at once. I wonder if the place I'll be working for ever had anyone decide at the last moment that they couldn't do it... I'd be lying if I said it didn't cross my mind, but I am not going to back out... it just seems that all of a sudden, time has sped up. I have about a week and a half here, followed by two and a half in Adelaide, then another one and a half here and then I'm gone. Am I really going to have enough time to say goodbye to my people? Not seeing my family isn't affecting me so much, not because I don't care but I think because I don't see them regularly now anyway... but I live with the Boy, and the thought of not seeing him on a daily basis for a year is really cutting me at the moment... I feel like I'm already missing him, but I know that it's the kind of thing you do become accustommed to, after a while...

I was talking to some guy in the teacher's lounge (probably a teacher :) this afternoon who was telling me about all of his travels and how much he enjoys it and I thought yeah, I am missing out if I don't go off and have some adventures myself. It's just something that's gotta be done.

Yesterday I also bought a memory card for my camera so I can now take about 300 and something photos instead of 17 on the internal memory, which will be necessary I think... there were a few other errand-y type things too, I feel like I got heaps accomplished yesterday.

This morning I was up at 4am to take Grandad to the airport before work... he's apparently been up since 2am because he was so keyed up. He had another go at the Boy just for good measure, but eventually calmed down and conceded it was just emotions running high... I think I dealed with him much better this time than I did last time, at least. So I dropped him off, told him to be good and take care of himself, and he's on his merry way to find himself, which I have to admit is a pretty cool thing to be doing at his age, old fashioned as he is in most other regards.

When I got home today, I had another piece of Very Important Paper to be picked up from the post office, my certificate from Japanese Immigration. Apparently, they're letting me into the country because I am a 'Specialist in Humanities'...! So Monday, I have to go and get a little stamp on my passport, and pay for my plane ticket, and the official stuff is sorted.

As for tonight though... I've been listening to the Flaming Lips on repeat at high volume, realising that I've not listened to any music for the past three weeks except the radio on the car. I've been eating lunch/dinner and drinking beer, and I think I'll go and watch the Simpsons and doze on the couch until the Boy gets home... it feels so good to have some space to myself after the past three weeks, and I hope the Boy will be feeling better soon too. Even the cat seems a little calmer tonight, and he has been keyed up... :)

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